What a Gem

This is a guest blog article by Tafline Laylin courtesy Gillian Zimmer

Pick An Environmentally Friendly Engagement Ring

Dig for a diamond that gives back with this guide to the world’s most ecologically responsible gems.

It’s the moment you’ve always dreamed of—time to buy an engagement ring. It’s a sparkling, beautiful piece of jewelry that symbolizes the depth of your love and commitment. And for many couples tying the knot, diamonds are a popular choice. They’re resilient, they come in many sizes and colors, and they look good with just about any metal band. Unfortunately, diamonds aren’t a girl’s best friend, unless they are sourced from a reputable trader. To help you out when the time comes, we’ve put together a handy guide to ethical diamonds that are not only conflict-free, but actually contribute to a cleaner environment and a healthier, wealthier society. We also provide tools to navigate size, color, and cuts in order to create the custom engagement ring that most resonates with you. But first, what is a diamond and where does it come from?

Diamonds’ Deep Origins

Diamonds extracted from the earth have been “growing” for up to 3.3 billion years. Let that sink in for a second. Diamonds crystallize as far as 118 miles deep in the earth’s mantle. Technically speaking, they are transparent crystals of tetrahedrally bonded carbon that form as a result of high temperatures and pressure. After deep volcanic eruptions that cool, the diamonds surface as igneous rocks such as kimberlites. Kimberlites are long pipes full of diamonds, and while they used to be ubiquitous, the nongovernment organization Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) notes it has been a good 10 years since new kimberlites have been found. More easily accessible kimberlites are unlikely to be found anytime soon because of the difficulty and expense associated with prospecting. While industry leaders are slightly more optimistic, nobody questions that diamonds are increasingly difficult to source and supply is dropping as demand soars.

The Big Hole: History of the Diamond

The first kimberlite pipes were discovered in the Northern Cape province of South Africa in the late 1800s. By 1872, 50,000 miners had converged in Kimberley to manually dig what is known as The Big Hole, which is 1,519 feet wide and 790 feet deep. Many people died in pursuit of the next big diamond because of hazardous working conditions, so several mining companies merged as De Beers Consolidated Mines Limited to clean up the business. A century-long, global monopoly subsequently ensued with virtually zero oversight. Twenty five countries now have substantial diamond mining operations. And for many, it’s a curse.

Beyond Conflict-free

The film Blood Diamond helped expose the world to the dirty business that is diamond trading. More than 3 million people have been killed in African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, and Angola as a result of civil wars fought over what we now call conflict diamonds. Eventually, the horrific stories of women and children enduring unspeakable atrocities became very embarrassing for the diamond industry, so it developed a certification standard called the Kimberley Process (KP) in a halfhearted effort to root out violence. Even though the majority of diamonds traded on the market today are certifiably conflict-free, few environmentalists or social activists take KP seriously anymore and several of its key founders pulled out due to reports of corruption, nonexistent regulation, and an effort for powerful interests like De Beers to maintain their monopoly. If a diamond trader’s best claim is that they meet KP standards, it may be best to keep looking. For conscious consumers, a conflict-free diamond simply isn’t good enough.

The Mining Process

Most modern mines use earthmoving equipment to dig massive open pits, though De Beers also mines diamonds from the Atlantic Ocean’s seabed off the coast of Namibia. There’s financial incentive to minimize disturbance in order to avoid having too much waste material to sift through, but it’s still a destructive practice that requires a good deal of water and energy, produces emissions and waste, and disrupts biodiversity. Some sellers say the best diamonds are those sourced from Canada, since they have stringent environmental and social standards. But this isn’t completely true. The Canadian Arctic Resources Committee found irreversible environmental damage has occurred at and beyond mining sites such as Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories. Water quality has changed for the worse, lakes have been drained (destroying fish habitat), and grazing wildlife like caribou are beginning to look for their food elsewhere because of serious land degradation. Even though Canada does more than most countries to ensure diamond mining has a low environmental impact, work still needs to be done. Also, if someone tells you their diamonds were mined to ISO 14 001 environmental standards developed by the non-profit International Organization for Standardization, be wary: This is a voluntary initiative with a loose regulatory framework like KP. Sixty-five percent of the world’s diamonds come from Africa—and conflict diamonds have been reduced from approximately four percent to one percent of the market since KP was implemented in 2003—but it still takes some digging to find ethical gems. As you conduct your search, the trick is to know what you’re looking for.

