By Chrislande Dorcilus / Source: Eco-Chick

Last week, I took a quick time-traveling trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which re-opened my eyes to the creative ways that we have loved to adorn ourselves. From lip plates to nose rings humans love to pluck beauty from nature (think opals, gold, and bronze), and carry it on our bodies and through our lives. Baubles, statement rings, bracelets, and bangles are primordial.

Unfortunately, the human need to accessorize now contributes to planetary destruction (gold and diamond mining being the biggest offenders), but there are, thankfully, thoughtful designers and artisans who make the extra effort to create sustainable jewelry.

Below are five brands that are dedicated to end the grossly inhumane and too-often polluting ways of producing what is, in the end, purely decorative.

These companies use recycled metals and gems to produce some of the most beautifully crafted and, uniquely designed jewelry available.

LZZR Jewelry

LA-based jewelry designer Lizz Roberts brings us clean, architectural lines in her line of ethically sourced jewelry. Inspired by the rectangle, a continuation of the earlier collection RECK, ’s latest collection, CASE, focuses on the structural way in which jewelry fits on the body, from fingers to ears. LZZR jewelry is something modern and sustainable that can be worn with other louder accessories.

An Austin, Texas native, the designer is inspired by parents who worked in the lumber business—a childhood surrounded by shapes influenced her jewelry collection. LZZR started out in Roberts’s apartment in Hollywood, and is now carried in boutiques across the country. My favorites include the BriefCASE bracelet, a chic bronze geometric bangle, and the 10K gold drop earrings.

Roberts uses metals that are either sourced locally in LA, or come from a fair trade mine—and she gives back too; part of her line’s profits go to the LA Food Bank.

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