Featured in Pretty Things Blog!

I just got a blog feature in Pretty Things, Lauren's (herprettybird at etsy) blog. She was kind enough to interview me and feature me in her blog!

You can read all about it here: http://herprettybird-lolo.blogspot.com/2009/11/interviewing-veronica.html

Thank you so much, Lauren, for featuring me, and I hope I can repay the favor sometime.

Doggie treasuries!

So there I was, planning my treasury, looking for unique items to celebrate dogs, especially Cocker Spaniels. I was cuddling with Sally and thought about doing an etsy treasury about her.

I gathered my items and I had about an hour to kill before the treasuries opened, so I started looking at other people's treasuries and I saw this one, also doggie themed. And we have even items from the same sellers, just geared to our breed! How cool is that?

Anyway, the treasury I saw is a tribute to Oscar, a dog that passed away recently. It made me a little sad, as I remembered Boris, my Schnauzer who also passed. I convoed the person who did it, and she was really nice to boot! Here is Oscar's treasury: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=94332
And then we have my treasury. It is all about Cocker Spaniels, as a tribute to Sally, whom I adore... You can see sally's here: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=94528

I hope you enjoy these treasuries and the doggies in them, and that they inspire you to go and hug your own dog!

The Infamous Orange Button

I'm writing today in part anger, part disappointment and part wanting to kick someones butt.

You see, Etsy decided to be hip and cool for the Holidays, and that is perfectly fine, but, they decided to create one cute orange button that will direct people to the gift guides. That is fine too.

And what are the gift guides? Well, they are guides or showcases of items Etsy admin likes, and that is fine too. Except they seem to be fixated with certain themes and colors and truthfully, only a handful of sellers get chosen. And what is worse is, it is the same sellers over and over again, leaving thousands of great Etsy sellers out because their items are too colorful or just don't plain fit the Etsy aesthetic.

Here is a screenshot of the Etsy front page. Notice you have the gift guides on the left upper part, and the lovely orange button in question (and yes, please read this post with a good dose of sarcasm!) in the right upper corner of the button bar.

Now we go into MY shop. Veronica R Studio's page. Notice the same lovely (NOT!) button on the right hand corner. Did I create a gift guide you ask? Of course not, who has the time! Not only do we have to keep shop, list items, MAKE THE ITEMS BY HAND, take pictures and make everything look pretty, then go out and promote to the world until we are blue in the face and can't take it no more, and we get this button, which innocent customers have clicked, by the way, taking them AWAY from our shops, into what Etsy thinks is hip and cool for the Holidays.

Do you, dear reader, now see the unfairness of it all? It is like going into a store with your merchandise and luring customers away to your store. People do it, but it is not nice.

So me and other Etsy sellers beg for justice, or just that someone listens, and that they keep that button if they want, just not into our shops! There is a petition going, you can see it here http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6344121.

BTW, here is another PSA: Some Etsy sellers are hosting a great sale starting on Black Friday! It will go on through the weekend, until Cyber Monday. Just type Black Friday in the search box to see all the items included and all the sellers participating!

It gets ugly before it looks pretty, right?

Well, it has been one week. I started this adventure last Monday morning, and here we are, 1 week later!

The house is a mess, floors are covered in plastic, old carpet renmants and cardboard. The mess is evident and dust is flying everywhere! The kitchen and bathrooms are getting gutted, old tile came out, electrical outlets are being moved and light switches being relocated.

Remember the family room? It had a 36" wide doorway right in the middle of this wall, and a tiny wall area on each side. They just opened up a big hole in the wall, and they are bringing in new masonry block to close off the original doorway, making the new doorway to the right of the room, getting me a good amount of wall space to put nice furniture for my TV in.

The kitchen. I spent two hours on Friday with the electrician, moving outlets and planning stuff. See my naked walls!

New oulets already moved!

DD's bathroom, naked as well. Now that I see the space, I'm thinking I might want to move some things, basically, make the shower stall smaller and give her more sink space. She will thank me later!

I made it to Craftgawker!!!!!

I have been at etsy as a seller since August. I know, I'm practically brand new! Although I have been there as a buyer since last year.

Anyway, I started participating in the etsy forums, and learned about Craftgawker, a juried site, where you can showcase your handcrafted items.

There is gorgeous photography in there, and I hear the level of rejection is high, however, my citrine necklace just got accepted! I'm so happy... This made my day, especially since sales have been nonexistent and views so low...

