Price Points: Ethical sustainable jewellery

Ethical sustainable jewellery

In the past few decades, we’ve become aware of ethical and/or sustainable food and fashion; but what about ethical sustainable jewellery?

We’ve heard of the many thousands of litres of water that it takes to manufacture a single pair of jeans, but what about the amount of greenhouse gas it takes to mine a diamond? Or what about the use of child labour? Or the profits from the mining and sale of precious metals & gemstones going towards funding civil wars?

The pieces listed below are certain to have been created without negative impact on the environment or local communities.

  1. Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace: £25.99, Ecomodo

    £1.00 from every purchase goes to The Bumblebee Conservation Trust, so investing in this beautiful necklace goes that little bit further.

  2. 18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings: £270.00, Pippa Small

    Hand cut Lapis Lazuli gems set in gold plated silver settings by the men and women artisans of the Turquoise Mountain Foundation in Kabul. Training and employing young people in meaningful creative jobs is vitally important now in Afghanistan when the young desperately need hope and a sense of purpose in a beautiful country tragically caught up in violence and conflict.

  3. 1.08 carat pear Skydiamond: £8,301.92, SkyDiamond

    Each carat of mined diamond has a footprint of over 100kg of carbon dioxide and over 500kg of greenhouse gases in total. In contrast, a one-carat Skydiamond has a footprint of minus 4g of CO₂.We take rain water and split it into oxygen and hydrogen using electrolysis – powered by the wind and sun of course. We then combine these gases to create methane, which we feed into our Diamond Mills.

shop ethical sustainable jewellery

Some of the links on our blog are affiliate links. We may receive a small commission - at no cost to you - if you click through and make a purchase.
Prices & links correct at time of publication.

1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
£8,301.92
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
£270.00
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
£25.99
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
£8,301.92
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
£270.00
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
£25.99
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
£8,301.92
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
£270.00
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
£25.99
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
£8,301.92
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
£270.00
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
£25.99
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
1.08 carat pear Skydiamond
£8,301.92
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
18kt Gold Vermeil PSTM Afghanistan Armaan lapis earrings
£270.00
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
Annie Oak – Bee Geometric gold necklace
£25.99

Sleep soundly with this ethical choice of duvet

The Fine Bedding Company's Eco duvet | H is for Home

We regularly talk on here about reusing, recycling, upcycling and just reducing waste in general. We’re alarmed at the amount of rubbish polluting the earth and our oceans, seas and waterways. Especially the single-use plastic. That’s why we were really up for reviewing The Fine Bedding Company‘s newly-launched Eco Duvet.

The Fine Bedding Company conducted some research – surveying 2,000 UK adults – and found that almost half of Brits would like to significantly reduce their daily plastic consumption but don’t know how to do more about it. 94% of them believed that it was the responsibility of supermarkets, large retailers and brands to help people shop more sustainably.

Unboxing the Eco duvet from The Fine Bedding Company | H is for Home Packaging information for the Eco-duvet from The Fine Bedding Company | H is for Home

The Eco Duvet has impeccable environmental credentials. The silky soft, microfibre filling is made from 100% PET plastic bottles. The king-size duvet that we’ve been sent to try out, is made from 149 bottles. The cover is hypo-allergenic, breathable and is also made from 100% recycled materials.

The cardboard box and plastic bag that it’s delivered in are – yes, manufactured using 100% recycled, recyclable materials that are printed on using biodegradable ink. And that’s not all – their products are made using 100% renewable energy in their award-winning eco factory! Check out their infographic below.

Eco duvet infographic

The duvet has the luxury feel of the finest goose down. It’s light, and airy but keeps you feeling warm and cosy in the winter and cool and comfortable in the summer. It can be washed on a 30ºC cycle and is fast drying, to boot.

The Eco duvet spread across a bed | H is for Home

Sustainable, responsible, practical and affordable; with the Eco Duvet there’s no down-side (see what we did there?!).  The 10.5 tog duvet is available in single, double, king and super-king sizes, with prices starting at £45. We can thoroughly recommend it.

Guest bedroom with Eco duvet in Lotta Jansdotter 'Follie' duvet cover | H is for Home

We’ve certainly enjoyed this product review, as nothing quite beats snuggling into a newly made bed with freshly-laundered sheets and a brand new duvet… especially one that lets you sleep with a clear conscience!

Have you been doing anything to reduce your consumption of single use plastic?

[disclosure*]

The perfect brew from Coffee & Kin

Coffee & Kin business card with espresso and chocolate | H is for Home

Happy May everyone! We’re delighted to be working with Coffee & Kin on this month’s competition. They’re a small, family-run business whose environmental ethos we back 100%. The company was set up by sisters Ruth & Kathryn and their husbands, Aussies, Mark & Chris (who also happen to be best friends) hence, the Kin. We’ve teamed up with them to offer one of our readers a month’s supply of coffee beans, pods or loose leaf tea.

Coffee & Kin founders - Ruth, Kathryn, Mark and Chris

Coffee & Kin supply 100% Arabica beans and Nespresso® compatible pods as well as a selection of whole leaf teas. Their coffee pods are compostable and the tea comes in biodegradable pyramids.

Pouches of Coffee & Kin coffee beans | H is for Home

Coffee & Kin has established a Foundation to provide support to people & organisations in the communities where their coffee is grown. For each coffee pod they sell, they invest a penny into the foundation. For every bag of beans, it’s 10p. In their own words…

One of our values is to be honest and ethical in everything that we do. We care about our coffee farmers and the communities in which they live and work. Every Coffee & Kin coffee can be traced back to ensure that each stage of the growing and sales process is fair as well as socially and environmentally sustainable.

Pouch of Coffee & Kin Peru coffee beans, antique wooden coffee grinder and espresso mugs | H is for Home

They’re based up in Alnwick, in beautiful Northumberland, and their single-origin coffee is roasted on the nearby Holy Island of Lindesfarne. We’ve tried out two different types of their beans; Peru and Rwanda. Both being Arabica, the roasts are mellow and contains less caffeine than the cheaper, more bitter counterpart, Robusta.

We tested the Rwandan beans first; the flavour is complex and creamy, with a touch of smoky sweetness. The Peruvian brew is well-rounded, intense and dry on the palate. Both are smooth and nicely acidic without being bitter. We liked them both very much. However, for our preference, the Rwandan just pipped the Peruvian in the taste stakes.

Pouch of Coffee & Kin Peru coffee beans, antique wooden coffee grinder and espresso mugs | H is for Home

Fancy your chances of winning? Leave a comment telling us which Coffee & Kin coffee or tea product you’d choose.

Good luck!

A month’s supply of coffee beans, pods or leaf tea from Coffee & Kin

Shared on: Superluckyme | The Prizefinder | Loquax | Competition Database | U Me and the Kids




Gimme Five! Fairtrade homewares

'Gimme Five' blog post banner

selection of 5 fairtrade homewares

We’re coming to the end of Fairtrade Fortnight and we wanted to mark it in our own little way.

When we think of Fairtrade most of us think of the coffee, tea, sugar etc  with the green & blue Fairtrade logo that we see in the supermarket. But it’s much more far-reaching than that. Flowers, wine, cosmetics, clothing, gold… even homewares! Here are some of the ones that caught our eye…

  1. Striped jute storage bags (set of 2): £22, Traidcraft
  2. Tree of life cushion covers (set of 2): £27.95, Natural Collection
  3. Sheesham wood side table – grey: £57, Ethical Superstore
  4. Oka film light: £200, Nkuku
  5. Recycled grow bag: £14.99, Notonthehighstreet

Here’s a short film of one tea farmer’s experience of fairtrade…