If you’re someone who is mindful of your environmental impact, you’re sure to have picked out your wedding suppliers with this in mind. Especially considering that one wedding can produce as much as 20kg of plastic waste, it’s crucial to be mindful of the sustainability of your big day. Often the first things that couples look to find sustainable options for are the dresses, suits, catering and decorations, but have you considered the impact of your wedding jewelry?
From your engagement and wedding bands to any necklaces and bracelets you wear on the day, the jewelry that you choose can have a significant impact on the environmental impact of your wedding. In this article, we look at how you can ensure that you choose the most sustainable and eco-friendly jewelry possible for your big day.
Lab-grown diamonds
If you’re looking for diamond-encrusted jewelry, opting for lab-grown stones is a surefire way to eliminate any worries about its history and sustainability. Without the need for mechanically intensive mining processes, the amount of resources used in order to create your diamond will be significantly lower. Instead, they replicate the natural process of forming a diamond in a lab, using high pressures and temperatures to compress carbon until it forms these beloved stones. What’s more, due to the nature of the lab-grown process, there are fewer worries about unfair labor practices.
Conflict-free stones
If your stone isn’t lab-grown, then it’s important to find out the history behind it before you fall in love. Many mining corporations operate unlawful practices, paying their staff pitiful wages in return for long hours of intensive manual labor. This is incredibly unethical, and something you definitely wouldn’t want to be reminded of when you look at your jewelry.
To maximize the sustainability of a naturally formed stone, you should ask about where and how it was mined. Smaller artisanal mines typically use more basic equipment, reducing the resources used in order to obtain the stones significantly. They also pay their staff fair wages, so by purchasing one of these stones, you can rest assured that it’s conflict-free.
Recycled or reclaimed materials
The precious stones and metals used in most jewelry come from finite resources, and the continued manufacturing of them can strip our planet of its natural reserves. Considering this, opting for jewelry made from recycled metals can be extremely beneficial. By helping to reduce the manufacturing of these metals, you can enjoy the same shiny finish without the increased carbon footprint.
Similarly, reclaimed stones are a great option when it comes to sustainability. Without requiring any additional manufacturing, these stones can easily be repurposed to create your dream jewelry with some simple tools. You could even opt to repurpose a heirloom stone for added sentimentality.
Having sustainable wedding jewelry doesn’t mean that you have to compromise. The same styles and luxurious touches can still be present, but you can rest assured that the methods used to create your jewelry didn’t cause harm to workers or the environment.
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