I did submit my faceted amethyst necklace as well, but that one didn't make it. I'm still ecstatic about the citrine!

You can see it at craftgawker http://craftgawker.com/ and here on etsy: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33720066

Home Remodel -Day 3, everything comes off!

The crew arrived at 9am sharp on Monday morning, even though it was Dia de los Muertos, and it was a holiday (no schools, government offices and banks). They arrived, toolboxes in hand, ready to take on the work.

They took out all the bathroom fixtures and accesories and uninstalled my kitchen cabinets and countertops, leaving just the bare walls, so the tile can come off.

So, here is what is left of the powder room. We are making a new bathroom for my son, so all the new pipes and hidraulic installtion will run through the powder room, since his bedroom is right on top!

My daughter's bathroom.

Master bath. I love the huge window in the shower, and I hate the huge window in the shower... It is wood (who, on their sane mind would put wood in a shower window?????), and it is rotting, so I get to shop for a new window too.

Kichen. Just the walls are left. We are moving some light switches and electrical outlets around. They will also be installing a duct for a range hood.

My kitchen in a pile on the dining room. I just hope it survives with the least damage possible!

A Christmas Carol

I took my kids to see Jim Carrey's A Christmas Carol today. Our school's parents association did a fundraiser showing, and they bought out the matinee hour.

The kids were so excited! I wanted to see this, since it seems to be the big Holiday movie this year. Well it was so-so. Not bad, but not great either.

First, the movie was very dark. I know, at that time there was no electricity and there was only candlelight, but the general aesthethic of the movie was dark. And I mean dark! Then, I'm not really a fan of the story. Sorry Charles Dickens, but I have never been fond of this story. The message is good, just not for me.

But what I really wanted to caution my readers about is to think twice if you are taking young children! I have a 12 year old and a 9 year old, and both got scared during the ghost from Christmas Future part. Even I got scared! The grim reaper was extremely realistic! The ghost from Christmas Past was kind of weird too.

So, if you want to see it, great! Just know that it has some really, really scary parts and that young children might get nightmares from it.

Home Remodel -Before

Hello, dear readers. I apologize for taking so long in writing, but here it is, the before.

For those of you that don't know, I live right next door, in a house that is virtually identical to this one, except it is inverted, like a mirror image. It is a condo complex, consisting of 23 townhomes, and this home looks like it might be permanent for me. It will be mine, no renting, no depending on anyone, no significant other to share it with. Mine.

The house is lovely! It has 12-foot high ceilings in the ground floor, wonderful use of space, it is narrow, yet it doesn't feel cramped. The thing is, its boring. Beige. Safe. Lacks personality. If it is going to be mine, I want to make it my own, and I just don't mean transferring the deed. It is going to have my stamp on it and reflect my personality (well, my personality right now, as it seems to change and evolve). So, without further ado, here are pics, lots of them!

This is the entry foyer, the first thing you see through the front door.

Going up the stairs... I love the wrought iron bannister!

Living/dining room. This is a long rectangle, and it will house my living and dining rooms. My furniture is chocolate brown (a story for some other time), and I plan to infuse color into this room (and the whole house).


Family room. This room has lots of light! However the wall that leads into the kitchen has the doorway right in the middle! Not good. So the doorway will get moved to the right, so I can have bigger wall space to put a credenza with my TV and entertainment stuff.

Ahhh, the kitchen... This one is extremely personal. You see, I worked for about 7 years (two different showrroms) designing and selling kitchens. I drew plans, helped make material combos, helped clients choose cabinets, countertops and appliances, oversaw installation, yet, in all the houses I have lived in, the kitchen was already done, it was in good condition, and there was no budget to change it. I had to comply to what others had done, in one of the parts of the house that mattered the most to me.

This time, I get to make it mine!!! YAY! Due to budget restrains, the cabinets are staying, but they will get a facelift. I get to have granite countertops, choose pretty tile, get better stainless appliances, and a range that will not have just one temperature (GRRR) that will bit burn my baking!

The powder room. This is as bland as it gets! I chose a gorgeous gold tile that is really shimmery and this one is getting a major overhaul!

This is the view coming from the stairs, these are the kids' bedrooms. There is an existing bathroom which will be enclosed in DD's room, and DS is getting a new bathroom where the closet is, inside his room.

DD's bathroom. This is getting a facelift as well.

