One of the things I struggle with is how to balance my love of fashion with my desire to be a socially and environmentally responsible shopper. I eschew fast fashion, choose more sustainable fabrics, but I struggle with my sustainable jewelry options. I recently went looking for more ethical jewelry choices and decided to share what I found.

Choosing to shop for ethical jewelry combines concerns about: the environmental impacts of mining and processing, the working conditions for mine workers, contributing to dictatorial regimes, the corporate monopoly of resources, the lack of economic development in mining areas, and more. No matter what your particular concern is, it is difficult to avoid the reality that jewelry creation can come at a high cost to the planet and the beings that inhabit it.

There are more ethical jewelry options out there options. Many jewelers wanting to have less of of an impact on the environment and in contributing to the conditions of peoples in mining areas, and realizing that there is a demand from consumers, have started using more ethical jewelry sourcing of raw materials. Ethical Metalsmiths is a group of jewelers who have organized and are committed to encouraging more ethical jewelry production and to educate consumers. In addition, there are campaigns to raise the profile of issues surrounding ethical jewelry, like Earthwork’s “No Dirty Gold” campaign and the Global Witness campaign to stop Conflict Diamonds.

Here is a list of amazing jewelry companies who offer more ethical jewelry options. From using recycled metals and gemstones to repurposing vintage jewelry, these jewelers have a commitment to offering lower impact jewelry choices, so consider their goods the next time you want to add a piece to your collection or you need to purchase a gift.

17 Ethical Jewelry Companies for Responsible Jewelry Shopping

1. East Fourth Street
2. Rose and Fitzgerald
3. Smart Glass Jewelry
4. Brilliant Earth
5. Alexis Russell
6. Anna Fine Jewellery
7. Honey Rosenk
8. Andrea Bonelli
9. VKeco Jewelry
10. Bario-Neal
11. Cred Jewellery
12. Nightfox Jewelry
13. Valkasinskas
14. Kara Daniel Jewelry
15. Rebecca Mir Grady
16. April Doubleday
17. Amalena

Related on EcoSalon

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15 Ridiculous Easy DIY Repurposed Jewelry Storage Ideas

Image: Alexis Russell

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Billing itself as an Etsy for Eco, London-based Eco Market is a natural online marketplace that connects buyers with eco-conscious products they’ll love — and sellers who share their passion for the environment.

Launched in 2010 under the name Ethical Community, the first iteration of Eco Market was born from the pleasure that founders Liam Patterson and Jason Dainter experienced when they received gifts with a personal connection to the giver. Realizing that the eco community is as much about relationships as products, they saw a need for a more personalized online marketplace experience.

“We’re concentrating on community, the stories of our sellers and the content that surrounds them,” Dainter told Desk.com’s Alyson Stone in a February 2012 blog post. “Customers seem hungry for an opportunity to purchase ethically from real people, and to read about the journeys.”

In early 2013, Dainter and Patterson decided there was still room for improvement. The site underwent a drastic revamp in an effort to better align the brand with the vision.

“We realized we had this opportunity,” Dainter told Techcrunch’s Sarah Perez in a March 2013 story. “We could either run with this brand that we weren’t totally happy with, and this platform that wasn’t scaling the way we wanted it to, or we could step back and fix what we should have fixed to start with.”

The result is a streamlined, social site that encourages visitors to build personal relationships with eco-friendly sellers. Less popular features like forums and events have been dropped, but now users can create profiles, share stories and videos with other members and even maintain “love lists” a la Pinterest.

“Our goal as a company is not only to give (often small one man band) sellers a platform to sell products,” the site claims, “but also to give consumers all the tools and information they need to demystify ethical shopping.” If that isn’t grand enough, the site also seeks to “create open debates about key issues that will help shape our planet.”

Online marketplace offerings are as varied and unique as they are eco-friendly. Buyers who came in search of fair-trade coffee or free-range chicken will also find organic clothing and jewelry. Acai vitamins, green kitchen appliances, biodegradable stationery — the selection is exhaustive.

What’s more, buyers can sort the store by the eco and natural causes most important to them, with vegan face scrubs in one search and recycled wine glasses in another. And sellers can attach ethical credentials and certificates to their products, ensuring that everything in the store is legitimately eco.

But Patterson and Dainter claim that Eco Market’s vision is less about items for sale and more about personal connections.

“It’s more about the story,” Dainter said. ”Maybe it’s handmade, but who made it by hand?”

With more than 15,000 products and 1,600 sellers to choose from, there are plenty of opportunity for buyers to find the answer.

Images: Eco Market

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Join us for a sexy eco chat on Wednesday February 13th to ask all your sex questions and a chance to win a box of Sensuous Green Goodies provided by Goodebox!

No wilting roses or scandalized blushing here, ladies; it’s time to live in the 21st century and own our sexuality.  With that said, we also want to do it in a healthy, conscious manner.  You’ve likely heard about how readily our skin absorbs less than good for us ingredients from personal care products – body lotion, shampoo, shower gel, facial treatments, lipstick, and the like, but have you ever considered that the skin on our most personal parts is even more sensitive and absorbent?  Have you read the ingredients list on that bottle of lubricant or body massage oil? How about that spermicide on the condom? Have you considered what that little battery powered bullet of joy is made of?  Or thought about the impact your sheets, lingerie and other trappings of sensuality have on the planet?

