Alicia Winalski recalls the woman who brought a box with two glittery pins into her jewelry store for an appraisal. She had bought the pins for $5 each at a tag sale and had kept them in the glove compartment of her car for 30 years. On impulse, she asked Alicia their worth. One was rhinestone, worth only the $5 she had paid. But Alicia had good news about the other: it was platinum and diamond and worth about $18,000.

There is always the possibility that situation might occur again when Alicia acts as one of the appraisers at the Chester Historical Society's seventh annual antiques appraisal on Saturday, Nov. 5 from 9:30 a.m. to

12:30 p.m. at Chester Village West. For $5 per item, participants can receive oral appraisals for up to three items. The money raised benefits the Chester Historical Society. The appraisers on hand have expertise in areas from jewelry and furniture to collectible books and paintings.

Alicia says 9 times out of 10, when people bring a shiny stone into her store for appraisal, it is not a precious gem. Often, she says, the small glittery object is something of little value that dropped from an earring setting.

"Earrings are famous for falling out," she says.

But on occasion, there is good news.

"It's such a wonderful feeling, even if what they found is small," she says.

She says she herself is a fan of the PBS show Antiques Roadshow, which started the appraisal craze in the country. She recounts with enthusiasm the segment on which what the owner thought was an old blanket turned out to be a $350,000 to $500,000 Navajo blanket that the appraiser termed a national treasure.

Of course, there is another scenario as well-when an object the owner believes to be of value is actually worth far less.

"Maybe a family member told them it was valuable, but if it's not, it's best to just come out and say it as nicely as you can," explains Alicia.

Alicia, the oldest of six children and the only girl, grew up Alicia Morris in Chester. For the past decade, she has owned Nyman Jewelers in Old Saybrook. She not only sells jewelry, but she also makes it, often using recycled pieces of metal from damaged jewelry as her raw materials.

Although jewelry is one of the staples of television buying shows, Alicia says television and Internet sales still leave a place for local jewelers. When a piece a customer has bought online is damaged, Alicia says, local jewelers come to the rescue.

"They bring them here for repairs," she says.

Alicia says her Valley Regional High School art teacher, Margaret Kangley (who recently retired), sparked her early interest in jewelry. Working in ceramics, Alicia recalls that Kangley suggested she make clay beads. Those beads were the beginning of a career.

"I hope she knows how much she influenced me," says Alicia. "I think I've told her."

Alicia and her husband Conrad, who is a Connecticut state trooper, have three teenaged sons and she attributes her ability to run a business and a family to what she describes as her Type A personality. Her day starts long before she opens the store, often with a 5:30 a.m. indoor biking class, which she leaves early so she can get her sons off to school. The two oldest go to The Williams School in New London.

"I'm still sweaty in my gym clothes when I drive an hour to get them there and back," she says, "and then I have about 15 minutes to shower before I go to the store."

An outdoor cyclist as well as an indoor one, Alicia has ridden for the past several years in AngelRide, an annual two-day cycling fundraiser covering a total of 135 miles that raises money for the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp's Hospital Outreach Program. She is also a hiker, having recently trekked up Bear Mountain with her husband and friends.

Alicia has also completed two half-triathlons, the Mooseman in New Hampshire and the

Rev3Triathlon at Quassy Amusement Park in Connecticut. The events consist of a 1.2-mile open-water swim, a 56-mile bike ride, and a 13.1-mile run. She has not yet registered for another triathlon competition, but says she plans to.

Alicia says for her the run is a particular challenge, but she adds that the swim has also presented her with some unusual moments. After practicing locally, she concluded that the sidestroke, not the crawl, was her fastest stroke, and that's the one she used to complete the swim course. When she got out of the water, she says, she felt as though she had become lopsided, constantly lurching to one side. It took her a few miles to regain her equilibrium.

The antiques appraisal on Saturday will not present Alicia with an unusual schedule. As a retail shop owner, she is used to working on a day most people consider a natural part of the weekend.

"For years, the weekend for me has been Sunday and Monday," she explains.

And there's another reason she likes her Monday leisure.

"I love Monday night football," she says.

For more information, visit www.chesterhistoricalsociety.org and click on "Upcoming Events."

Antiques Appraisal to Benefit Chester Historical Society

Saturday, Nov. 5 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Chester Village West, 317 West Main Street (Route 148), Chester

$5 per oral appraisal; up to three items