FACES & PLACES
LOCAL COLOR OCTOBER 2006
 Flora Scheck
by Ellen Pineno
How does a woman
from Romania end up in Lambertville, NJ?
Flora Scheck,
proprietor of the new jewelry and accessory store
Florenta, located at 38 N. Union Street
in Lambertville, is excited about fulfilling the dream
of having her own shop.
Getting to this
point has been a long journey. Flora was born and
raised in Cluj,
Romania (in the Transylvanian region). She describes
her home as a beautiful old university city, built
between mountains and crossed by a large river. Cluj
is half-Romanian, half-Hungarian, and was communist
until the Revolution in 1989. Flora remembers growing
up under the Communist regime. Food was rationed, electricity
was cut off at night, and houses were cold. Of course,
freedom of speech was non-existent. Yet, Flora states
that her childhood was very happy. She had two loving
 parents, summer vacations by the Black Sea, good friends
and a beloved pet dog. She grew up with a love of music
and books.
At age 29, encouraged
by her father, Flora left Romania to come to the United
States to further
her education. She ended up in a whirlwind romance
and subsequent marriage. Her career in jewelry started
with a little job at Macy’s for the holiday season
in the Fine Jewelry department. After four years in
various positions, Flora became a sale representative
for Mouawad, one of the foremost jewelry houses in
Europe, popular with celebrities all over the world
and famous for its Heidi
Klum and Rosette Collections. In this capacity
Flora had the opportunity to travel extensively, doing
large jewelry expos in places
like
Tucson, Las Vegas, and New York City.
 When
she finally decided to go out on her own, Flora chose
Lambertville for her store! She had been coming to
Lambertville for years as a tourist and fell in
love with the arts community here. She believes
that Lambertville is the perfect place to showcase
her
unique jewelry.
Flora
will be carrying one-of-a-kind hand-made amber pieces
created by talented Polish designers. Amber
is fossilized tree resin from ancient forests. Most
people think
that amber comes in just one color. Not so. Most
amber is the traditional gold color but is also
available
in green, cherry, butterscotch, and honey colors.
All of Flora's amber comes from the Balkin Sea.
In addition to jewelry,
Florenta will
offer
sculptures, accessories, and whimsical gifts. There
will be something for everyone in a wide price range.
Flora's
Grand Opening is scheduled for Saturday October 14th.
Drop by for refreshments from 6-8 pm. Phone number
is 609-397-5590.
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