Author of Eco-Sex: Go Green Between the Sheets ‘Sexpert’ Stefanie Iris Weiss certainly has, and she’s not afraid to share.  We all have questions when it comes to our love lives, from dating and marriage to love, lust and sex. It’s nice to have an expert to ask! With that in mind, and to get you in the mood for Valentine’s Day, we’ve asked Stefanie to join us for an hour of her time on Wednesday, February 13th, from 6-7 PM PST / 9-10 PM EST, for a live chat where everything’s fair game. (Although, please keep your questions respectful.)

Topics could include asking her recommendations about sexual toys and products, relationship questions, sex questions, general opinions and more. Stefanie will answer them as quickly as possible and any that are still lingering unanswered once the chat is over will be addressed in turn at her earliest convenience.

Participants can also enter to win a prize package of Sensuous Green Goodies provided by Goodebox, including a signed copy of Stefanie’s book, and products from brands including Blossom Organics, Erbaviva, John Master’s Organics, Sir Richard’s Condoms, Vapour Organic Beauty, Swipes, Revolution Organics, Persephenie and Metropolis Soap Company.  Three runners up will also win a Goodebox with samples of many of these products.

To join, simple respond to the EcoSalon Facebook Event Invitation as “attending”, complete the Giveaway Entry Form and be sure to be online at www.facebook.com/Ecosalon on Wednesday, February 13th, at 6pm Pacific time / 9pm Eastern time.  Only active participants in the Live Chat will be eligible to win a prize. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Have questions you want to keep anonymous? Email us: contact@goodebox.com before we’re live and we’ll ask Stefanie for you!

Image: NeoGaboX

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Ever imagine what it would be like to walk into a gigantic Whole Foods and have sample after sample handed to you of all that is good and organic? Last weekend I got that and more when I walked into the Natural Products Expo West. The foremost show of the natural products trade industry, 53,000 industry professionals from across the globe gathered March 12 – 14 in Anaheim, California, to look over the latest in organic products and natural trends. I must admit, walking through it was something akin to twirling through Willy Wonka’s giant chocolate candy room – except this chocolate was organic and to my knowledge, untainted by Augustus Gloop.

Any large gathering of people is going to stamp a carbon footprint bigger than Godzilla’s paw (does he have paws? Claws? Claw paws?), but this convention made an effort to go green. Recycling bins abounded throughout the center. All of the press kits were online (saving 487 fully grown trees) and badges were picked up on site, saving four metric tons of carbon emissions. I was thoroughly impressed, but how about the products?

My duties involve writing a green beauty column, so I made a beeline towards the health and beauty section. I practically went skipping with glee through the aisles. All of my favorite lines were there: J.R. Watkins peddled their lip tint, Nature’s Gate offered up moisturizers, and Lavera showed off their latest mascaras. It was like that dream I have where every question about organic and/or natural beauty was laid out in clean aisles with an expert stationed at every stop.

So what did the experts have to say about what’s new in the organic or natural beauty market?

First I checked out the Dr. Bronner’s booth. Here I met awesome Ariel, who told me all about the latest offerings from this legendary skin care line which she discusses in the video above. Then it was off to Lavera Cosmetics, the BDIH certified cosmetics company which produces makeup and body care. Their representative showed off their newest release, which is the Lavera sun spot Glow Go Self-Tanner for your legs and entire body. This product is 100 percent chemical and toxin-free and claims to provide safe, natural looking color and “subtle shimmer” without harmful ingredients or sun exposure. It contains organic soy extracts which is said to “infuse skin with a natural looking glow.” Before I realized what was happening, my entire arm was sprayed with self-tanner, which left it a bit glittery and well, self-tanned.

Sparkling like a Twilight vampire, I headed over to Thayer’s Natural Remedies. There I spoke with John Gehr, who co-owns the company with his mother. Not familiar with Thayer’s Natural Remedies? Get thee to a Whole Foods immediately – their Rose Petal Witch Hazel holds the title as my favorite all-natural beauty product.  I use this product daily and am now sporting a skin tone I haven’t seen since my early 20s – meaning clear skin and rosy cheeks. As John explained to me, witch hazel is a natural astringent with anti-inflammatory properties. It works great as a gentle cleaners and daily toner by tightening pores.

The key to Thayer’s Witch Hazel is the way they extract it. Tannins are the key ingredient in this product and they extract it without heat from the bark of the witch hazel. And it is the tannins that give you that beautiful rosy hue. As John joked, their witch hazel is not “made by witches, but magic for your skin.”

Newly spritzed with rosy cheeks, I stopped by Tom’s of Maine. Here I spoke with friendly representative Staay, who told me all about their new releases. She showed me the latest development for their deodorant line, a new product called Crystal Confidence. This deodorant offers 24 hour protection with a crystal built right into the device. Staay assured me that the product is clinically tested and consumer qualified – in other words, it was tried by customers. She says this is the closest item to a natural antiperspirant on the market.

I’m already looking forward to next year’s Expo!

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