Adolfo Ambriz
Silversmith • Craftsman • Fredericksburg, TX • Since 1985
Born and raised in Piedras Negras, Adolfo has worked since he was a boy. At fourteen he came to San Antonio, Texas. As a young adult, he found work with Joaquín Benjamín “J.B.” Gardea of Orange County, California, and that meeting would change the course of his life in ways he couldn’t have known. Mr. Gardea spent more than 40 years running the Mexican pavilions at world’s fairs, and he brought skilled silversmiths from Taxco, Guerrero, to work them. Through him, Adolfo glimpsed a world most people never see. At first he didn’t think it was for him, until he worked his first show. Then he was hooked and never looked back. Adolfo spent years honing his craft, and like any true craftsman, he learned from many artisans who each taught him different techniques. In time, he turned that skill into a business of his own, building it show by show while raising his family.
Adolfo gave silversmithing a Western soul all his own, and people recognize it. Traveling the country to fairs and rodeos, from Seattle to Georgia and from north of Duluth down to the Rio Grande, the Ambriz family hears it again and again: “Your work looks familiar.” Then it clicks: “You’re them!”
Adolfo loves America with his whole heart and takes pride in the life he’s built here through hard work. Every Ambriz piece tells a love story, whether it’s the generation of Texan you are, the first brand on your family’s land, the birth of a child or grandchild, or the first dog you brought home. Whatever your story, past, present or future, the Ambriz family crafts something to bring you joy and keep who you love close.
Veronica Herrera Ambriz
Co-Owner • Designer • Engraver
Veronica spent her college years working at the Art Museum of South Texas in Corpus Christi, where she fell in love with museum life, from the galleries to the gift shop. Growing up, she and her best friend dreamed of opening a shop called Americana, filled with nothing but handmade things. She’d always made handmade gifts herself, so it felt like fate when she met a husband who makes everything by hand. In 1998, they built Ambriz Jewelry together, and today that childhood dream lives on at 807 W. Main in Fredericksburg.
Since 1992, Veronica has helped design and personalize Ambriz pieces, and she loves the stories people bring to the booth. Life on the road keeps her discovering new places, new people and new stories to tell through jewelry. She and Adolfo work hard and play hard, and family is at the heart of both. They’re maximalists in every way, and you can see it in everything they make and carry, the places they travel, and the way they live, in the booth, in the shop and at home.
Veronica is a proud descendant of the Canary Islanders who founded San Antonio in 1731 and built San Fernando Cathedral, where generations of her family have been baptized. So it feels fitting that the Ambriz family is best known for Texas stars, Texas jewelry and ranch brands. Texas branding began in San Antonio, where the Spanish kept the first brand book in the 1700s. Every piece reminds Veronica of the ancestors who brought that heritage with them and built the strength she carries today.
Adolfo Ambriz III
Craftsman•Next Generation•Since 2006
He’s the detail man of the family. When a ranch brand is full of intersecting lines and complicated shapes, Adolfo III can see through the noise and work it out cleanly. His stamping is so precise that people often think a machine did it, but every letter is stamped by hand.
Off the road, it’s all about family. He’s raised his older children into adults building lives of their own, and two boys are still at home, so long stretches between shows mean making breakfast, school pickups, and cheering at every school activity. Now his kids are bringing in a new generation. Adolfo III is a proud grandfather of four, with a fifth on the way, including Adolfo V. Yes, there’s officially a Cinco in the family.