Sustainable jewelry is also an important step towards environmental protection and fair working conditions. We will show you which brands you can trust with a clear conscience.
What exactly does sustainable jewelry mean? When we talk about sustainability, we often talk about recycling. And that is exactly what matters when it comes to jewellery. Then reusable resources make the (jewellery) world more sustainable. This applies to both metals and renewable raw materials such as wood or cork and even precious stones that are recycled for new jewelry. But it can also be used with sustainable jewelry Made new become, for example arise then diamonds in the lab or gold is obtained without the addition of mercury – the main thing is that it’s fair! You can find out why general precious metal production is so problematic below.
Sustainable jewelery is therefore nothing more than one Mixture of recycling of environmentally friendly materials and fair trade around creation and delivery.
Fairtrade Jewelry Brands
When looking for sustainable jewellery, there are a few signs you can look for to be sure that you are dealing with a fair label. We show you which brands you can rely on.
A beautiful story
A beautiful story was born out of an idea to save a silversmith in Nepal from ruin. Cathelijne Lania is a marketer from the Netherlands when she hears that her favorite blacksmith in the South Asian country was suffering from a financial crisis in 2006. She wants to save the beautiful, handmade jewelry and the smithy and comes up with the idea of using shards of ceramic mugs to make unique jewelry out of them. After returning to the Netherlands, she quickly finds enthusiastic buyers, so she takes more and more orders to Nepal, where inherited tea services are transformed into individual pieces of jewellery. In the meantime, she has built up a worldwide network of partners who are happy about the fair trade jewelery from Nepal.
fejn jewelry
Reduced, clean, puristic – that’s how it is described fejn jewelry the look of your own jewelry. He should appeal to everyone. The real jewelry is made from recycled, certified 925 silver and is then gilded with 24-carat gold if necessary. There are also pieces made from pure recycled 14k gold. And fejn also remains fair when it comes to the decoration, because the diamonds are grown in the laboratory and the gemstones used are fairly sourced. Manufactured in a certified factory in Thailand, the pieces of jewelery make their way to the retailer with plastic-free packaging and climate-neutral transport.
little mush
A jewel for a season? Not with little mush. Breathed in by the Scandinavian vibe, the jewelery from the German brand should be suitable for everyone and accompany them for as long as possible. When it comes to jewelry, Lara and Clemens, the company’s founders, rely on porcelain that is handmade in a factory in Germany and undergoes a complex firing process to make it more durable.
Pakilia
Fair trade will be at Pakilia capitalized. The artisans of the jewelery label come from Taxco, a city in Mexico, and work there under humane, respectful and fair conditions. In addition to sustainability, values such as transparency, respect and dialogue are also important. Sterling silver, local pearls and natural stones are used to create the jewelery by hand. Any leftovers from the processing of the silver are kept and used for new pieces of jewellery.
pikfineAccessories
at pikfineAccessories we work out of conviction with natural materials and in resource-saving manufacturing processes. There is a story behind every piece of jewelry and with every necklace, every ring and every bracelet you will be informed about where the raw materials used come from – transparency is the keyword here. pikfine also attaches great importance to compatibility, recycling and the use of local resources.
Kaalee
Jewelry parts that are mainly produced in China? For Leela Kaarow, founder of Kaalee, no option. The information about quality, ingredients, delivery routes and production conditions were always too imprecise for her. Something that is not compatible with sustainability. In 2019, she decided to make jewelry from recycled gold. After she found suitable partners, she has since had the jewelry formed and manufactured by a local goldsmith.
tally
The brand provides sunglasses, bracelets and watches made from sustainable materials tally here. Instead of glass, high-quality cellulose acetate is used, which is made from a mixture of plant residues and acetic acid and is sourced from the Italian brand. But when it comes to wood, too, care is taken not to use endangered resources such as various tree species. Instead, they focus on wood from oak, walnut and even sandalwood – all from sustainably managed forests in Italy. When it comes to leather, Kerbholz uses a lot of recycled leather in order to keep the production of waste and the environmental impact of the production of their items as low as possible.
Why should I rather invest in sustainable jewellery?
Not only the environment is protected by sustainable jewelry and the use of local resources. It is important to know that the extraction of precious metals such as silver and gold or precious stones and diamonds involves great risks for people. Child labour, conflict and just handling mercury – sometimes without protective clothing – pose great dangers for people and the environment.
Children are used to mine the metals and gems grown in the narrow mines. Violent conflicts threaten because, in addition to the companies, other people are also interested in the valuable raw materials and do not shy away from armed violence. In addition, the workers often experience discrimination and exploitation.
If you now decide for sustainable jewelry, you counteract the effects and conditions. In addition to labels that pay attention to sustainability, you can also second hand jewellery To fall back on. Most products are of high quality and can be used by a new owner for many years or even decades.
You should pay attention to this when buying sustainable jewelry
If you are looking for an ethical piece of jewellery, then there are a few clues that you can use to tell whether the earring, necklace or bracelet is actually a sustainable product:
- Check the manufacturers: Most sustainable companies are quite open about their supply chains, raw materials used and how they are processed. Most of the time you can find out more about everything on their website. If you have any questions, ask the manufacturer! Many ethical jewelry brands have so far been rather small and therefore much more personal in terms of customer contact.
- Look for certificates from organizations: In the jewelry world there are quite a few certificates that distinguish a good company. Organizations that take care of this include: Fairtrade Certified Gold, Fairmined, Institute for Responsible Mining, Kimberly Process, Responsible Jewelery Council, Fair Trade Minerals & Gems eV and Climate Neutral.
- What are the ratings like?: You can usually tell how good a company is by looking at the reviews on Google, Amazon or Etsy. This not only applies to the products themselves, but also to customer service when it comes to questions and transparency in production.
- Decide on alternatives: In addition to gold and silver, there are already many more materials in the jewelry world, especially in the sustainable one, from which beautiful jewelry can be conjured up. Earrings, watches or rings made of wood, porcelain or glass are a good alternative – but they should also have been created and manufactured under fair conditions.
How can I dispose of old jewelry sustainably?
There are three simple ways to dispose of metal jewelry: the recycling center, a precious metals dealer such as Degussa, or a second-hand shop. However, some goldsmiths also accept old jewelery in order to use it for new pieces. Of course, this should be real jewelry and not costume jewelry.