Cover Upcycling industrial byproducts? Recycling gold? These jewellery brands put sustainability at the front and centre (Photo: Liudmila Chernetska / Getty Images)
Upcycling industrial byproducts? Recycling gold? These jewellery brands put sustainability at the front and centre (Photo: Liudmila Chernetska / Getty Images)
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Due to the demands of climate change, jewellery brands have made sustainability the cornerstone of their operations, proving that luxury and eco-consciousness can go hand in hand
Living sustainably minimises the negative impact our lifestyles have inflicted upon our environment. To do this, it’s only apt that we become conscious of even the smallest aspects of our lives—whether the way we eat or how we choose our clothes and jewellery brands.
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Chemists are still looking for ways to create an economically appealing synthetic twin of gold; thus, some brands are treading towards upcycling in the meantime. A good number invest in causes that hit two birds with one stone—helping their respective businesses, their communities, and their habitats. It is imperative that we get to know these jewellery brands.
Here, we round up some lines that are taking steps towards a more sustainable production method.
Jewelmer
In 2005, Jewelmer established the Save the Palawan Seas Foundation.
Naturally, brands are inclined to invest in the things they depend on. In Jewelmer’s case, it is the health and quality of the environment in which pearls—their primary products—are cultured. Together with pearl farmers, they ensure that the home of these pearls is a cleaner, greener place.
To paint a more detailed picture, the foundation provides sustainable livelihood practices such as organic farming, tree planting, and beekeeping for their partner communities. It also aims to educate about conservation to ignite passionate action and inspire actual change.
Boucheron
Boucheron brings its sustainable efforts directly to its jewellery. This is evident in the brand’s Jack de Boucheron Ultime collection is made of cofalit, a material made by recycling an industrial byproduct through a unique vitrification process. This waste is usually buried, but it can also be vitrified and rendered inert, which is known as cofalit.
Although it may be used as a filling material for highway embankments, it has no other use and is considered a “final” material and “unrecyclable”.
The collection personifies Boucheron’s goal of expanding the limits of innovation and using the technical advances of the time to create meaningful and creative jewellery.
Loev
For this reason, Loev is one of Switzerland’s well-recognised lab-grown diamond jewellery brands.
The jewellery line seeks to connect innovation and technology with unbound creative freedom into beautiful contemporary pieces—and to enjoy challenging notions of femininity and masculinity. One of its main goals is to produce lab-grown diamonds produced with renewable energy.
“We strive to stay continuously innovative, providing our customers with the best materials available,” says co-founder Niels Schäfer in an interview with Professional Jeweller. “This commitment to innovation and sustainability expands beyond metals and stones—every aspect is important: whether it’s the way we package each piece of Loev jewellery or offering a circular service across the brand.”
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Pomellato
One of Pomellato’s sustainable efforts is using a traditional Japanese mending technique: repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold dust and upcycling broken, damaged stones.
Creative director Vincenzo Castaldo has already used flawed stones in previous designs, but his pieces for the brand’s Kintsugi collection spotlight broken gems, such as damaged jet and kogolong (which would normally be discarded).
Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. Foundation was established in 2000 to focus on the company’s philanthropic endeavours. It promotes responsible mining through remediation and land preservation, coral, and ocean conservation through support for marine protected areas, and raising awareness about the importance of coral reefs.
In 2021, the demand for sustainable jewellery brands has urged it to launch a new product range from recycled gold. In 2023, the foundation surpassed its US$100 million grantmaking milestone to support the world’s most treasured seascapes and landscapes. It officially became the first luxury jeweller to receive approval from the Science-Based Targets initiative for its net-zero emissions target.
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Angela Nicole Regis Guiral is a digital editor at Tatler Philippines. She studied journalism and has since written features that look closely at how culture, lifestyle and social impact converge, while occasionally wandering into the worlds of style and travel.
