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  • ETHICAL TALKS

Fyne Jewellery: Redefining The Industry For Better

  • 5 minute read
Photo from Fyne's brand campaign, founded by Aya

By Beatrice Tridimas

‘Implementing lab grown diamonds in the diamond industry kind of woke up the old fashioned and opaque traditional natural diamond industry and made them implement more sustainable practices,’ Aya Ahmad tells us.

Over the phone, a cool internationalism exudes her. Growing up in a family of diamantaires in the diamond capital, Antwerp, the CEO and founder of Fyne Jewellery is firmly rooted in the global diamond industry. An industry, she has always found ‘closed off,’ constrained by its traditionalism.

But now, Aya tells us, ‘there’s a lot more fresh brands coming out with a modern mindset,’ slowly changing the industry that’s been run for generations by the same families.

 

Model wearing the beautiful Dahlia Diamond Ring and bracelet

About Fyne Jewellery 

At the forefront of the new generation of jewellers, is Aya herself, setting up an e-shop in Dubai to market her ethically made, affordable luxury goods. Her brand, Fyne Jewellery, is changing the face of luxury, offering guaranteed conflict free diamond and 18 karat gold rings, earrings, necklaces and bracelets at affordable prices.

Having noticed a lack of high-quality, affordable jewellery, Aya turned away from valuing rough diamonds and entered the lab-grown world of cultured diamonds, which typically cost 30-40% less than mined diamonds. The environmental and ethical benefits of the lab-grown gems which now lie at the core of her business sealed the deal and Fyne was born.
Model wearing Serena Infinity Diamond Earrings and Yara Triple Hoop Ear Cuff

Why cultured diamonds?

The lab-grown gems take around 3-6 weeks to grow, and have the same physical, chemical and aesthetic structure of mined diamonds. They’re graded on cut, colour and clarity and each has their own unique make-up, like mined diamonds.

‘Each cultured diamond that I use is individual. It has its own clarity characteristics, so they’re not identical to each other, but they’re cut and polished in the same way as natural diamonds, they have the exact same properties,’ she reassures me, ‘so once [buyers] realise that, then I think they have no hesitation.’

She’s met with little apprehension, but for engagement ring buyers, who are hesitant to stray too far from tradition. ‘I do feel like people are a bit wary because it’s such a huge purchase, and such an emotional purchase in their lives that they’re not ready to change their mentality,’ she says.

Changing the game.

A new generation of more conscious consumers, seeking integrity in the items they buy have enabled the success of cultured diamonds. The diamond industry ‘is a bit late to the game’ in terms of sustainability, Aya discloses, but over the past year and, especially since January, she’s seen a rapid change in people’s attitudes towards ethical manufacturing. The industry still isn’t where it needs to be, but the increasing popularity of cultured diamonds has started a conversation within the industry that is long overdue.

‘I think a lot of companies that are talking about fashion and clothes need to include jewellery more,’

Aya tells us. There’s little recognition of the full extent of the issues in the industry; general understanding caps at the role of diamond mining in civil conflicts across Africa.

‘A lot of people aren’t even aware that metals can be a conflict issue, you know.’

Adilah Diamond Ring £262.97
Adilah Diamond Ring £262.97
Adilah Diamond Earrings £576.98
Adilah Diamond Earrings £576.98

The truth behind diamonds and metals

Gold mining is also responsible for contaminating water and polluting the air with mercury, poisoning those who work with it and live in the surrounding communities. Using mercury is the easiest and cheapest way to mine gold, and communities who rely on mining for their income will most likely disregard the health risks for economic profit.

The diamond and metal industries have long and complex supply chains, the raw materials passing through several hands before they get to the point of exportation.

‘It’s very difficult to trace where your diamonds have come from…the same goes with metals, so even if you use recycled metals in your jewellery, which is more eco-friendly because you’re not mining additional metals from the earth, you don’t know the original source.’ 

It’s thought that around 140,000 carats of diamonds have been smuggled out of the Central African Republic since it was suspended from the global diamond trade in 2013. It’s impossible to estimate just how many conflict diamonds are circulating the markets, but some put it as high as 15%.

The solution? 

Greater effort to track where exactly our resources are coming from, the onus lying on manufacturers and companies to implement traceability measures.

‘When you’re producing in small quantities, you’ve got more control over your supply chain, as well, you know where things are coming from, you know exactly where the money is going,’

Aya says. But for her, cultured diamonds already provide the solution to reliable sourcing.

Fyne Jewellery
Fyne Jewellery

Fyne ethos

Bringing sustainability and ethics to the forefront of the industry, Aya feels that cultured diamonds have had ‘a positive impact on the natural diamond industry.’ Now that consumers have started buying differently, bigger companies are beginning to reevaluate their place in the market.

‘It’s really the consumer that’s starting to dictate the story and change the way things are being done,’ she adds.

A study carried out in 2014 revealed that growing diamonds uses less than half the energy of mining and produces 1.5 billion% less emissions. Is that figure even comprehensible?

‘To start off with, you don’t have to destroy tonnes of earth and leave huge open pits in the ground,’ Aya laughs. The effect on local ecosystems in growing diamonds is next to zero compared to the wide-scale destruction of mining. The cleanliness of the process depends on the supplier, Aya reminds me, but her’s, she reassures, works only with recycled and renewable energy sources.

Dahlia Diamond Earrings £441.61
Dahlia Diamond Earrings £441.61
Dahlia Diamond Ring £427.19
Dahlia Diamond Ring £427.19

Diamond mining is such a complex industry, deeply-set in tradition and politics, that it can’t simply be replaced by cultured diamonds. Boycotting mined diamonds won’t do anything to change the industry for the better. Instead, it’s the Western world’s responsibility, Aya tells us, where most of these diamonds end up, to provide humanitarian aid ‘on the ground.’

Despite Fyne’s timeless designs, what Aya prizes most ‘is the fact that my jewellery is made out of 18 karat gold and cultured diamonds that can always be repurposed.’ To her, and rightly so, creating a sustainable products is more than being conscious of where you source your materials. ‘What do you do with fashion jewellery when you’re bored of wearing it?’ she asks. With Fyne, you can remelt the gold or reset the diamonds (but who would want to anyway?).

Aya ensures that the rest of her ecologically sustainable, making to order, using recycled paper for packaging and working on a solution for recyclable boxes. 

She has secured a concept that is appealing in its care, consciousness and affordability, not to mention her sophisticated designs and timeless elegance. A piece of Fyne Jewellery is for the modern consumer a symbol of progress so much as it is a delightfully made accessory.

***

This article may contain some affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, KeiSei Magazine receives a small percentage of the sale price. This brand have paid a small fee to be featured. We only recommend brands that match our sustainable and ethical criteria and that we truly believe in. Support our editorial work by supporting them!

Beatrice Tridimas

Beatrice Tridimas

Beatrice is an ethicist and book-lover, pursuing her passion for writing at KeiSei whilst studying for a masters degree at UCL. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh earlier this year.

Beatrice Tridimas

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