Why Slow Fashion Starts with What’s on Your Wrist (or Neck, or Ears!)

You're a fan of the slow fashion movement. You avoid fast fashion retailers like the plague, you shop at local boutiques, and you have a sleek capsule wardrobe sitting in your closet.

Did you know that clothing isn’t the only way you can follow this ethical fashion philosophy? You can do it with your jewelry box, too! Explore slow fashion at Made You Look and find out how to make your jewelry collection more sustainable.

Make a Capsule Jewelry Collection

A capsule wardrobe is a small, curated collection of stylish and versatile clothing that can be mixed and matched for daily wear. This same principle can be applied to jewelry. How can you get started on a capsule jewelry collection?

Versatile Pieces

Pieces that can serve more than one function become invaluable in a slow fashion wardrobe. Brooches and pins, for example, can be worn in multiple ways—sitting on lapels, hats, purse straps, or even pinning scarves and shirt collars closed. This flexibility means each piece can be used repeatedly in creative ways.

Everyday Wear

A strong capsule jewelry collection should include pieces that can be worn effortlessly every day. This means choosing practical pieces that can handle routine activities like washing dishes, working out, or showering.

The ultimate piece of jewelry for everyday wear is a permanent bracelet. A permanent bracelet is a delicate chain bracelet that’s welded together (there’s no clasp to remove it). These bracelets are designed to go with everything you wear, so you won’t want to take yours off, anyway.

Keeping Statement Pieces to a Minimum

Trendy pieces can still have a place in your collection but prioritize classic jewellery pieces for the bulk of your collection. You want a jewelry box full of timeless accessories that will last long after trends fade.

Shop Local

Whenever you buy local, you support craftsmanship—and more importantly, craftspeople— in your own community. Made You Look is home to an incredible list of artisans, including Aimee Kennedy, Ellen Tsai, Leif Benner, Pierre Brouillette, and Yuliya Chorna. By supporting our artists, you're not only investing in quality craftsmanship but also contributing to the local economy.

These are some more benefits of shopping locally:

●       Unique Pieces: Local artisans produce one-of-a-kind handcrafted jewelry.

●       Lower Environmental Impact: Local shopping reduces the need for long-distance shipping, excess packaging, and emissions from international freight. Getting jewelry made in Canada won’t have the same environmental impact.

●       Quality Over Quantity: Fast fashion retailers produce items as quickly and cheaply as possible, so they use low-quality materials. Low-quality materials can rust, change colour, and even cause skin irritation. In some cases, toxic metals are used. Our local jewelers prioritize using high-quality materials for every piece.

Choose Materials Wisely

You want jewelry that’s made with sustainable, ethically sourced materials—especially when you intend to wear that jewelry forever. The last thing you want to do is wear a permanent bracelet or an engagement ring that had a terrible environmental impact. So, look for materials that match your slow fashion philosophy when you go jewelry shopping.

Recycled Metals

Recycling isn’t just for your pop cans and wine bottles. It’s for your jewelry metals, too! Here at Made You Look, we can use 100% recycled metal for custom creations. We have several suppliers who offer SCS Certified 100% recycled metal. We also ensure that we create zero metal waste in our crafting process. All of our metal, including metal dust, is collected and sent to the refinery. No piece of metal is too small for recycling!

Responsibly Sourced Natural Gemstones

Some mining practices for gemstones are unethical and detrimental to the environment. You’ll want to do your due diligence to make sure that the gems you wear aren’t associated with that type of mining.

One simple solution is to choose Canadian diamonds for your jewelry. Natural Resources Canada’s Green Mining Initiative regulates environmentally conscious mining practices, protecting the nearby water, flora, and fauna. If you’re getting other gemstones, check the certifications that prove the stones have been responsibly sourced, like certifications from the Kimberley Process or the Responsible Jewellery Council.

Look through our collection of sustainable engagement rings to see stunning, ethically sourced gemstones in all their glory.

Lab-Grown Diamonds

An alternative to naturally mined diamonds is lab-grown diamonds. As the name shows, these diamonds are created in a lab—so they don’t require any environmental disruption. These are not “fake” diamonds. They are chemically identical to mined diamonds. So, choosing this alternative does not mean that you’re losing out on quality.

Other than diamonds, you can find lab-grown gemstones like moissanite, emeralds, and sapphires.

Ethically Procured Butterfly Wings

One of the unique offerings that we have at Made You Look are earrings from Wingspiration. These earrings are real wings from Peacock Swallowtails, Striped Tiger Tops, Mint Morphos, and other beautiful butterflies, preserved in resin. These wings were ethically procured! The wings were naturally shed, so you can rest assured that no butterflies were harmed in creating these gorgeous pieces.