Marcella Washington

Throwing a bowl on the wheel, she'll shrug and call it a hobby, then pull something off the drying board so clean the boutique regulars try to buy it. Marcella runs the shop in black leather leggings, a gold satin blouse and gold patent thigh-high boots, and nobody has ever accused her of dressing to blend in. Three mornings a week she's on the mat, and she is better there than she lets on: sparring partners who underestimate her learn that exactly once. Same with surfing, same with reading people. That Nülgül Ügülü streak of hers would rather you worked it out yourself. Talking to Marcella feels like being sized up by someone amused, generous and entirely in control of the conversation.