Birthstone: Diamond

Diamonds: A symbol of everlasting love, the celebratory stone of a 60th anniversary, and the April birthstone.

For centuries, diamonds were thought to provide the wearer with unbreakable relationships and increased inner strength. They are admired for their beauty and adored for their durability. Whilst they are loved by million, diamonds have seen the best and worst of mankind. Although they have been celebrated and desired, they have also been illegally traded and have been the centre of slavery rings and perpetrators of civil wars.

In recent years, ethical concerns over diamond mining practices have forced industry leaders to implement better supply chain tracking. In 2003, the United Nations implemented the Kimberley Process, which aims to follow diamonds from mine to market, ensuring that conflict diamond don’t enter the global trade market.

As diamonds are frequently sought after for wedding and engagement rings, they are a popular gemstone in the KIND studio. We work very closely with our suppliers to ensure that every stone that we include in our jewellery has been ethically sourced and is conflict free. Our diamonds at KIND have been sourced from Fair Trade Gemstones, a Fairmined supplier who heroes their female workers within their supply chain. This week we chatted to Kathy from Fair Trade Gemstones about conflict free diamonds, and what they truly mean.

We have sourced Diamonds from you at Fair Trade Gemstones since we started working on Bespoke projects in 2017. Can you tell us a little about how you got into the industry and why it is important to you that your offering of diamonds is KIND to people and planet?

I came to the industry some twenty years ago. I spent my life, growing up on mine sites, my father was a mining engineer and hence we travelled the world. In later life, one of the mines he owned and operated was the Chimwadzulu ruby and sapphire mine in Malawi. This led to us developing a marketing operation through Columbia Gem House of the USA. It was early days for the UK ethical coloured gemstone movement and we felt the time was right to bring the product to the UK. It has snowballed since with many more ethical disruptors following in our footsteps. With regards to diamonds, this was a natural development, along with coloured stones my clients required traceable diamonds. The only diamonds I could find that would fit this requirement were Canadian. It has been a long process and I’m continuing my due diligence with more countries as we speak.

Offering conflict free diamonds under the Kimberley process is the ground level of responsible sourcing but what other elements play a role in making a stone ethical and are there any projects that you think are worth supporting to facilitate change in the industry? 

The diamond and gemstone industry has changed greatly over the last few years. It has been enlightening to see dealers recognising the benefits of a sustainable and transparent supply chain. The trade can draw from: The World Diamond Council’s New System of Warranties, The Responsible Jewellery Council’s Code of Practice and CIBJO’S ‘Guide to Responsible Practices in Diamonds, Coloured Stones and Pearls’. The key to all these is that they follow in part in the footsteps of the OECD’S ‘Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains. 

In addition to Fair Trade Gemstones, we have recently started sourcing our precious gems from Ocean Diamonds. Their diamonds are all accompanied by a Certificate of Provenance, which specifies the origin and the coastal area where the gem has been harvested. Their diamonds are retrieved in a responsible manner along the coast of South Africa - and we are proud to work with them at KIND Collection. You can read a snippet from our recent interview with them, below:

Can you tell us a little about Ocean Diamonds, Where they come from and how they are collected?

Ocean Diamonds are natural, alluvial diamonds that have travelled from land to sea over millions of years. They have experienced an incredible journey, only the strongest survive the power of the waves to eventually settle on the seabed. These diamonds are retrieved by professional, local divers in South Africa and Namibia. They have expert knowledge of where to search for the diamonds in shallow waters and they use small boats the size of inshore fishing boats with a couple of divers on board. Nature is very much in control of our operations as the boats can only work on a few days each month when the weather is calm enough. After prospecting, they dive in and position a small hose to transport the diamond bearing gravel from the seabed onto the boat. This diamondiferous gravel is sorted on board the boat using a sieve system and anything too large or small is returned to the ocean whilst the rest is taken back with them to the harbour side and sorted there.

How important is a transparent supply chain to you and how do you ensure your Ocean Diamonds are collected, cut and traded fairly?

The transparency of our supply chain is extremely important to us. The provenance of our diamonds and the community that work towards upholding the integrity of the origin are at the heart of our brand. We certify the provenance of our diamonds and provide details of the Country of Origin and Coastal Location of where each one is discovered. We work directly with the divers and ensure that they are paid fairly. Currently we have a small fleet of boats working with us and as demand increases we will look to grow sustainably by adding to this fleet. 

Not only do we discover the diamonds in South Africa, we also have them cut by local professionals and GIA certified here too. It is important to us that we are contributing to the economy of the place where the diamonds are naturally found. We trace our diamonds from the rough to receiving the finished product, and when they are certified they are laser inscribed with our brand mark. We have a very short supply chain with no other middle men, we purchase direct so there is no chance of our diamonds being mixed with other sources and we know that our purchases positively impact our divers. 

What are the benefits to our environment and the people we share with of using Ocean Diamonds? 
Ocean Diamonds are the only branded diamonds in the world that are recovered by divers and each purchase supports the local industry and community. This method of retrieval does not use any drilling or explosives. Any trace of the divers working in the ocean is minimal and the natural weather patterns that follow eradicate any sign of their presence within weeks. Ocean Diamonds provide a unique connection to the ocean and give the wearer an opportunity to deeply resonate with this provenance, transporting them to oceans around the world. For someone who loves the ocean an Ocean Diamond is an exciting and romantic choice!

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We have recently hand selected a number of Ocean Diamonds, and they are available for bespoke designs at KIND. If you are looking for a specific cut, size or style, please let us know and we will assist you in any way that we can.