Ethical Diamonds: What to Consider Before You Buy

Fair industry standards

When sourcing your ring, look for a retailer that supports development organizations like DDI, which strives to improve industry standards and provide training programs for artisanal miners, while also working towards establishing a Fair Trade certification system to link responsible artisanal diamond mining businesses with conscientious consumers.

Fair working conditions

When buying your ring, sure everyone who has contributed to the end product—prospectors, miners, polishers—receives a fair wage for their work and enjoys pleasant working conditions. Most ethical sellers will alert you to their standards right away in order to distinguish themselves from big-box sellers.

Lab-grown

If you love the glimmer of a diamond but it’s not as important that it has been mined, consider a lab-grown diamond. Unlike simulant diamonds, lab-grown diamonds are real diamonds with the exact same molecular and physical properties as a diamond extracted from the Earth, but they are grown in a lab. They may well be the most environmentally friendly diamond you can purchase, though they won’t always come with the same kind of job opportunities for local communities as a larger artisanal mining operation.

Recycled band

In addition to worrying about where your diamonds come from, it’s important to be conscientious about the origin of the band as well. In fact, 20 tons of ore and waste rock are required to produce one standard gold band. Look for a retailer who sells rings made with only recycled gold and platinum, which will drastically reduce the ring’s footprint.

The supplier

Many people go straight to their local mall when looking for an engagement ring, but we recommend shopping around. There are plenty of boutique jewelers and online craft markets with a solid reputation for sourcing ethical diamonds, preferably from an artisanal mine or lab-grown and paired with a fair-trade or recycled metal band. No diamond on the market is 100 percent sustainable, but some are certainly better than others.

The 4 Cs

In order to help diamond consumers gauge the scale and quality of diamonds, the Gemological Institute of America developed the 4Cs of diamond quality: color, clarity, cut, and carat. Diamonds with no color are the most chemically pure, and therefore most superior. Clarity refers to how many inclusions or blemishes diamonds have as a result of being battered around by a lot of heat and pressure. When evaluating a diamond’s clarity, a jeweler looks for the number, size, and nature of these blemishes to determine how they affect the stone’s overall appearance. The fewer dings the better. Cuts, on the other hand, come in many variations. Round and princess cuts are said to be most popular because they reflect light so well (and that’s the holy grail of diamonds) but there are 10 popular shapes and hundreds more that are proprietary. Carat of course refers to size. One metric carat is 200 milligrams. GIA has several interactive charts that analyze different colors and sizes, so you will be armed with all the necessary tools before purchasing the ring of a lifetime.

If this article has you interested in purchasing an ethical diamond, check out these custom engagement rings. — http://www.custommade.com/gallery/custom-rings/

 

Quick Guide to Indian Temple Jewellery

Indian jewellery at times can get divided into three types

1. Temple jewellery
2. Spiritual jewellery
3. Bridal jewellery

Temple jewellery was used for dressing idols of Gods and Goddesses in Indian temples. The necklaces are either strung with beads or crafted with intricate filigree. Other ornaments used were bangles (usually studded with gems), earrings, nose rings and anklets. This jewellery style was later adopted by women practicing dance forms such as Bharatanatyam or Kuchipudi. Over the years, the designs became part of the Indian woman’s bridal jewellery trousseau.

Temple jewellery is considered auspicious in India. During festivals and occasions of worship of Gods, Indian females wear temple jewellery as it is believed to bring good luck.  Items like pendants, bracelets, belts and brooches based on temple jewellery are very popular. The favorite design for pendants is that of Lord Ganesha – the elephant headed god known to bestow luck and fortune. The other emblem, which is also in demand, is that of the sacred syllable OM.

Types of Jewellery

The jewelleries offered in the various temples of South India include the chains of coins (kasina sara), kadagas (bracelets), kankanas (wristlets), jjejjeranki (armlets), waist bands, tali (mangalasutra) and various types of headgear (kirita-mukntas). The jewelleries placed on various parts of the body are `mukha kirithi` (masks), `karnapatra`, chandra-bottu, `abhaya`, `varada hastas` and padtnapithas. These jewelleries were offered by kings and queens from time to time and now can be seen in the various temples of India.

