Material: The basis of our work
We consciously choose our materials, with a focus on origin, quality, and impact throughout the entire supply chain. Our philosophy is based on the belief that luxury and responsibility can go hand in hand.
We use recycled gold and recycled sterling silver. By reusing existing materials, the need for new mining is reduced and resources are conserved.
For our diamonds, we rely on lab-grown stones. These are created without traditional mining and offer a traceable origin. At the same time, we ensure responsible production conditions.
We also value well-considered materials and solutions for packaging that reduce resource consumption and waste.
Transparency is important to us: We are continuously working to further develop our materials and processes and make them traceable.
At Maren Jewellery, we firmly believe that beauty should not come at the expense of people and nature. That is why we rely on recycled materials, traceable supply chains, and transparent manufacturing processes – so you can wear our jewelry with intention.
Jewelry by material
Sustainably Certified Lab-Grown Diamonds
Our lab-grown diamonds come from our partner Fenix Diamonds and are produced under strictly controlled conditions. They are fully traceable back to their origin and are created using renewable energy. Independent certifications such as the SCS-007 Jewelry Sustainability Standard and SMETA confirm that environmental, social, and governance criteria (ESG) are upheld throughout the entire value chain – for maximum transparency and responsibility.
Our Recycled Gold
We source our recycled gold from the C.HAFNER refinery in Germany, one of the leading providers of sustainable precious metal processing. The gold comes exclusively from recycled material—both industrial residues and previously used precious metals—thereby avoiding additional primary mining. C.HAFNER operates in accordance with the strict guidelines of the LBMA, LPPM, and the standards of the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), ensuring a certified, responsible supply chain. This closed material cycle significantly reduces environmental impact and conserves valuable resources.
faqs about our jewelry materials
What are the benefits of recycling gold?
Through recycling gold, the extraction and consumption of new, finite resources is avoided, as many production waste or old disposable goods already contain enough gold to be prepared for reuse.
Since gold can be melted down and reused without loss, recycling gold is an environmentally friendly and also a humane alternative.
Because gold mining is not only dangerous and harmful to the health of all miners, but is unfortunately also often practiced by children and heavily pollutes our waters, soils, and air through the use of cyanide and mercury.
The WWF, sowie der Verein Rettet den Regenwald Recycling gold is considered the most sustainable form of gold extraction and processing. It consumes 550 times less CO2 and 8.9 times less water than newly mined gold. Additionally, recycling gold can prevent tons of toxic mining waste from entering our water, the displacement of communities due to mining, or the deforestation of forests that are crucial for our biodiversity.
Since 48.6% of the gold demand is due to the jewelry industry's requests, choosing recycled gold can make a significant difference: Just imagine if all jewelry manufacturers used recycled gold.
What does the gold recycling process at Maren Jewelery look like?
For the recycled gold that we use at Maren Jewellery for our jewelry pieces, we work closely with our partner, who C.Hafner Minting Institution together, which carries out the gold recycling process for us.
All our valuable collected gold residues, which have originated from cast parts, filing waste, or polishing dust, are handed over to C.Hafner so that they can be melted down with further scrap material. For this, the scrap material is first weighed and then melted down, allowing the precious metal to be homogenized and subsequently cast into bars.
This bar will then have samples taken from it, which will be quartered with lead. The lead absorbs the precious metals in the crucible, only to evaporate in the heat. What remains is the precious metal grain. This grain is then hammered and rolled. Only now does the actual separation process begin – the separating or cutting of the precious metals. In aqua regia, the separation material dissolves. There, the various precious metals contained in the separation material separate from each other and can be recovered in pure form: palladium, platinum, and also gold.
At the end of the gold refining process, pure gold sponge is produced. This is melted down and granulated, and the result is impressive: recycled fine gold with 99.99 percent purity.
What are synthetic diamonds?
Synthetic diamonds are diamonds grown in a laboratory.
They are identical to natural diamonds in appearance, hardness, and chemical composition.
The advantage of synthetic diamonds lies in their sustainable and human-friendly extraction, as they do not burden our environment, nor do they endanger people in crisis areas.
For the production of synthetic diamonds, there are two techniques: the CVD method and the HTHP method.
At the Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) Diamonds are created in a plasma that is as hot as a small sun on Earth. Our partner Fenix Diamond uses this technique. Diamond Foundry It also cultivates using the CVD process and manufactures novel plasma reactors that generate such heat that atoms attach themselves to the natural diamond crystal lattice of a diamond, which is used as the basis in this process. In this method, more and more atoms stack on a thin foundation of diamond, thereby expanding the unique crystal structure of the seed diamond. Atom by atom, a pure, ornamental synthetic rough diamond of gemstone size grows.
HTHP stands for High Temperature, High PressureIn this process, which is modeled after the natural formation of diamonds, graphite-2H is placed in growth cells that are subjected to pressure from three sides in so-called cubic presses with up to 70,000 bar. Graphite-2H is a natural form of the chemical element carbon, which has a hexagonal crystal structure similar to that of a honeycomb. The interior of the growth cell is initially equipped with catalysts and seed diamonds and heated to about 1600-1700 degrees Celsius. Under these conditions, the graphite undergoes a physical-chemical process and the black powder grows into a transparent diamond. Our partner Swiss Diamond Vision works with the HPHT process to produce lab-grown synthetic eco diamonds.
Are artificial, lab-grown diamonds sustainable?
The process of growing diamonds synthetically in the laboratory ensures that no people in crisis areas were endangered in order to extract the diamonds.
Although laboratory-grown diamonds are just as pure and unique as natural diamonds, their origin is 100% guaranteed:
Our synthetic diamonds that we use for Maren Jewelery come from Switzerland, India or America. All of our gemstones are 100% conflict-free.
In addition, diamonds grown in the laboratory are resource-efficient. If 1ct diamond is mined in the traditional way, up to 200 tons of earth have to be moved. Moving these masses requires an incredible amount of energy.
Our synthetic diamonds are significantly more environmentally friendly than natural diamonds.
They consume 4,79,19 times less CO2 than normal diamonds. The high energy required for the breeding process is also problematic, but this is taken into account by our partner Diamond Foundry, which, like Maren Jewellery, is a CO2-neutral company..