Teresa Starr at Village Arts where she is celebrating 20 years of collaboration April 25-26. Courtesy/Village Arts
BUSINESS News:
Teresa Starr and Village Arts celebrate 20 years of collaboration on April 25 and 26! Teresa sets up a monthly pop-up shop at Village Arts where, along with her expertise, design, repair and appraisal services, she offers an array of treasures including an impressive variety of always changing jewelry and collectable coins.
The public is invited to stop in at Village Arts to show Teresa just how much Los Alamos loves her! This weekend will be extra special, with opportunities to participate in drawings from both Beso Jewels and Village Arts, sign a card, grab snacks, and see what all Teresa has in store!
Teresa has been making friends in the community since 1999, when her records show that she first set up a booth at Fuller Lodge.
She recalls, “There was a jewelry store in Los Alamos and I think it closed in about 2001. When I would set up for the local arts and crafts fairs, people continuously asked me to do repairs. I would explain to them that I live in Albuquerque but they were not deterred. I called Lee Griffin, who had become my friend and asked her if she knew of any locations that I could set up shop at once a month. She introduced me to Marilyn Warren; the owner of Village Arts (at the time) and Marilyn welcomed me with open arms. Those arms have remained open for 20 years!”
Since Teresa’s first visit to Los Alamos, she has made friends with many of the residents and always has a place to stay when she comes to town.
Besides the true friends that she’s made in the past few years, Teresa has had the honor of designing wedding rings for couples, creating jewelry using customer’s designs and purchasing some really incredible estates. Teresa often has folks bring boxes of jewelry and coins that have filled her car. Those take weeks to process and she enjoys every minute. It’s like going through treasure chests!
Teresa has worked on a variety of unique projects through her customers in Los Alamos, and she enjoys a good challenge! She remembers one gentleman wanted a pendant with a gemstone that had the first letter of each of the letters in his wife’s name. Another wanted a 2 carat pink diamond, which was hard to find but she succeeded! She also recalls that a woman once brought her a 35 carat emerald ring to appraise for insurance purposes. It was deemed irreplaceable but they were able to give it a replacement value if ever lost.
Teresa has joined Village Arts monthly for longer than any of the present staff, and makes her monthly visits a special treat for Los Alamos and White Rock residents. Teresa will be at Village Arts at 216 DP Road, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 25 and 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 26.
Remember to sign up for her drawing by reaching her at besojewels@gmail.com prior to April 25 and to sign up for the Village Arts drawing in person while Teresa is present.
For more general information, please feel free to call Village Arts at 505.661.2526!