Design & Motifs

Temple jewellery is crafted by skilled craftsmen and jewellers. Due to the finesse required in crafting it, the time required to deliver the jewellery may sometimes even go up to a year. The stones used in Indian temple ornaments are Kemp stones. They are un-cut polished stones (red & green) and precious and semi-precious stones. The stones are used in necklaces, pendents, hip chains, earrings, chokers, nose rings etc.

Temple jewellery has always maintained a traditional form. Even the Mughal era could not bring much change in the jewellery design unlike other famous Indian jewellery styles. But its influence can be seen in some places. For example the shape of crowns and necklaces changed to the tune of Islamic traditions with the passage of time. The `conical kullah`, a golden cap of the Mughal court was introduced in the temples uring the Nayaka period. The crown gifted by Tirumalai Nayaka to the temples was called Mughal Mudi, which was named after the Mughal tradition.

The goldsmith of South India retained most of their traditional motifs and designs. One of such traditional motif is a double-headed eagle, called `gandabherunda`, which was earlier the royal symbol of the Hoysala rulers. In all the South Indian jewelleries, this particular motif is seen up to the Nayaka period. The temple jewelleries of South India have names based on the local flowers and birds such as `Tamarappu` (lotus flower), `Kallippu` and `Nerinchippu`. Some of the jewelleries are also named after birds and animals, like kokku (crane), tavalai (frog), amai (turtle), makara (crocodile) etc.

Categories

In South India, the temple jewelleries are divided into two categories

• The jewelleries offered to the main `Sivalinga`
• Those offered to the subsidiary gods and goddesses.

The main `Sivalinga` of any South Indian temple is adorned with extremely costly jewellery. Thousands of pearls are encrusted in the costliest jewelleries of the Sivalinga. During the rule of Chola dynasty, the South Indian temples contributed a lot in the growth of the art of jewel making. The South Indian temples even maintained their own workshops, employed skilled goldsmiths and jewellers to fashion jewels. The master craftsmen were appointed and granted royal titles for their mastery and excellence in the art.

Dynasties & Famous Temples

During the rule of Vijayanagar kings, the heights of pomp and lavishness in offerings reached its peak. In the 13th century AD, the Pandyas also donated jewelleries to various temples at Madurai, Srirangam and Chidambaram. But most of the existing gems in South Indian temples today can be traced back to the Nayaka period. Many Nayaka rulers renovated the old temples and built new temples as well. They also offered jewelleries in the names of the famous saints of Tamil Nadu.

Several valuable and costly jewelleries are still well preserved in the Madurai temple. The most significant among them are the crowns of gold encrusted with the nine gems or navaratna. Another important jewellery of this temple is the `Ratnachurmmandu`, a golden jeweled turban. It is worn on one of the festivals of Lord Sundaresvara, who is supposed to have worked as a casual labourer and carried the mud on his head on behalf of an old lady.

During the Chitrai festival at the temples of Goddess Meenakshi and Lord Alagar of Alagar Koil many types of jewellery were obtained as offerings. Most of these presents are still used at Madurai and Alagarkoil. The finest gems and jewelleries of the Nayaka period can still be seen in temples at Mannargudi, Nachchiyarkoil of Tanjavur district. The Srirangam temple also has a huge jewel collection, which have historical significance. The names of the donors, mainly the later Nayakas of Madurai are inscribed in most of these jewels. Raja Krishnaraja Wodeyar III of Mysore was renowned for having gifted precious ornaments studded with fabulous jewels, which can be now seen in various temples. He presented a `Gandabherunda Padaka` (pendant) and the `Ramapatta-bhisheka pendant` in the Cheluvanarayana Swamy temple at Melkote. The Pandu-ranga temple of Pandarapura in Maharashtra has a gold pendant depicting the figure of Sri Vitthala, another form of Lord Krishna. The border of the pendant is adorned with navaratna stones.

Protection

The jewelleries of Indian temples were protected with great care. The temple authorities were given strict guidelines to protect the temple treasures. There are mainly three persons, who are assigned the responsibility. The `Kaivistari` receives jewels on festive days and returns them to the `Kaiyatchri` just after their use. The latter then deposits them in the treasury. These are then locked properly and sealed by the third officer, `Mudradhikari`. During any festival time, when the deity is taken out for a procession adorned with the jewelleries, the temple guards called `Meykaval` keep a watch over them.