Travel Tuesday in Albuquerque, NM

Today we travel south from our last post in Montreal to the warmer climate of Albuquerque, NM! We will be visiting the wonderful husband and wife team, David and Helen, of VerbenaPlace.

Swiss Blue Topaz Pendant

Please give us a description of the area where you live, the places you frequent and whether or not your environment plays a part in the designs of your work.

Hi! This is Helen Worcester from VerbenaPlace. My husband, David Worcester, designs gorgeous, contemporary jewelry in Argentium silver, gold and gem stones. He is busy with Christmas orders, so I will be answering Monica’s questions. We live in beautiful Albuquerque, NM. We moved here two years ago after having lived in Northern California for about 25 years, and then 4 years in Seattle, WA where David was born and raised. We have moved quite a bit, but we plan to stay put in Albuquerque.

Does our environment inspire us? I don’t think you can help but to be inspired by your environment, at least, indirectly. Does it actually play a part in David’s designs? No, not really. David’s designs come from within David mostly. He is an abstract thinker and his designs reflect that quality.

Blue Topaz Earrings

What do you love about where you live?

We love the weather and the scenery here. We live at the base of the Sandia Mountains, which are on the east side of town. The Sandias have many interconnecting trails and we are just minutes from these. We love these mountains. They never fail to amaze us with their beauty. David, our brother-in-law and a neighbor recently took the tram up to Sandia Crest - a climb of about 4000 feet. At the crest it is about 10,000 feet. They had a wonderful hike back down, and I have enclosed a couple of photos from that hike.

On the west side of Albuquerque are volcanic mountains where the native people left their artistic mark hundreds of years ago in the form of petroglyphs. It still amazes us that we can walk among these wonderful carvings in the rocks and actually touch them. My favorite walk is at Rinconada Canyon where there are lots of petroglyphs to discover.

I guess the natural beauty surrounding Albuquerque is what we love best. But we also love the older adobe homes with their graceful architecture. We love Old Town, with its church, San Felipe de Neri which dates back to the 1700s, the surrounding plaza and quaint old shops. We also love the fact that the Hispanic and Native American cultures are so strongly felt here. And,of course, Route 66 with its 1950 and 60’s nostalgic vibe. If you have never been to Albuquerque or New Mexico, we highly recommend it. It truly is the “land of enchantment”.

Cultured Pearl Pendant

Many thanks to Helen and David for giving us a tour around their area! Another city I will have to put on my list to visit.