As two women who were raised in Africa, nothing was ever thrown away - ever. It was all re-used, re-purposed or found a new home with someone who needed or loved it. When we discovered that so much beautiful jewellery was being scrapped because it was no longer wanted, en vogue to that owner, or because people simply wanted the money; we knew there was an opening for us. And today we reached a milestone. 200 pieces that were destined to be melted are now living their best lives with some of you.
Granted, not all the pieces we acquire are destined to be melted, but the fact that in 2 short years we have rescued 200 pieces says a lot (and that does not include the nearly 150 silver charms that were headed the same way!).
So why does rescusing gold matter?
Well first, although recycling gold is better for the environment that digging it out the ground, it still has its issues. New gold has slave labour, deforestation, not to mention the regular use of mercury and cyanide, as these companies raze the ground looking for this precious metal. And according to statistics by Springer Link the stats currently look like this: 23% of all gold in modern use is from recycled gold, 74% from new mining and 3% from electronic scraps, we realise that the newly mined gold is a much bigger issue.
So we firmly believe that recycled gold is a far better option than newly mined, but there is still those childhood voices inside us that shout, that it does not ALL need recycled, and 200 beautiful pieces later we are right.
So, if we are pro-recycled-gold rather than new mined - what is wrong with recycling gold?
Well - the environmental impact. To refine gold, you need a lot of heat & electricity, the use of some pretty nasty acids (like hydrochloric acid which has to then be neutralised with sodium hydroxide and quicklime) and lots and lots of water. Now, no-one is saying don’t melt down the broken chains, rings riddled with porosity and even great grandma’s teeth – but when we can find treasures like we do that were destined to be melted, we feel our job is really meaningful – to the planet and to the historical value of these pieces.
Now this is by no means the fault of those we get the pieces from – they either deal mostly in scrap and broken jewellery, bullion, and even those dreaded gold teeth – and the rare whole piece that does come through they simply have no avenue to sell it. Or otherwise these companies are in the pawn trade, and after a set amount of time, jewellery is taken and scrapped if it is not sold.
So, to the 200 pieces we have rescued pieces. They have come from 3 continents, 3 centuries (1800s, 1900s and modern) and the craftsmanship and stunning stones (that would have been hacked out), these are a gallery of meaning in our little company. We have included a little image of each – so please go and look and see if you too are a part of this journey.
As a final note, this is not a hate blog for recycled gold, we are totally on team; but when pieces can be rescued, re-loved and re-purposed with a new stone or claw, or just a brand new eye to see it for the treasure that it is, we know we are making just that little bit of a difference.
If you are interested in buying Vintage, recycled and old gold, you can Buy From Us Here
K x
