Our Favourite Sustainable Jewellery Brands
In this article, we share why jewellery can teach us an important lesson about investing in quality. Summarising the current industry landscape, DELAH emphasises the urgent need for better practices and taking more responsibility as consumers.
Here we’ll unveil the purpose-driven jewellery brands working to effect sustainable and ethical change while upholding beauty in their collections.
On my 16th birthday, I was given a ring, featuring two clasped hands around a crowned heart, called a claddagh ring. An icon of Irish ancestry dating back as early as the 16th century, which many Irish mothers traditionally pass down to their daughters. It symbolises love, loyalty and friendship, and I remember claddagh rings worn by my grandmother, mother, and sister before me. I remember feeling such a heartfelt connection to my Irish family heritage.
This became one of the first meaningful lessons I learnt around jewellery. Jewellery is made as a symbol of appreciation and sentiment.
Since then, I have rarely bought jewellery for myself.
Much of the jewellery I keep today has been through so many cherished moments, like the time, around six years ago, when I was an au pair in London.
Living with a family of two children under four meant almost all hours of the day were a bit chaotic, but one evening, when the kids were in bed, the mother asked if I would help her untangle some of her jewellery.
She had such a bold and colourful collection, I found it fascinating, and there was a whimsical story for almost every piece. Once we’d untangled them, she asked me which pieces I liked the most. Having admired some of the beaded hoops and tasselled earrings, she said I could keep them. “Give them a new lease for life”, she said. I still think of her whenever I wear them.
I, too, could depict the sentiments inside my jewellery box, but instead, I think it would be more helpful to examine why quality and ethics in jewellery is so important, not only for longevity but to uphold and honour the sentiment behind each piece.
Signs of Cheap Jewellery
If it’s light and flimsy, the shape doesn’t hold, catching on whatever you're wearing, and immediately demoting the togetherness of your appearance.
If it doesn’t possess a decent weight, it’s also likely to break or snap, and cheap retailers won’t offer a repair service. At best, they might offer you a replacement, which will also inevitably break or snap.
Cheap metals, such as brass, aluminium, and copper, quickly tarnish after a few wears, and can often leave a green residue on your skin, sometimes difficult to scrub off.
For those of us with sensitive skin, particularly ears, wearing non-metals is not worth the irritation or allergic reaction.
Any presence of glue in a piece of jewellery is another telltale sign of low quality, as glue isn’t strong enough to stay connected after years of wear.
You can expect to either glue it back together when the time comes or be unable to as the disconnected piece will have gone missing.
If you’re only making a small investment, you may not mind, but spending hundreds, or worse, thousands, is a terrible investment.
As always at DELAH, another priority consideration we make when investing in jewellery is its ethical origins.
This is one of the most complex industries we have researched yet, as traceability is nearly enough impossible, and even industry standards and certifications, such as the Responsible Jewellery Council, admit to having “flawed governance, standards, and certification systems”, as reported by the Human Rights Watch.
Jewellery Mining - A Brief Summary
Environmentally, mining is water-intensive. At the same time, it contaminates groundwater sources with highly toxic chemicals such as cyanide, mercury, and sulphuric acid. Vast tracts of land are cleared for mining operations, destroying its ecosystem and soil degradation, inflicting even more water shortages.
Hazardous air pollutants released during the production and mining process mean working conditions are also appalling. Many workers have been held at gunpoint to work longer hours and work in already life-threatening conditions. Many have lost their lives during operations, including children, trapped after collapses or long-term exposure to hazardous chemicals and conditions.
History has shown that human rights issues can be addressed, but if the only way to mine gems and precious metals is through environmental destruction, how can this industry ever be even remotely ethical?
Currently Available Sustainable and Ethical Jewellery
To place the words ‘sustainable’ and ‘ethical’ with jewellery, the jewellery must be crafted in ways that do not harm people or the planet. This approach excludes many precious metals, gemstones, and diamonds found through traditional means, and creates increasing demand for an industry transition to use better practices and recycled materials.
Though lab-grown diamonds were first formed in the 1950s, it’s only in the last decade that we have seen a considerable rise in their availability in jewellery.