The master beedroom. As bland and boring as the rest of the house. I plan to paint a lovely shade of blue-gray and spruce it up!

Master bath, which will get renovated as well with all new tile, fixtures and accesories.

And here is me soothing Sally. Sally is having a nervous breakdown. Poor thing was scared when we walked in the empty house and she started jumping, wanting to look out the windows. Somehow, looking the window soothes her. Go figure.

Now that they are gutting the place, she is panicky! I just hope she survives the remodel without getting a heart attack!

Pretty Monarch Butterfly

It is that time of the year... Summer finally gives up and Fall starts taking over. The days get shorter, the wind gets cooler, the whole weather seems crisper, chillier.

Every year, around this time, we get the Monarch Butterfly migration. Thousands and thousands of butterflies fly South towards warmer weather. For me, this has marked the official end of a season and the beginnings of another. Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated by the butterflies migrating.

This morning I took Sally for a walk, and saw a butterfly struggling on the ground. It was by a tree, and it fluttered its wings time and time again, walking from one place to another. I think I spend about a good hour watching it. All those pretty spots and orange rust colors! I had to take some photos of it too.

I went out about an hour ago, and was a little sad to see it wasn't there anymore, but at the same time happy that it has flown away. At least that is what I hope so, that it has reunited with its mates in their journey.

God speed and good luck, little friend!

I start my home remodel on Monday!!!!

Yay, great news.... My tennants moved today, and they turn in the keys to the house tomorrow. Just spoke with my architect and we have an appointment this weekend to go over the project, and we start on Monday!!! It will be a complete home renovation.

This is the first home in my life that will be mine and only mine. No sharing it with any significant others, just my kids and they do have a say in their rooms.

Expect lots of photos as it progresses.

The Amethyst Necklace

So I had about half of a strand of these gorgeous faceted amethysts left. I bought the strand years ago, and made a necklace for myself, the one you see in the title heading of this blog. I liked it so much, that I made another one just like it to sell.

I was looking at these beads, with their deep, rich purple color, and thought to myself that they would look great wire wrapped into a necklace, so I set myself to work. After I was done with them, I had a 16" necklace left. My neck takes 18 inches!

I wanted to keep this one for myself so bad, but I just don't know how to add extra lenght and make it look good, so up it goes for sale. I got 4 amethyst strands at the bead shop the other day, and maybe, just maybe I'll have to do something to console myself. I'm thinking a 36" long necklace with the 6mm smooth round beads. What do you think?

Got some good news today

My neighbors are finally moving! I had to go in the house today to have the windows measured, and she told me that they plan to move on Wednesday, Oct 21, so that is one more week!

I'll post house befores and updates when that happens!

My newest obsession, Etsy Treasuries

I discovered a nifty little feature on Etsy about two weeks ago. The Treasury.

The Treasury is a place where members do a showcase of items they like, based on a theme, these showcases are called Treasuries. Some of them even make it to the Home page!

Treasuries are a great way to get publicity as well, for the curator of the treasury and also for the sellers whose items are showcased, so getting a treasury is a very big deal at etsy, and the adrenaline rush and high you get while waiting for the elusive little rectangle to show up can be quite a trip. I have done two treasuries so far, and since I have run out of inspiration today, I will instead brag and write about them here on my blog. :)



This is the first Treasury I made, which I titled Autumn on Fire! I based it around Autumn and all the gorgeous fall colors with the foliage at this time of year. I also included some items that I loved and that I would love to go back and buy!



This is the second treasury I created. I based it on the color purple, which is one of my favorites. So much that I'm even basing my whole business concept around it. Sorry for the two missing items, one was a wonderful Christmas tree ornament and the other was a gorgeous, gorgeous amethyst ring. Didn't notice that the photos hadn't loaded yet when I took that screen shot!



And this is a treasury where I had the pleasure of being featured. Thank you so much to Sandy, of the Earring Boutique! You can find her etsy store Here

If you want to learn how to make your own treasury, and experience the fun for yourself, you can read this post by Rachel Lucie. Have fun!

Having a bit of a hard time today

I sell on etsy.com. I haven't mentioned that, but I will now. :) I make wire wrapped jewelry with pearls and beads and stuff. You can see it at www.veronicarstudio.etsy.com

Anyway, More than a week ago, I ordered my gift boxes, some gold filled wire and clasps. I needed them at the time, and now, it is verging on urgency. They still haven't arrived.

