Sustainability
At Susie Warner, sustainability is intrinsic to the essence of who we are, what we do and how we do it. Our mission is to create sustainable jewellery with minimal environmental harm and maximum social responsibility. We use recycled gold and silver, source our gemstones and beads from trusted suppliers who align with the values of the responsible jewellery council (RJC), and ensure we use plastic free packaging made from recycled materials.
OUR MATERIALS & PRODUCTION METHODS
Jewellery is an area where the processes used and the nature of materials used can cause harm to the environment and its people, so it's incredibly important to us that our processes and materials are as sustainable as possible.
OUR METALS
Our jewellery is handmade from recycled gold and silver. Much of our metal is recycled from our offcuts by ourselves in our studio and when we must buy new metal stock, we ensure that all silver is recycled and all gold is certified Fairtrade Gold. This ensures the refiners and miners producing the metal benefit from safer working conditions, environmental protection, and fair pay by being paid a living wage.
OUR GEMSTONES & PEARLS
Gemstones are an area of jewellery where the lack of universal regulation and production by smaller individual manufacturers, in countries with less robust human rights and environmental legislation can result in obfuscation. We recognise this, so to ensure the sustainable and ethical provenance of our materials, we use ethically sourced gemstones & pearls from longstanding trusted suppliers who align with the values of the RJC. We want to do our best to ensure that the miners, pearl farmers & gemstone cutters who made our gemstones and pearls have been treated with dignity and paid a fair price for their product.
OUR PRODUCTION METHODS
While large scale manufacture within the jewellery industry may use less ethical production and processes harmful to the environment, our UK based studio intentionally keeps production local. This gives us the ability to refine our manufacturing processes frequently, ensuring that our own studio is a genuine reflection of our sustainable values. Our jewellery is handmade with care and designed to last, we hope it will be treasured and handed down from generation to generation.
We use made-to-order and small batch production methods (where pieces are made in limited numbers) to make our jewellery. Manufacturing our jewellery in this way means that we don’t waste energy, material or make more than necessary. We recycle everything from the fine dust and offcuts of metal produced when making our jewellery to older pieces no longer in production or faulty items, re-purposing the gemstones, beads and pearls, and recycling the metal into sheet and wire to use in new pieces. We’ve recently extended our commitment to recycling by introducing REIMAGINED, a new service where we recycle your unwanted silver or gold jewellery and repurpose the metal (and/or gemstones) into a new piece or store credit.
Read more about REIMAGINED here.
It’s important to us that we do what we can to minimise our environmental footprint by using 100% renewable energy in the manufacture of our jewellery. By choosing a supplier independently verified by the Carbon Trust, we’re ensuring that every piece we create is a step toward a cleaner, kinder future.
OUR SUPPLIERS & PARTNERS
We work hard to ensure that our suppliers and partners align with our core values of ethical and sustainable production. We manufacture our jewellery ourselves in our studio, collaborating with specialised UK based professional craftspeople on specific projects. By keeping all our production local, we ensure fair wages and good working conditions for every person involved in the making of our jewellery. Our gemstones, beads and pearls are sourced from longstanding suppliers who align with the values of the RJC. We use recycled silver and gold and when we do require new metal stock, we use UK based suppliers specialising in recycled silver and Fairtrade gold. We’re committed to green energy, choosing a supplier independently verified by the Carbon Trust, and are proud to use 100% renewable energy in the production of our jewellery.
OUR PACKAGING
Our dedication to sustainability includes all our packaging. Our keepsake jewellery boxes are made in the UK from recycled board, our travel pouches are sewn locally from sustainably sourced cotton and our recycled paper gift wrap is plastic free, including the ribbon. We are proud to offer luxurious sustainable packaging that is as beautiful as it is 100% recyclable.