Lab-grown diamonds share the exact chemical composition as mined ones, mimicking the natural diamond formation process. By undergoing a much shorter, more transparent supply chain, and a significantly more sustainable and ethical production process, they exhibit the same beauty without the hidden cost on people and the planet.
Whilst gold and silver have also been made in a lab, it is not yet commercially viable or widely available. There is however ongoing research and development in this field, and so until then, the best options available today are stainless steel, or recycled precious metals.
Alternatively, pearl farming has been shown to provide a range of valuable ecosystem services, making it a unique proposition in comparison to other gemstones. However, as with all sourcing, it’s about traceability, which is why most high-quality jewellers provide documentation with each piece.
At DELAH, we recognise the industry has a long way to go, arguably facing bigger challenges than other luxury fashion-related industries. We look forward to the innovative solutions the industry will surely bring, and are both intrigued and enthusiastic about the future of sustainable and ethical jewellery.
Featured below are some of DELAH’s favourite jewellery brands. As we have highlighted, the industry isn’t perfect and limited sustainable and ethical options are available. The brands we have chosen to feature are purpose-driven and working to effect change, collaborating with trusted suppliers and upholding high standards.
Best Sustainable and Ethical Jewellery Brands
Their playful spin on classic designs is what we love the most about this brand. Taking engraving requests in all forms, sentimental jewellery is at Wild Fawn’s core.
Wild Fawn jewellery uses responsibly sourced gold, silver, and gemstones, and is a registered Fairtrade Gold business utilising recycled and fairly produced gold. They recycle silver and reuse metal scraps, whilst ensuring all diamonds and gemstones are conflict-free and traceable. Most pieces are made to order to avoid overproduction.
The entire collection is handmade in South East London by skilled artisans, with local production relying on UK suppliers and casters. If you’re looking to make your own pieces, they also host jewellery-making workshops at their studio.
Pictured above (left) is Stella McCartney’s collaboration with VRAI at last month’s Met Gala.
This brand are without a doubt leading the way for the rest of the industry in sustainability and ethics. In 2017, VRAI produced the world's first Carbon-Neutral Certified lab-grown diamond, grown using renewable energy from the Columbia River in America's Pacific Northwest.
VRAI, worn by celebrities such as Ed Sheeran, Cara Delevingne, Emma Watson, and Zendaya, is owned by the Diamond Foundry, a lab-grown diamond producer. Notably, actor and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio is one of its investors.
The entire jewellery collection exudes timeless elegance, making it the perfect choice for luxury gifting for special occasions.
If you’re looking for jewellers closer to home, Pearls & Pomegranates hosts several British independent jewellers’ collections online.
Each P&P jeweller handcrafts their pieces either individually or with a small team, using only recycled or fair-mined gold and silver and ethically sourced gemstones.
Most of the jewellery they feature on their site is created on a made to order basis, which means that each piece is made with only you in mind. This reduces waste and means that each jewellery piece is just that bit more special.
Additionally, every order conserves 20 square metres of Colombian rainforest in partnership with Bioconservancy.
Love founded her Brooklyn-based luxury brand on the grounds that “Jewelry should not only empower the wearer, but those who make it”.
All Pamela Love jewellery is exclusively made from recycled metals, ethically sourced and certified conflict-free gems with all stones used in their one-of-a-kind pieces having been up-cycled from antique and estate jewellery, or sourced from post-consumer materials.
The brand is actively involved in supporting Afghan artisan entrepreneurs by partnering with Turquoise Mountain, an organisation dedicated to their development and providing opportunities for Afghan craftmanship to reach a global market. Their first project in this initiative, in collaboration with Kyleigh Kuhn, is the recreation of their signature Moon Phase Necklace.
Sending subtle hints of an engagement to your other half? You might want to whisper this brand into their phone's microphone.
Cornwall-based winner of the Jewellery category at the Marie Clare’s Sustainability Awards in 2023, Ethica Diamonds, specialises in lab-grown diamonds, moissanite stones, and coloured gems, and uses 100% recycled precious metals.
The brand is led, owned, and founded by women, as well as having been finalists and winners for countless awards for their customer service, including Feefo, Cornwall Business Awards, and the South West England Prestige Awards.
Who are your favourite sustainable and ethical jewellery brands? We’d love to hear from you!
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