YOUR NEXT POP-UP

Just a little backstory about how Courtney Ray Jewelry got started, stick with me here!
I was born, Courtney Ray Vetters, and raised in a suburb of Houston, Texas as the youngest of a family of five (3 kids). At a young age I learned from my mom the importance of dressing nice and styling your hair when you walked out the door. Mom perfected the french braid and a slicked back ponytail (two things I still ask her for help with in my adult life!). Unfortunately for her, once I got old enough to dress myself I decided I wanted to rebel away from all of that. My favorite attire was basketball shorts, T-shirts and sneakers (cute, I know). That was also when my love of watching professional sports became my favorite pastime and my dad became my best friend. Still to this day you will find me on a couch with a beer in hand watching Sunday football with good ole dad!
Then came high school, boys and volleyball. It seemed like out of nowhere I did a 180 and became a fashionista! Although looking back, it doesn’t seem like my denim Abercrombie skirt was very cute. But, back then I thought I was rocking it! I really enjoyed styling outfits. I finally started to love going on those dreaded shopping trips with my Mom and my sister. We even took a few girls trips to New York City and I fell in love with the city.
When it came time to pick a major in college I was torn. Should I get a job with a solid income or go into fashion and hope to be able to pay the bills? With my mom’s encouragement to do what makes me happy, I decided to get a Fashion Merchandising degree from The University of Texas (Hook ‘em ). While working towards this degree, I was fortunate to be able to spend time in New York City doing internships with Donna Karan and Tibi. While in Austin, I did an internship with Kendra Scott and worked retail in a boutique. Post college my first job was as a merchandise associate and then associate buyer of jewelry for a national brand store.
Travel is the love of my life. I was lucky enough to study abroad in Barcelona, Spain while in college. During this time I visited many countries and found fashion inspiration in them all. While working, I found myself learning a lot but having a strong need to do my own thing. With the support and encouragement of family and friends I decided to leave my job and start my own jewelry boutique. The birth of Courtney Ray Jewelry! I couldn’t be more excited to share my love of fashion with all of you.