EDGEWATER — A new bead and jewelry joint is about to open up shop in Edgewater in a creative way — within an already-established jewelry store.
AVP Jewelry and Beads will be calling Blue Buddha Boutique at 1127 W. Granville Ave. its new home starting July 1, when Ald. Harry Osterman (48th) and AVP Owner Ana Pizarro will be on hand for a ribbon cutting ceremony.
On that day, Blue Buddha and AVP will have jewelry and supplies marked down, $20 AVP gift cards will be raffled off hourly, the first 150 customers will leave with homemade earring or bracelet kits, and demonstrations on various classes will be held throughout the day.
From 6-9 p.m., the stores will hold an after-hours party with appetizers and drinks, more raffles and the chance to mingle with the shops' owners.
Like Blue Buddha, AVP is a jewelry supply shop, offering a variety of jewelry-making classes, custom repairs and technique consulting from owner Ana Pizarro.
AVP will have its own storefront in what was formerly a large teaching classroom in Blue Buddha, with a pair of doors connecting the two shops.
AVP will set up shop in a room adjacent to Blue Buddha, but will have its own front door. [DNAinfo/Linze Rice]
They differ from Blue Buddha in their selection of semi-precious beads, pearls and glass. They also offer authentic beads from Africa and metals coming all the way from Afghanistan, Pizarro said.
This will be AVP's second location. Pizarro first opened a 3690 N. Elston Ave. spot after she left the former Caravan Beads, a North Center bead shop that closed in 2014, where she worked with her sister and co-owner of AVP Diana Ortega, for almost a decade.
That's also where she met Rebeca Mojica, owner of Blue Buddha, who had been teaching classes on different jewelry techniques.
"I'm always trying to learn from her, I'm always trying to reach her level," Pizarro said of Mojica. "She's been my inspiration."
Some of AVP's beads. [DNAinfo/Linze Rice]
After Caravan closed in 2014, Pizarro said without beads, she didn't know what to do.
Her love for the work began about 16 years ago when she found a children's jewelry-making craft book. She said she went through the entire book, finishing as many projects as she could until she ran out of beads.
It was then she realized she had a knack for mingling different techniques with jewelry parts, a culmination of skills she learned as a girl in elementary school in Ecuador, she said.
"It was something that I couldn't stop doing," Pizarro said. "I love to teach people to make projects, so when one day someone said the shop was closing, I thought, 'What am I going to do after beads?' I really loved our shop."
Pizarro and her sister decided not to give up their passion and bought about 20 percent of the shop's inventory, using it to begin AVP, she said.
Now, she's ready to open her second location in Edgewater — a move she knows is "right" for her.
"It didn't take us long to decide that we should absolutely open our shop there," Pizarro said. "We know how important Rebeca is in that neighborhood, and also in the world, so we believe this is the right place to open our shop."
Some of AVP owner Ana Pizarro's work is already being sold at Blue Buddha. [DNAinfo/Linze Rice]
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