Post-pandemic, Lena Street creatives forge a community.
Around the Bonfire
On a bonfire just steps from Living Thread Studio’s front door, organic bolita beans from Owl Park Farm simmer in a heavy pot. Inside, ceramic bowls hold toppings: roasted delicata squash and green onions from the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market, feta cheese from Camino de Paz School & Farm, and crusty sourdough baguettes from Bread Shop. The table, crafted at Traveler Fine Furniture, is set for the meal.
Dessert follows with apple tartlets made from local fruit. After dinner, guests sip a cocktail of mezcal, honey syrup from the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, and ginger beer, served with bee pollen on the rim.
The Story Behind the Table
Living Threads co-founder Teresa Robinson describes the meal as simple and rustic—an intentional celebration of the local food ecosystem. Her partner, Eric Mindling, expands on that idea, pointing to the vessels made in Mexican villages where he lived and worked for decades. They will eat at May’s handmade table, the same neighbor who crafted the mezcal cocktail.
“There’s all these relationships to think about,” Mindling says. “It’s not just some random thing we bought. There’s people and their stories.”
A Pandemic Love Story
Finding ways to connect people—and creating space for them to share knowledge—helped inspire the couple to open Living Threads in May 2021. The venture grew out of their own pandemic love story.
They met in February 2020 at a textile event in Mexico City. Robinson, a self-described nomad, was born in Brazil, raised speaking Portuguese, and identifies as a “third-culture kid.” She started her business Nuraxi in 2011 to support artisans and local economies. Mindling had been working in cultural tourism in Oaxaca, while also photographing and writing about traditional artisans.
In March 2020, he flew to Los Angeles to see Robinson just as the city locked down. Weeks later, they drove to Oregon together, eventually relocating to Santa Fe in September.
Building Living Threads
The studio became a creative home for both their businesses and a gathering place for meals, talks, and events. “We didn’t have a business plan—just a juicy vision of what it could be,” Mindling says.
That vision expanded to include the Lena Street Lofts community. Together with local artists, they launched a First Friday open-studio event, showcasing makers and creatives in the area.
The First Friday Community
Multimedia artist Gloria Santoyo Ruenitz, originally from Mexico City, helped brainstorm the First Friday concept. She moved to Santa Fe just before the pandemic and now works in a Lena Street studio. During lockdown, she created a ceramic series called Humanity, which Mindling photographed.
The first event in October 2021 included six studios. “We’re like off-off-off Broadway, but there’s amazing talent here,” Ruenitz says. “And there’s a great camaraderie between all of us.”
Bread, History, and Connection
Not everyone on Lena Street is new to Santa Fe. Jacob Brenner, co-owner of Bread Shop, grew up here. He and his wife opened their bakery in January 2020, specializing in organic sourdough breads and seasonal focaccia. Their window-service model thrived during the pandemic.
Brenner’s parents once developed the Lena Street property, which was formerly a bus yard. “There was no reason for anyone to be back here then,” he says. “There’s reason now.”
A Blessing for the Space
As the evening winds down, bowls of stew circulate around the bonfire. Fabric strips inscribed with blessings flutter in the doorway. “Paz y prosperidad,” one reads—peace and prosperity.
“At Living Threads’ opening, we asked everyone to write us some wishes for the space,” Robinson explains. “We’ve kept them up because they bless our space. It’s about community and intention.”
Story by Julia Goldberg
Photography by Tira Howard
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