8 Ethical & Sustainable Wedding Bands And Rings
Granted, when you put so much time and effort into the quest to find the most dazzling ethical engagement ring, sustainable wedding bands can often feel like something of an afterthought. This is only until you realize that ethical wedding bands are also pieces of jewelry that you are pledged to wear on your wedding day and on every other day moving forward. So why stick with an option that doesn’t fit your personal style to a T? Luckily for us, there’s a plethora of sustainable men’s wedding bands and unique wedding rings that can match every possible taste with ease.
So go ahead and declare your commitment with eco wedding bands made to shine for a lifetime from our list, below.
Why Sustainable Wedding Bands Are The Best Option?
An ethical engagement ring was created with fair labor practices and ethically sourced materials. Regrettably, there is a lot of corruption in the diamond sector, along with harsh working conditions, child labor, and forced labor.
Ethical wedding bands and sustainable wedding rings are created thoughtfully with fair labor practices and ethically sourced materials. Unfortunately, there is a lot of corruption in the diamond industry, along with harsh working conditions, child labor, and forced labor. Certified ethical materials like recycled gold, conflict-free diamonds, and lab-grown diamonds ensure that our rings have a minimal impact on the environment, and were created by fairly-payed artisans in safe working environments. Sustainable wedding ring sets often feature recycled metals that can be reused multiple times without losing their quality –which is a much more eco-friendly solution than mining for new alloys.
Lab-grown diamonds are created using a small number of resources and are produced in laboratories with little to no environmental impact. In other words, choosing eco wedding bands you’d love to say ‘i do’ to is not only the most ethical option but also the most affordable one.
The Most Sustainable Wedding Bands & Ethical Wedding Rings
1. Brilliant Earth
Price:
From $450
Sustainable Materials:
Recycled metals, Fairmined certified gold, lab-created diamonds
Brilliant Earth crafts some of the4 most ethical wedding bands for men and women with strong ethics. From diamond studded to plain polished bands, their impressive sustainable wedding rings collection is made of recycled metal and lab-grown diamonds.
Their most popular eco wedding bands feature recycled yellow and white gold or recycled silver, sourced from Responsible Mining Initiative and London Bullion Market Association-audited refiners. The small portion that’s not recycled, is Fairmined certified.
If recycled gold wedding rings are not your thing, there’s always the option of recycled platinum wedding rings as well. No matter your preferences, the sustainable wedding ring sets, that are blacked by a lifetime warranty, will come FSC-certified wooden ring box.
2. VRAI
Price:
From $745
Sustainable Materials:
Certified Carbon Neutral diamonds, platinum, recycled gold
What makes VRAI so unique – except from the fact that even Leonardo DiCaprio has backed them up? Their diamonds are the world’s only diamonds produced with zero carbon footprint: Certified Carbon Neutral(R).
The ethical fine jewelry brand offers sustainable wedding bands made with a range of conscious materials such as platinum and recycled white, rose, and yellow gold, and optional lab-grown white diamonds. All eco wedding bands are designed by our master craftsmen and individually cast using platinum or recycled gold.
In fact, they have one of the widest ranges of sustainable men’s wedding bands and women’s wedding rings we’ve seen thus far. What’s more, VRAI solely uses 100% recyclable, compostable, and reusable packaging materials.
3. Bario Neal
Price:
From $260
Sustainable Materials:
Traceable diamonds and gemstones, SCS-certified lab-grown diamonds, recycled or fairtrade gold
The female-founded sustainable engagement ring brand aims to create the most eco-conscious sparkles! Their sustainable wedding bands Rage include everything from delicate braided gold bands to simple, sustainable men’s wedding bands for minimalists.
Bario Neal’s Recycled or fairtrade gold wedding rings can be adorned with traceable diamonds and gemstones, SCS-certified lab-grown diamonds, repurposed gemstones, or even your own diamonds. That’s right! You can custom-make your own eco wedding bands – whether you’re starting from scratch or have a specific vision.
4. KBH Jewels
Price:
From $200
Sustainable Materials:
Reclaimed pink, white, or yellow recycled 14k gold, lab-grown diamonds or responsibly-sourced pearls
KBH Jewels believes that “Jewelry should be beautiful, aspirational, covetable, and life-long,” which is something that we can clearly see by just looking at their dazzling collection of ethical and sustainable wedding bands.
All environmentally friendly wedding rings are made of 100% reclaimed pink, white, or yellow recycled 14k gold. The pieces are enhanced with sparkly lab-grown diamonds or responsibly-sourced pearls.
Either way, these beautiful handcrafted fine jewelry made in NYC are “dressed” in GOTS-certified organic wedding ring pouch fabric.
5. Clean Origin
Price:
From $700
Sustainable Materials:
Recycled rose gold, yellow gold, white gold, or platinum., lab-grown diamonds
As the name suggests, Clean Origin is one of the best destinations for sustainable wedding bands and ethical wedding rings. The US-based company solely uses recycled metals and lab-grown diamonds to produce their exquisite collections.
Also, they provide free delivery, a lifetime manufacturers’ warranty, a 100-day return policy, and free resizing. As for the options, you’ll be happy to hear that you can pick from over 200 different engagement rings, 50+ eco wedding bands, or even design your own sustainable wedding ring sets.
To top it all off, Clean Origin‘s diamond lab has partnered up with fantastic carbon offset programs to minimize their impact.
6. Ring Bear
Price:
From $225
Sustainable Materials:
Recycled Gold, platinum, tungsten
Ring Bear is the mecca for sustainable men’s wedding bands that are not only infinitely classic, but also carbon-neutral, and affordable.
The wide range of 100% recycled men’s wedding bands are nickel-free and hypoallergenic. For example, the sleek black tungsten band is a smart and modern choice for any groom who doesn’t want to go with the usual gold and platinum options.
What’s more, you’ll receive your ring in an FSC-certified wooden ring box.
7. Aether
Price:
From $700
Sustainable Materials:
Lab-grown diamonds, Fairmined gold
Aether is the first jewelry luxury jewelry company to truly use air-captured carbon to create diamonds. By 2023, Aether hopes to achieve 100% carbon neutrality, but until then, you can rest easy knowing that every diamond they sell has a beneficial effect on the earth.
They provide stunning sustainable wedding bands and ethical engagement rings in addition to earrings, necklaces, and bracelets with both traditional and contemporary styles. For something even more distinctive, you may even commission a totally bespoke piece.
8. Love Locked
Price:
Custom rings start at $95
Sustainable Materials:
Gold, platinum, sterling silver
Still having trouble choosing the right ethical engagement & wedding rings? Don’t fret. No matter your personal style, Love Locked is here to create unique ethical wedding bands just for you.
The company uses fair trade, non-conflict, and recycled materials to craft ethical engagement and wedding rings with the help of approximately 90 local artisans!
The experts will guide you through each step and help you select the diamond or gemstone and style for your sustainable wedding bands.
About Author
Konstantina Antoniadou
Freelance fashion and sustainability writer with an ongoing curiosity to explore new innovative technologies, and report on trends in “green” industries.