Not just green...GREEN green!

As a company that considers itself to be the leader in green & eco-friendly jewelry, we here at Real Jewels thought it important to take the time to let you know about the other organizations we have partnered up with to show you how seriously we take our commitment to providing a truly green product to the marketplace!

1) NO DIRTY GOLD

We don't mean gold that needs a bath!  Did you know that gold mining is actually one of the dirtiest businesses in the world?  The production of one gold ring generates 20 TONS of mine waste!  We exclusively use recycled 14 karat gold to create our pieces and are proud to have signed the NO DIRTY GOLD pledge which states, "I support the No Dirty Gold campaign to end destructive gold mining practices. I call on retailers and manufacturers of gold jewelry, electronics, and other goods to work to ensure that the gold in their products was not produced at the expense of local communities, workers, and the environment. I demand that the global mining industry provide retailers and consumers an alternative to dirty gold."

2) GREEN AMERICA

This not-for-profit membership organization founded in 1982 has a mission to harness economic power - the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace - to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society.  Their vision is a world where all people have enough, where all communities are healthy and safe, and where the bounty of the Earth is preserved for all the generations to come.  We're on board with that!

3) JEWELERS VIGILANCE COMMITTEE

As a member of this not-for-profit trade association, founded in 1917, we are one of many companies working to maintain the jewelry industry's highest ethical standards.  JVC is considered to be the industry's guardian of ethics and integrity, and is a resource for both trade and consumers.  When our guardian angel is on vacation, we know the JVC is still around looking out for us!

4) RESPONSIBLE JEWELLERY COUNCIL 

The name ALMOST says it all!  We are so proud to be one of over 300 member companies across the jewelry supply chain who are committed to promoting responsible ethical, human rights, and social and environmental practices in a transparent and accountable manner throughout the industry from mine to retail.  Our commitment aims to reinforce consumer and stakeholder confidence in jewelry products. 

We hope this helps you to learn a little bit more about what we are doing on a daily basis to bring creations that are beautiful on both the inside and out to you! 

And, as always, we'd love to hear from you!  Please contact us with questions or comments any time HERE. 

Until next time...

STAY REAL,

The Real Jewels Team 

Real Jewels Tested, Mom Approved!

  

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.”

-Washington Irving

We here at Real Jewels know how tough it is to decide on a Mother's Day gift, what, with all the jewelry ads on TV, the deals on flowers, the signs in Hallmark seemingly shouting at you "MOTHER'S DAY IS SUNDAY, MAY 8TH!"...so we're cutting you some slack and giving you a cheat sheet to a few 100% Mom (& planet) approved gifts!  Take out a pencil...you may want to take notes...

THE CLASSIC CHOICE:

Is your Mom kind of like Mrs. Cleaver?  Kind of, well, perfect?  Then check out one of our newest items just for Mom, this recycled Sterling Silver necklace will let everyone on the playground know who's boss (and they'll also know that the boss is a responsible, green kinda lady). 

1/2" diameter 

17" chain

$90

THE SNAZZY CHOICE:

Is your Mom a bit of a...showstopper?  Does she always dress to impress? Throw the best holiday parties?  Makes a punch that makes your lip pucker? Sings along to American Idol?  Then may we suggest our Real Sweet Star Necklace?  She may not be on the cover of Vogue, but, let's be honest...she should be.

Measures 3/16"

16" chain

Sterling Silver with Diamond

$100

THE SPIRITUAL CHOICE:

Has your Mom found inner peace (or is she at least on a mission to do so?). Help her on her journey to spiritual bliss and enlightenment with something eco-friendly to hold close to her heart like our Real Spirit Tree of Life necklace.

5/8" diameter, 17" chain

On semi-precious beaded chain 18 karat gold over sterling silver

Choose from: Rhodolite Garnet, Pearl, Amethyst, Pink Amethyst, Golden Pyrite, Black Spinel, Peridot and Iolite Faceted Beaded Chain

$195

PENCILS DOWN!

Hope our tutoring session helped get your brain juices flowing!  Now, get online and shop, shop, shop!

And because we think you deserve a little extra credit for being such a thoughtful child...we're shipping for Mother's Day until Friday!  Phew!  Class dismissed!

Stay real,

The Real Jewels Team 

Hamsas and Peace Signs and Hearts -- OM my!

Let's face it...life isn't always easy.

In fact, a lot of times it can be, well, pretty stressful.

With that being said, we here are at Real Jewels like to take the approach of small steps towards a more peaceful existence.

And that, friends, is why we created The REAL SPIRIT collection.

Whether you're into Talismans or Touchstones, this completely green collection is jewelry to ground us all. 

Every piece of the REAL SPIRIT collection is specially designed to uplift, energize, and empower the wearer.  

Like sage advice passed down through the ages, REAL SPIRIT pieces help to guide us through whatever life may throw in our direction.  We filled this collection up with things that inspire, give hope, and spread a message of goodwill without saying a word -- eco-friendly, 100% recycled materials molded into hamsas, trees of life, buddhas, oms, hearts, and peace signs.

