Meet Krista Lavonas | Pediatrician and Metalsmith

We had the good fortune of connecting with Krista Lavonas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Krista, how does your business help the community?
Prior to starting my business at the end of 2019, I had been a practicing pediatrician in a safety net clinic in Denver for 11 years. I continue to work at the same clinic on a part time basis today. In order to serve our community well, we partner with many organizations, mostly non-profits, in the Denver community, to provide the resources our patients need.

When I started my business, I felt it was important to continue to support some of the organizations that have helped me to provide what is needed to the patents I have served over the years. So far I have partnered with the Grow Haus and The Gathering Place. I always donate at least 5% of each purchase to the organization I am partnering with. Each year as my business as grown, I have been able to lend more support to the people who have helped me to support my patients over the years.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I would say my jewelry is not for the faint of heart–it’s a bit bold, with color and texture. It doesn’t fade into the background. My clients say that when they wear my pieces, people ask them about their jewelry often. I like to work with unique stones and have built personal relationships with a small group of lapidaries, mostly here in the US, where I source them. I also employ some mixed metal techniques. And my pieces are built to last–I want them to be passed down to the next generation.

There have been a lot of challenges to this business along the way–primarily due to the timing of it’s beginning.
Starting a business a few months before the 2020 COVID outbreak was not the best timing. I had grand plans of in-person markets that spring and summer that never happened. However, I was fortunate to join the Sisters Art Guild, an online art guild that helped me through the first two years. I built relationships through the guild that have carried on into in-person relationships–I am meeting one of these women at the gem show this week. One of these women talked me through tent weight set up before my first in-person market with a tent once COVID restrictions lifted enough for those to begin again.

This past year has been a year of new lessons. I had my first wholesale orders–I had to learn to make a line sheet (and what a line sheet was). I had my jewelry go into 2 stores. I applied to a few and got into one juried show this summer. I am learning more about photography after getting feedback that mine needed to improve from one of the juries. I likely have website/e-ecommerce change coming up in the near future–I am sure that will be a huge learning experience as well.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would start out with lunch at the Comal heritage food incubator for lunch–this is a restaurant near Rino where aspiring immigrant and refugee women learn the skills to operate a restaurant and cook their native foods weekdays for lunch (delicious) and then it’s just a hop over to Rino to wander around the galleries and shops and peek at the murals and street art for the afternoon.

I would recommend a day hiking up to Columbine Lake outside of Tabernash, CO, which is one of our family’s favorite hikes. It’s a 6.3 mild out and back hike to a beautiful lake on a well maintained trail with beautiful views.

Check out the Stanley Marketplace in Aurora, CO. It’s a great mix of locally owned shops, restaurants, and services (barber, gymnastic school, music school).

A visit to the Denver Art Museum is a great choice. They always have a unique exhibit going on. If you have kids, they have fabulous backpacks of activities for them. Mine are too old for that now, but when they were younger, it was great. Have lunch at the Levan Deli, which is close by.

Go to a show at the Garner Galleria Theatre at the Denver Performing Arts Center; small shows, always interesting.

If you want to learn something about Colorado, visit the Colorado History Museum. Head to a concert at Red Rocks later in the evening–a classic venue and the best ever place to see a concert.

If you can find time to, grab a meal at Mango House in Aurora–it’s a shared space for refugees for their businesses and has several great small restaurants with a communal eating area. There are currently Syrian, Nepali, Burman, and Ethiopan food vendors at Mango House.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Kathy Pritchett was my first metalsmithing instructor at the Clear Creek Academy of Jewelry and Metal Arts (4340 E. Kentucky Ave, Glendale, CO 80246). I am pretty sure she thought I was a little crazy when I brought in my overly considered diagrams and plans for my pendant in my first class with her, but she rolled with it. I took classes with her off and on in the evenings when I could for a few years. I am grateful for her patience and encouragement and that she would let me push past the envelope of the class project.

Website: https://kristalavonasdesigns.com

Instagram: @kristalavonasdesigns

Facebook: krista.lavonas.designs