A few years ago my best friend and her husband packed up their family and moved to Santiago, Chile for a year.  As always, my family loves the opportunity to visit a new area and we traveled to Chile for Spring Break to visit them.  It was on the trip that I met the brilliant jewelry designer, Valentina Rosenthal. 

My friend took me to her shop in a chic neighborhood in Santiago and she showed us her work - a beautiful variety of colorful stone earrings, as well as copper, silver and brass rings and crystal pendants.  We discussed her style and her influences and tried on many, many pieces.  It was like playing inside a kaleidoscope.  I left with several pieces for myself and a promise to stay in touch, in hopes that her work would soon be a part of the Lesetta Collection.

Valentina, a native of Santiago, studied at the prestigious Goldschmiedeschule School in Porzheim, Germany.  She returned to her home country and founded VR Jewelry, a brand that transforms nature into design pieces by using a variety of techniques and materials.  

VR Jewelry is known for its romantic spirit and a deep connection with the dramatic Chilean landscape. She says, “We live in the end of the world and there are many things that the world doesn't know about Chile. Like the infinity of colors and magic stones that the Andes have, our rich native culture, our landscapes and biodiversity.”  

Her use of the bounty of gems and metals from Chile are inspired by her love of nature, which she is conscious to preserve in her sourcing of materials.  I was blown away by her attention to detail. From her brilliance with patina and enamel of the metals, to the wrapping with silk, and the attachment of stones - all show her amazing skill of the highest level.  She is always experimenting with new techniques and technology.  She describes being a jewelry artist as a form of storytelling and strives to create work that touches the soul of every woman that wears it.