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 Atelier
Laibach's Principles
... serving you luxury with a clear conscience.
Laibach's Principles
are always being fine-tuned to harmonise with the betterment of
global conservation.
We take a genuinely responsible
approach ... and with our carbon and environmental "inverted"
targets we are truly dedicated to putting more back into nature
than taking from it. We harmlessly gather a few local stones and
make every aspect of the jewellery pieces in our own atelier with
recycled materials and renewable energy. We then award ten percent
of your purchase directly to local conservation, wildlife protection
and nature restoration projects.
Our goal to "restore more than remove" may be unusual
in the jewellery profession, but we also hope that all trades
will find ways to adopt a similar approach ... not just marketing
jargon, but sincere action. Being ecologically accountable for
every aspect of a business, i.e. material resources and work practice,
not only helps to minimize carbon and environmental footprints,
but could essentially "back-step" them to help reverse
the damage caused by the exploitation of our world.
We are fully aware
that jewellery traditionally serves as an aid to personal desire
and has little to do with the protection of our planet. But what
we strive to do is retune aspirations of life's small luxuries;
to consider compassion and conservation as a natural postscript
to bespoke style. We want to show that elegance has evolved; it
can be served by us and worn by you ... with a truly clear conscience.
A Theme
of Compassion and Conservation.
Our focus on compassion
mainly refers to the unnecessary harvesting and killing of living
beings to make jewellery ... For the sake of vanity there is simply
no need for it.
Because our jewellery is suitable for vegetarians and vegans,
we don't use any derivatives from animals in our pieces; neither
parts of the animals themselves like coral, or else pearls extracted
from them. Neither do we use animal derivatives during the construction
process.
Further reading about our principles on a conservation / ecological
theme progressively explain why we avoid new-mined precious metals,
diamonds or other newly-extracted gems:
"The reality is that all raw extraction of stones and
metals leave environmental scars and displaces / destroys habitats
and ecosystems wherever and however it takes place. There is absolutely
no process which can genuinely claim to the contrary" ...
"the only way in which ecological full-proofing can be achieved
is if gold and precious stone mining ceases completely".
More
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Our
Principles Explained.
For your peace of mind
it is important to know that from conception to the finished piece,
the greenest possible path of creation has been taken. The prime
ethics which underline the Laibach Principles are laid out without
blinding you with science:
- Environmentally damaging chemicals,
common to jewellery making and repair, are replaced with safer,
greener alternatives. (Completely green methods are always
applied as a preferred option whenever possible.) Because
of the slower results when using ecologically safer ingredients,
things take longer but the end product is just as beautiful.
- We never use new-mined precious
gems, or any type of stone which has been commercially harvested
for our new pieces. We only use self-gathered surface stones
- approx one hundred each year to ensure no detrimental impact
on the gathering area.
- A cruelty-free environment.
No animal derivatives are used in any aspect of Laibach jewellery
construction and all pieces are suitable for orthodox vegans.
Our specially obtained polishing pastes are free of animal
fat. ****
- Only recycled precious metals
are used in Laibach pieces (which automatically means they
have been recycled without the use of mercury or cyanide).
- We do not electroplate our
jewellery.
- The chains, links, clasps and
other fixings (called "findings") on Laibach jewellery are
not sourced from factories, but hand crafted by Laibach. This
is to ensure that these parts are ethically suitable. The
elaborate detail, even in these minor parts, is of an exceptional
quality.
- All Sea Glass pieces are made
using personally collected sea glass direct from the beach.
It is not bought in and is never polished, cut or treated
in any way.
- In Kerstin Laibach's workshop
in Germany, renewable energy provides the power for all processes
requiring electricity.
- Nothing ever goes to waste
if it can possibly be avoided. Quality tools of the trade
are sourced second-hand whenever possible and the workshop
is full of working-aids innovatively made from reclaimed materials.
- We hand make our own jewellery
presentation pouch using carefully sourced, environmentally
friendly materials. On delivery, if the postage wrapping looks
previously used ... it probably has been.
- We use the most environmentally
friendly delivery options whenever possible.
- On the rare occasion that a
Laibach piece requires "diamonds" or other gems, only laboratory-created
gems are used.*
- As a soldering and melting
source. Laibach uses propane (one of the cleanest burning
of all alternative fuels).**
- Only jewellery older than ten
years will be considered for redesign and recycle.***
- The "Reclaimed" Collection
only includes used precious stones from discarded / recycled
jewellery which is to the best of our knowledge over ten years
old.
- We periodically monitor our
materials suppliers and subsequently their trade links for
any "traceability" irregularities. We are dedicated to ensuring
our customers that, to the very best of our knowledge, we
avoid suppliers who leave us room for doubt about their "eco"
creden-tials - or whose trade threads may potentially be connected
with environmentally damaging work practices and human rights
abuse.
*Laboratory-made
diamonds are created either by HPHT (High Pressure High Temperature)
or CVD (Chemical Vapour Deposition) These new technologies signify
a breakthrough in growing "real" diamonds, which are comparable
and can proportionally be considered "purer" than their mined
counterparts; being of the same crystalline structure and optically
"almost" identical. Laibach never uses new-mined stones, but on
rare occasions we may use their lab-created counterparts (usually
on customer request only). There is a very small carbon footprint
created during "growing", cutting and subsequent transportation
of lab-created stones. Although this is a tiny percentage in comparison
to the huge environmental damage caused by the extraction, subsequent
processing and distribution of mined gems, we take any amount
of environmental impact into consideration. Therefore, relative
carbon offsetting is automatically included in the final cost
of your lab-created diamond. Our Co2 offset contributions are
distributed to environmental restoration projects.
**Our on-going research suggests that propane may in the
long-term prove to be less polluting than micro-flame soldering
systems, which use hazardous chemicals.
***
Ten
Year Threshold Principle.
If you are interested in using the Laibach Redesign and Recycle
service please read the Laibach principle concerning the reuse
and reworking of used jewellery.
(see
also Repair, Restoration, Redesign and Recycle, Reclaim)
****
Based on the global standard definition of orthodox veganism,
none of our jewellery contains any animal-derivatives. However,
we endeavour to create a work environment which goes a step further.
To the very best of our knowledge, and after thorough researching,
our workshop tools used to construct our pieces do not contain
any animal derivatives. However, after construction, polishing
your piece might raise a moral issue for a small number of vegan
customers. Although all our other polishing and buffing wheels
are made of sisal or cotton and we use specially obtained animal
fat free polishing paste, there is an essential goldsmith's preparatory
polishing wheel which contains felt. This specifically prepares
the foundation for a traditional glass finish to larger areas
of a completed gold or silver piece (i.e. ring interiors). There
is no direct non-felt alternative available for this process;
however we are currently experimenting with our own non-felt alternatives.
With adaptations to a finished Laibach piece we are able to cater
for the exact ethical polishing needs of ultra-strict vegans by
offering alternative finishes, thus avoiding the use of a felt
buff. Therefore, if you require an alternative finish appropriate
to your needs please contact us
- or for more information see
our Vegan Information Page
MORE
INFORMATION ...
Defining
Laibach's "Real" Slow / Holistic Jewellery Ethic
Quantifying
green ethics of the jewellery trade
About
gold colours and our environmental ethics
Atelier
Laibach's commitment to wildlife and the environment
MORE
INFORMATION FROM OUR REPAIR AND RESTORE PAGES ...
Extending
a Respect for what our Planet has Provided in the Past
Chesil Heart - (P003-08) Reverse
of necklace with hand-cut Laibach embossed "stamp"
- hard flint center piece and quartzite drop
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