Then, I got the inspiration to make a necklace and some earrings. Well, it turns out that the pearls I had left for my focal in the necklace were all the damaged ones that come in the strand (out of a full strand, there are some that don't make it to jewelry, at least mine). Ok, necklace project scrapped... On to some earrings. I had the hardest time picking out beads that were a close match, which is a high priority for me. Earring project scrapped.

I just hope that my supplies arrive because I have some pending projects that I can make with that!




This is my work space. It is a little nook in my home that is located just coming out of the staircase.

Housing situation and upcoming remodeling project

So I happen to live in a really nice condo complex. I fell in love the minute I saw it for the first time, and at that time, never realized actually living here would be a possibility for me as I lived in another city.

The opportunity came up to move, and there was a house here I could take, right next to the one owned by my parents. I'm renting and had an option to buy, however after a lot of negotiations with the owners, we never came to an agreement.

I will be moving to my parents' home, and they bought a property to invest already, so everything is good. I have an architect and a crew waiting, but the tennants haven't left yet, despite the contract expiring more than a month ago!

So, as soon as they move out, I will be starting a complete interior renovation (the exterior is gorgeous, plus we have rules here on not modifying it), and will post lots and lots of before, process and after pics. Stay tuned!



I live in the house on the left, moving to the one on the right.

More Sally pics

And here are some more Sally pics, just because I couldn't resist!

Meet Sally!

This is Sally, my 3-year old Cocker Spaniel girl. She is one of the loves of my life and a very important part of it, so I may mention her sometimes around here.

One thing that I have noticed in Sally is how happy she is! She is a constant tail wagger, and has the happiest disposition. I was used to having a grumpy Schnauzer and some high-strung Chihuahuas, and Sally is just a breath of fresh air with her happiness.

Her favorite things in life are going outside and just walking in the grass, sniffing every single blade I might add, squeaky toys, looking out the window at the passerby, sleeping on my bed and people food.

So here she is, my little golden puppy girl!

My Love Affair With Jewelry

It all started ever since I can remember. My mother had nice jewelry. Of course in those days, women seemed to make do with only a few pieces, a pearl necklace, a good pair of gold earrings, a bracelet, some rings. My dad seemed to be a really good jewelry giver, as my mom had some pretty good pieces! I loved to take everything out of her jewelry box and just drape it around, set it store-style, and just admire each piece.

I have an aunt (mom’s sister) who had even more jewelry, and since she lived abroad, she would stay as a house guest with us about two times a year, and yup, she brought her jewelry which I would borrow and admire.

Ever since I could read, I would collect magazines, catalogs, and every book I could find on the subject. Then, at around age 10, I began buying my first pieces: simple, inexpensive silver things. As I grew up, my taste evolved, each piece getting more expensive and sometimes elaborate. After I got my first job and began making money for myself, I started getting into gold, and some gems. I then started having that gold melted and made into new pieces.
The next logical step was to make the jewelry for myself, so I started beading. I make wire wrapped pieces, using sterling silver, gold-filled metals, pearls and gemstone beads. I even have some pieces I have made for myself in 14K gold.

I collect gem and jewelry books. Big coffee table books with lots and lots of photos. I consider this to be my version of porn, since jewelry is what turns me on. Come on, wouldn’t you be all hot and bothered looking at Cartier, Mikimoto pearls, Harry Winston diamonds and the colorful and plain gorgeous designs by Paloma Picasso?

A college in my city just opened a jewelry course and of course I had to take it. According to the program, I will be able to design and make more complicated pieces than what I’m making now. I can’t wait! And you bet I will brag and write about it as I learn new things!

A little about me

Hi there! Welcome! Please come in and make yourself at home...

I was born and raised in Monterrey, Mexico, in a wonderful part named San Pedro. Monterrey is surrounded by wonderful mountains and I love how it is a very big city, yet still has that small town feel sometimes.

I am the oldest of 3, went to the same school all my life, until I went to college. I studied graphic design, only to graduate and go on working as a kitchen designer.

I have 2 kids. I divorced my husband several years ago, and now live with my kids and my dog, Sally. They are the loves of my life! I would to meet a new guy someday, but it is not a priority.

I love art, jewelry, and color in general. I can get crayon or marker boxes and just stare at the pretty colors all day long!

Anyway, I am so happy you are reading this and I hope you enjoy this blog!