Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Green Wedding Rings
We've already had posts about green weddings and gift registries on this blog. Imagine my surprise when I found a website with a registry to help brides and grooms make green wedding rings!
I thought this was a fascinating idea because the diamond of my engagement ring belonged to my grandmother. All I needed was a new setting once I became engaged because my nana had a bigger finger than me.
I stumbled across the eco jeweler
greenKarat during a google search and was so intrigued. From their website:
Our greater goal at greenKarat is to end destructive gold and diamond mining.
Our mission is to provide an ecologically and socially responsible jewelry alternative to those who seek change. We want to help you, in some small way, become part of the permanent solution. Together we can make a difference.
One way they hope to do this is by recycling gold and platinum. Recyling you may think. How do they do that? This is where the registry part comes in. greenKarat created the myKarat registry so couples could make wedding rings out of gold or platinum that once belonged to their family and friends.
Imagine having your aunt's chain, your uncle's ring, your sister's bracelet and your best friend's necklace become a part of your wedding band. Talk about giving new meaning to the "Something old" adage. The registry allows couples to pool whatever jewelry is given to them and turn that into new wedding rings.
I love this idea. A wedding ring is a symbol of love. Remember the
video I posted a few months ago? What better symbol to express love than wedding rings created with jewelry given to you by friends and family with love! Depending on how much jewelry a couple collects, it can reduce the costs of their rings. And you're helping the environment. A win-win situation for everyone involved!
What do you think of green wedding rings?
Melissa McCloneLabels: wedding rings
13 Comments:
-
Oh, I'd so love this! I have a ring I'd love to turn into an engagement ring (I lost mine about 10 years ago). What a wonderful idea...the ring I have was put together by my mother, was her old one and my sister's old one when they remarried. I loved the first rings and would love to make something nice from them!
Melissa J
- September 17, 2008 at 7:11 AM
-
Glad you agree, Melissa. I think it's such a cool idea, but then again, I'm wearing my nana's diamond. A couple people I knew were horrified I didn't make my fiance spend money on a new diamond. I learned not everyone is as sentimental about stuff like this as me.
- September 17, 2008 at 8:44 AM
-
I'm a total sap!! I've kept the ring for years, hoping to re-mould it to a more old-fashioned look.
- September 17, 2008 at 8:46 AM
-
I think this is a great idea as long as the ring are not real old. I really love the old settings of rings. My sister has my grandmother's ring and it is beautiful. I wouldn't want to change it, but I have my mothers ring and it could be changed.
- September 17, 2008 at 10:56 AM
-
Like Virginia, I don't believe I'd change a setting of an antique piece of jewellery, but it's an interesting idea. :) I went back and checked out that video. Very neat! :)
My engagement ring has a diamond from my husband's grandmother. She gave her two oldest grandsons diamonds to use for engagement rings. A subtle hint to get married? LOL! No, seriously, I thought it was a lovely gesture. Thanks for the interesting post! :)
- September 17, 2008 at 12:38 PM
-
You don't just have to use an old ring setting to make a new ring via the greenkarat site. You can use any type of jewelry to make brand new wedding bands for both bride and groom. That is you could get your dad's old glass ring, your mom's gold watch, your aunt's necklace, etc. Melissa J was just talking about her ring she wanted to redo!
- September 17, 2008 at 3:48 PM
-
Ah, I see now. :) Yes, that would be neat. This is what happens when I quickly skim through a post and leave a comment before dashing out. :)
All the best,
Gail :)
- September 17, 2008 at 4:19 PM
-
Melissa,
My ex-husband and I made a joint decision to keep our high school class rings for this very reason...we thought one day our son would want to melt them (both white gold) down to make a wedding set...and that's just what he's doing. He and his fiancee have designed the rings they want with the precious metal from the rings my son's father and I wore in high school! I wasn't certain if they would want the rings as our marriage didn't last, but the kids thought even though the marriage didn't work out...it was in high school where we met and fell in love and that was good enough for them. I think saving a few hundred dollars helped their decision along too! Dana
- September 17, 2008 at 4:36 PM
-
I think it's a nice way to remember somebody special like a grandmother or even mother. It also makes the ring much more special. And since it has a social cause, stamping out conflict diamonds is of utmost importance. I like this idea a lot!
- September 17, 2008 at 6:46 PM
-
This sounds lovely! I have a ring from my Nana that neither I, nor my Daughter would wear, but that I now know (thank you!) that she could use later on to make a wedding ring!
- September 17, 2008 at 7:56 PM
-
That's really interesting, Melissa! I know a lot of women go for man-made diamonds [hey - no imperfections and no blood diamonds] -or there are a number of people who are moving away from the diamond engagement ring.
The green wedding ring is also really sweet- it involves a lot more people in the process and the ring is something you can keep forever. How meaningful.
- September 17, 2008 at 8:12 PM
-
Brandy, that's why I want to remodel the ring Mum gave me. She had a beautiful ring from my dad, but in the late 70s when my sister broke up with her fiance and gave her a ring, Mum remodeled both rings together in one of those awful 70s "step" patterns. She gave it to me years ago and I still haven't remodeled, but I would love a new engagement ring.
Melissa
- September 17, 2008 at 11:33 PM
-
And it helps those stuck at the worst end of mining...and really, how much more of the earth's resources can we strip along with global warming and pollution? No wonder the earth's striking back with all the natural disasters. And they call it Acts of God. More like Acts of Selfish Man thinking he can keep attacking the earth without consequence...
Okay, off soapbox now, but I for one am totally with green rings!
Melissa
- September 17, 2008 at 11:35 PM
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home
We've already had posts about green weddings and gift registries on this blog. Imagine my surprise when I found a website with a registry to help brides and grooms make green wedding rings!
