I thought it might be helpful if we started a resource guide for good places to get eco-friendly, budget-minded, hand-crafted rings. What do you think?
Here are some of my personal favorites:
What are yours?
Here are some of my personal favorites:
What are yours?
22 comments:
We got my ring from http://www.brilliantearth.com/
we purchased my ring from Diamond Nexus Labs: http://www.diamondnexuslabs.com/
They're lab-created diamonds (no blood!) that look just like "real" (more so than moisonnite).
Prices are super affordable! ...i never thought I'd end up with a one carat ring!
They have an actually store in Milwaukee, WI, but most of their business is online. Great customer service. (oh yeah, and lifetime guaranty)
We got our rings at Minter and Richter Des http://www.etsy.com/shop/MinterandRichterDes
Titanium and wood rings, beautiful!
I really wanted a diamond ring, but had a hard time justifying the social and environmental impact of mining in those countries, so I decided to follow the most important R of sustainability... reuse. I found an amazing ring at a resale shop for a great price.
Our ring source was my mother-in-law! We put out the call to relatives to see if there were any non-diamond stones or metals around that we could re-use, and she sent us her mother's ring that we had no idea existed. I thought it was many things I didn't want, but I fell in love with it immediately. :)
hilarious, i have one each from fabuluster (wedding band) and mcfarland (engagement ring). they are both great to work with, and you get exceptional pieces that are unique. plus, you can feel good about wearing them!
Thank you for knowing I needed this :) Beginning the band search and these suggestions are so helpful.
I've also spoken with Anna from Bario-Neal (http://bario-neal.com) They're so helpful, and for me they're local though I know they will work with people from all over!
For those in San Francisco (or NY - or want to make a vacation out of it), Adam Clark runs one-on-one (or, one-on-two) wedding ring workshops (http://www.sanfranciscoweddingring.com/index.htm).
My husband also made my engagement ring with him, and used moissanite (which was originally discovered in an astroid!).
Adam's great, and you don't need any jewelery making experience at all.
We are doing one ring for the engagement and wedding ring, and got it from Jes MaHarry. I have always loved her jewelry, and she stands by a lot of good principles in her work, including using conflict free diamonds and giving back to good causes.
http://blog.jesmaharry.com/good-stuff
Here are some of her engagement rings - some are very reasonable and some are very pricey!
http://blog.jesmaharry.com/products/browse/Engagement
I just LOVE her work!
-Kristen
We got my husband's ring from a local First Nations artist. The metal wasn't recycled or anything, but at the very least, it was created locally and not shipped across the country to get to us. And the bonus is that we also supported a local artist in the process!
This is a great way to go if you want something custom. My husband has ridiculously long fingers, so normal bands just weren't wide enough. The jeweler we worked with made a band wide enough to look natural on his hand, so it worked out great!
We are looking at this place to get wood bands... http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&seller_id=17654&op=new&body=1
and if we had the time and the means we would also consider http://www.touchwoodrings.com/
Has anyone else considered wooden rings?
Cheers!
I love Sarah Perlis's designs, and she uses recycled gold and rough, responsibly mined (really they are panned and not mined) diamonds. She also uses gorgeous pink and white sapphires in many rings.
http://shop.sarahperlis.com/collections/wedding
There's a great shop in Portland called Gilt that sells vintage rings and jewelry on the first floor and locally (Pacific NW) handmade jewelry on the second floor. Their website is http://www.giltjewelry.com/
I got my husband's engagement ring there!
Sarah Perlis for me too! She set a stone from my partner's grandmother in recycled gold, and I love it!! I think this is my ring:
http://shop.sarahperlis.com/collections/wedding/products/round-brilliant-diamond-trio-ring
I am not a diamond fan.... I wanted a peridot. Peridots hold special meaning to me. I found the most beautiful ring set on etsy - sudlow jewelry - she sent me pictures of my ring as it was being created. I am very pleased with our set.
I got my ring from Kate Szabone who's in your list - it's such a pretty and delicate ring, and doesn't look too manufactured or perfect, which is just what I wanted.
I've decided that I only want to have the one ring. I don't wear much jewellery and I felt that having a wedding band was a bit unnecessary.
my ring is also from brilliant earth. I loved getting the information about the environmental and health and safety standards at the mines with my ring!
i absolutely MUST second bario-neal. my engagement ring (custom rough cut diamond) is from there and i am in love (from someone who does not care so much about high end jewelry). Both my fiance and i talked with Page frequently through the process (who was incredibly helpful), and i know for a fact my fiance is pumped over the price he paid vs what a few of his buddies have recently paid for rings (we knew we wanted a pro-enviro and social ring and didn't want to spend a lot, but in the end, we really didn't have to and i still got the most beautiful ring!). we are definitely getting our bands from bario-neal, without a doubt.
I wanted a ring that was as humane and eco-friendly as possible, so I ended up getting a gorgeous simple used art-deco ring, from Ebay of all places. There are many options for used (and diamond free) rings on Ebay...you have to do your research to make sure the ring is what the vendor says it is, but this is a great source for rings that are easy on the soul and the environment (as the only negative effect created is through the shipping). Plus I at least like the idea that my ring has a long history of being a part of someone's marriage (when i had it sized the jeweler mentioned that it was worn on the bottom from years of being worn next to a wedding band)...it leaves lots of scope for the imagination.
I am not engaged, but I do have a family member who works in the vintage and estate jewelry and silver business. His engagement rings usually cost 1/4 of what one costs in a retail store and like sanyamakadi said of ebay rings they are "a great source for rings that are easy on the soul and the environment."
If you don't want to buy on ebay I would suggest looking in your phonebook for someone who does work in the jewelry/antiques trade, call them up and ask if they for vintage and estate jewelry. You'll be able to get a ring that is "green" and keep money in your local community.
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