But we didn't stop there...each Real Jewels/Real Spirit creation is shipped on its unique inspirational quotation card tucked neatly in our beautiful eco vine pattern origami-inspired envelope -- perfectly prepared to present as a gift (to yourself or someone else)!

As always, our packaging and printed materials are all made in the USA and we use only FSC-certified, 100% recycled, 100% post-consumer waste, chlorine-free paper.  Even our ink is soy-based (vegetable-based inks offer a safer work environment for production staff by reducing harmful fumes and VOC emissions).

We know that if we do right by our devoted employees and loyal customers it will come back to us in tenfold.  That's karma, baby!

Stay real,

The Real Jewels Team

The Valentine's Day Post You Expected Us to Write (Only Different!)

Accept the things to which fate binds you, 

and love the people with whom fate brings you, 

but do so with all your heart.

-Marcus Aurelius

Most jewelry companies love Valentine's Day because it means panicked men and women rushing out to their shop and logging onto their website with a credit card ready to swipe their way into the heart of their object of desire, but here at Real Jewels...we've actually been sidetracked thinking about TRUE LOVE!

Did this love bug stop us from picking out our most favorite heart pieces from our 5 eco-friendly collections?  Well, of course not (as you can see below)....but it also didn't stop us from getting totally romancy!  So, go ahead, immerse yourself in our green jewels...and then keep on reading to immerse yourself in love.

For isn't love the most precious jewel of all?

Real Spirit Heart

Real Spirit Engraved Heart Earrings

Real Me Small single initial disk with Heart

Real Sweet Heart Necklace

Real Sweet Heart in Square necklace

Real Sweet Double Heart Earrings

Real Charming Heart

A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave. -Mahatma Gandhi A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous. -Ingrid Bergman A loving heart is the beginning of all knowledge. -Thomas Carlyle Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind. -William Shakespeare True love is like ghosts, which everybody talks about and few have seen. -Francois de La Rochefoucauld The greatest happiness in life is the conviction that we are loved - loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves. -Victor Hugo True love begins when nothing is looked for in return. -Antoine de Saint-Exupery "Who travels for love finds a thousand miles not longer than one." -Japanese Proverb XOXO Stay real, The Real Jewels Team

Fortunoff Goes Green (and we're totally in on it!)

The Real Jewels team LOVES spreading the word...the GREEN word, that is!

Because of this, we were super excited when our friends at Fortunoff decided to take a big step in spreading the word on responsible jewelry practices by carrying...that's right -- REAL JEWELS!

We are especially pleased to announce that in addition to them carrying our creations  ONLINE ...they are also one of the responsible companies that have signed the "No Dirty Gold" pledge!

While crafting pieces that are gorgeous is something we do, our fans and loyal customers know our passion is eco friendly jewelry!  

It gives us great satisfaction to support a retailer like Fortunoff in their efforts to support No Dirty Gold and understand the importance of responsible mining and refining practices.  We just love getting the green word out there!

For new fans of our company, Real Jewels exclusively uses 100% recycled precious metals, and conflict-free diamonds...plus, even our packaging is eco-friendly!

If you're interested in seeing how our pieces look at the Fortunoff site...CLICK HERE (Spoiler Alert: they still look AWESOME!)

Stay real,

The Real Jewels Team

Resolutions Made NOT to be Broken!

So, it's a new year, right?

You've resolved to kick your cookie & chip obsession, exercise more, turn off the TV, put out the cigarette, and feng shui your living space.  Cool.

But how about some resolutions you can actually keep (we'll help)?

Here at Real Jewels, we have this idea of "resolutions we can live with"...these will be our small ways to help the environment in 2011 and we guarantee they'll make ya feel good!  Because if we all help a little...it will amount to a lot, right?  Right!

We're curious to see what kind of eco-friendly magic tricks you have up those 100% cotton recycled sleeves of yours (just sayin')!  Leave your best ideas on our OFFICIAL FACEBOOK PAGE!

While we're talking green, we'd like to take a moment to salute the pioneers in the following organizations and give our public support to their continued effort in educating consumers on the environmental benefits of using recycled precious metals.  We here at Real Jewels are proud to be affiliated with the following organizations and encourages all consumers to learn more about what they can do to help the environment.  We now have a choice!

NO DIRTY GOLD

EARTHWORKS

RESPONSIBLE JEWELLERY COUNCIL

MADISON DIALOGUE

We invite you to take a look at these amazing organizations and the tireless work they do to protect our precious natural resources and promote sustainability! 

At Real Jewels, we believe that "responsibly made" should be synonymous with trendy and fashionable...and that NOW is the time to embrace sustainability and promote awareness for future generations.  Real Jewels believes that one person REALLY CAN make a difference...and when you wear our jewelry, you are doing your part to make the planet a healthier place! 

Happy GREEN new year!

Stay real,

The Real Jewels Team