Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

Jewelry by Pippa Small: Impactful and Joyous (in More Ways than Just Aesthetically)

I’m loving London-based jeweler Pippa Small‘s oversized, colorful jewelry. After working under Tom Ford at Gucci and Phoebe Philo at Chloe, she has a fantastic design eye for what’s going to work with a dressed down frock, smart denims and a white tee, or even with a more polished jacket-and-skirt ensemble.

Smalls’ new online shop means that her designs are now easily available to anyone with an Internet connection, though her jewelry is available at all sorts of boutiques and is featured on net-a-porter too.

And the designer doesn’t just have an eye for style, she works with what is the world’s 1st registered Fairtrade gold mine in Bolivia, and partnered with Afghanistan-based charity Turtle Mountain, which is working to regenerate the country’s traditional arts. She also produced a collection with the Fairtrade company MADE based in Kibera, a slum area in Nairobi.

Read more about these various projects here.

“Pippa believes the art of jewellery making can enhance life and help alleviate poverty and protect precious traditions, helping to grow the confidence of crafts people around the world and reverse the tradition of exploitation associated with the gem industry over the centuries. Her jewellery is collected and coveted by many who appreciate the rough organic, hand made feel of the jewellery.”

Digby and Iona: Handmade Jewelry with a Whimsical Touch

Aaron Ruff, the designer behind Digby & Iona, in his Brooklyn studio.

It’s rare that I obsess over jewelry; I am lucky enough to have inherited all my grandma’s and great-grandma’s necklaces, rings, hatpins, brooches and bracelets, pieces from 1880-1980, and rarely find anything that’s as interesting or beautiful as what I already have. I’m darn picky, in other words, and only respond to jewelry that’s really interesting or different. When I stumbled up on Digby & Iona, I audibly exclaimed; here was a collection of interesting, humorous, intelligent pieces that compliment each other or stand on their own. And was I excited to hear that it’s made here in NYC from recycled metals? You know it.

Designer Aaron Ruff’s latest collection, Me and My Arrow, is made up of and is inspired by “…the classic Harry Nilsson album The Point, Me & My Arrow retells the fable about Oblio, the only round-headed boy in Pointed Village, where everyone and everything had to have a point.” I got a chance to ask Aaron a few questions about his new line and his design process, and he was generous enough to provide the answers herein.

The bluejay arrow necklace

Starre Vartan: Where do you find your inspiration? I’m loving the arrows collection, how did you come up with the idea to use real bird feathers?

Aaron Digby: I’ve mainly worked with silver and brass for the last few collections and really wanted to use color. The feathers were a great natural material with a huge range of colors and textures I could work from. Almost all my designs are rooted in my childhood. Anything that interested me as a kid seems to bubble up to the surface in my designs, I was a little obsessed with Indian craft techniques. The bow and arrows are just miniature version on the ones I made when I was 8.

The Inspector Clouseau necklace.

SV: What are your sustainable/ethical practices, and why do they matter to you?

AD: I work with one of the few metal casters in New York who casts recycled sterling silver. The materials I work with are a limited resource – there’s only so much of any given precious metal on the earth, especially silver and gold and the vast majority of it has already been mined.

The 14-point stag ring.

SV: If you could make any piece of jewelry, price and resources being no object, what would it be?

AD: If we could add an unlimited timeline as well that would be the icing on the cake! I’ve always dreamt of making some little clockwork masterpiece that was not only beautiful and intricate but also fully functional.

The Stump ring.

SV: Can you give us a hint about what your next collections will be influenced by?

AD: I have a few collections I’m developing at the moment but haven’t decided what will be released for Spring 2012. So far it’s down to one based off of implements of measurement or the War of 1812.

A pendant-type bow necklace.

It’s a worth a look through all six collections on the site; the woods-and-sea background of native Mainer Aarron Ruff comes through variously and in different iterations but is always present.

Anjolee Diamonds: An Eco Chick’s Best Friend

Diamonds. They’re there for a girl when she needs them. As they sparkle back at you, you’re reminded of a time in your life, or a place, a person or cherished memory.

But what’s even better than those feelings a diamond evokes, is the pride you have as you rock a piece that was ethically sourced and manufactured responsibly.

I discovered Anjolee– the largest purveyor of high-quality, ethically sourced diamond bracelets online, and it was pure rapture. They manufacture every single item they sell which allows them complete control over the quality of their products. And they mean business when it comes to their sourcing. Anjolee fully complies with the Kimberly Act of 2003, ensuring that all of their diamonds are strictly certified as conflict-free.

Here’s another reason I know you and I can be boastful about an Anjolee piece: They love Mother Earth as much as we do. Their strict, green jewelry manufacturing process involves the refining, recycling and clean disposal of all materials used during the process.

Since the products met our site’s standards, it was time to do some serious window shopping. I have to admit that I sort of felt like a little girl in FAO Schwartz. “Ohhh, I like this one. No wait, that one!!” The site is easy to navigate and you can custom-design a piece to your fancy that meets both your taste and budget (let’s be honest, we all have restrictions!).  What’s great is that since you’re buying from Anjolee directly, they’re able to offer affordable prices below retail.

So whether you’re in search of a stunning Diamond Bracelet, Diamond Tennis Bracelet, Gemstone Bracelet, Tennis Bracelet, Necklace, Diamond Earrings, Diamond Jewelry or more, it’s impossible not to find an item that’s perfect for you, the earth and the people who produced it. Anjolee jewelry will be a great addition to that little holiday wish list of yours. Not only will you look good wearing it, but you’ll feel good wearing it because there’s a happy story behind Anjolee’s jewelry.

Polli’s Peter Pan Collar Necklaces

Polli is an Australian-based ethical jewelry company (run by women!) which uses recycled materials like stainless steel, sustainable plantation pine, and 100% recycled card. Their peter pan collars are, as you can see, beyond gorgeous; I would wear them over a blouse, as an added decorative touch, or with a scoop neck blouse. They have lots of beautiful filigree-type necklaces too, with mini-scenes on them (this one of a boat on high seas). So sweet!

XOXO for MapleXO Recycled Skateboard Jewelry

Lindsay Holmes began her Portland-based jewelry company MapleXO back in 2005 inspired by her passion for skateboarding. She has since then been crafting vibrant jewelry from broken skateboards. Holmes has refined the process of drilling, cutting, shaping, and sanding the boards to preserve not only the amazing graphics of the original skateboard designs, but also to reveal the contrasting colors, wood grains, and layers inside the skateboard decks.

In this season’s collection she has expanded her line to create LeeMOXO jewelry pieces, a collaboration with origami jewelry designer Leela Morimoto, of LeeMo, and to produce a series of limited-edition iPhone skateboard cases in collaboration with Grove Made.

Holmes’s inspiration shows the natural link between the outdoor sports we love and a commitment to the environment. As she expresses: “Recycling the boards has been my way to give back to this community by reducing the environmental footprint of skateboarding and giving the old boards new life.”
More »