An engagement ring is a ceaselessly jewel; an on a regular basis image of a cherished second in time. Naturally, high quality craftsmanship and the suitable aesthetic are extremely vital. Equally as vital, nonetheless, is the journey your ring took earlier than it reached your finger. Gleaming steel and glistening gem stones are magnificent at floor degree, however true magnificence lies deeper. Nobody’s ceaselessly jewel must be marred by a doubtful lack of traceability; yours ought to inform a narrative that you simply’re proud to share.
Right here at Lebrusan Studio, we all know we’re not the one individuals who really feel this manner. Aware consumerism is on the rise, with vital spikes in on-line search phrases like ‘recycled’, ‘sustainable’ and ‘moral’ reported final 12 months. Analysis in 2021 additionally revealed {that a} jewel’s sustainability claims at the moment are simply as vital as its worth when consumers are deciding what to buy. It is possible, then, that the phrase ‘moral engagement ring’ has offered itself to you a minimum of a few times.
However what does it reallyimply?
WHAT MAKES AN ENGAGEMENT RING ETHICAL?
In easy phrases, an moral engagement ring is one created with minimal unfavourable affect on the surroundings and no violations of human rights. Even higher is that if its existence has given again, not directly, to the communities accountable for bringing it into fruition.
Traditionally, the mining of treasured metals and gem stones has been accountable for unimaginable violations of human rights and destruction on devastating scales – from poisonous waste spills to mercury air pollution, displacement of communities, slave labor and past. Nonetheless right now, a stunning variety of jewelers proceed to supply supplies with murky backstories for the sake of affordability and mass manufacturing.
Nonetheless, moral jewelers perceive that it’s now attainable to benefit from the lovely items supplied up by Mom Nature while not having to affiliate with any of the organizations driving these atrocities. Because of a wide range of fantastic supplies, certifications, suppliers and producers, we’re in a position to create engagement rings which can be lovely exterior AND inside.
An moral engagement ring can tackle a mess of guises, every relying on the supplies and processes concerned. Right here, we’ll discuss you thru the number of methods we be sure that our engagement rings are as moral as they’ll presumably be.
ETHICAL METALS
FAIRTRADE GOLD, FAIRMINED ECOLOGICAL GOLD AND 100% RECYCLED GOLD AND PLATINUM
Arguably probably the most elementary component of an engagement ring, steel is the glue that binds the magic collectively. There are a variety of sustainable steel choices obtainable, and we have chosen these above.
Fairtrade and Fairmined certifications are solely awarded to artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operations which have confirmed themselves to stick to a sure commonplace of follow ideas. In different phrases, Fairtrade Gold and Fairmined Ecological Gold are mined underneath protected working circumstances by miners who’re paid acceptable wages and afforded the chance to commerce their gold internationally and underneath truthful phrases. Environmental sustainability is considered (notably within the occasion of Fairmined Ecological Gold, which is mined utilizing no poisonous chemical substances in any respect), and extra funding is allotted for group tasks.
As newly mined steel, Fairtrade Gold and Fairmined Ecological Gold don’t boast the environmental ‘neutrality’ of recycled metals, however the socioeconomic advantages of the Fairtrade and Fairmined initiatives are plentiful. If sustaining miners, their households and their communities appeals to you, a licensed ASM gold like Fairtrade Gold or Fairmined Ecological Gold could be an awesome match on your moral engagement ring.
On the flip aspect, recycled metals keep away from the necessity for additional mining altogether, as an alternative using materials that is already above floor. If minimizing your carbon footprint is your utmost precedence, choosing 100% recycled gold or platinum is a intelligent technique of doing so.
ETHICAL STONES
CONFLICT-FREE CANADIAN DIAMONDS, RECYCLED DIAMONDS AND FAIR-TRADED COLORED GEMSTONES
No engagement ring is full with out a glowing centerpiece. Whether or not you are wooed by the massive and blingy or end up drawn to curious hues, fortunately there are a selection of moral stone choices so that you can select from.
Diamonds and gem stones can journey via the palms of many sellers till they attain their ultimate vacation spot in a stupendous piece of bijou. For us, it is important that we are able to hint our newly mined treasures again via these lengthy and fragmented journeys. Realizing a diamond or gemstone’s nation and mine of origin is essential to defining its sustainable credentials, which is why we work with fastidiously chosen and trusted suppliers who can share this data with us. Almost the entire newly mined diamonds set in our engagement rings are of traceable Canadian origin. Bigger stones are even laser-inscribed with a microscopic Canadamark, an independently verified certification confirming the place the diamond was extracted and assuring that it was mined underneath strict Canadian rules. In the meantime, our coloured gem stones are sourced from a thought of number of small-scale mines the place greatest follow ideas, environmental affect, truthful labor circumstances and group advantages are of the utmost significance. If stone origin and traceability are your important considerations, a newly mined Canadian diamond or fair-trade coloured gemstone is the selection for you.
Alongside these newly mined and conflict-free gem stones, we additionally provide recycled diamonds; a stupendous alternative to rehome a fabled chunk of historical past and decrease your engagement ring’s pressure on our planet. World warming has reached disaster level, and irrespective of how pretty traded or fastidiously sourced, newly mined supplies expend useful assets. It is vital that we decelerate the speed at which we’re consuming water, land and power. We’ll by no means cease supporting small-scale miners, as a result of they nonetheless want an revenue, however it is time to begin putting a stability. By the character of classic, reclaimed diamonds do not include origin assured, and we perceive that this lack of traceability would not sit comfortably with everybody – but when environmental sustainability is your precedence, a recycled diamond is best for you.
SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURE
MINIMAL SURPLUS AND TRADITIONAL CRAFT TECHNIQUES
Craft is a language that enables an individual to make their mark on the world, channeling historical past, ardour and approach from one era to the subsequent. For myriad societies, jewelery craft is what the UN would name an ‘intangible cultural heritage’; a relic simply as useful as buildings, monuments and artifacts. When conventional craftsmanship is championed within the current day, a useful flame is saved alight. Maintained is a way of belonging, as individuals are afforded a tactile connection to their historical past – an perception into their heritage.
Nice Britain boasts an amazing historical past of jewelery craft. From diamond polishers eradicating minute flaws to diamond mounters setting stones into platinum on a microscopic scale and hand-engravers etching intricate motifs into gold, the folks behind our engagement rings preserve centuries of custom. We select to fee these small family-run workshops, every specializing in a singular craft, as a result of it is vital to us that these craftspeople can proceed doing what they’re doing for years to come back.
What’s extra, our engagement rings are made to order. Which means every is crafted with love and its fortunate new wearer in thoughts, guaranteeing minimal surplus.
Love, Arabel & Staff
Supply hyperlink
