Greetings!
Last month's premier issue of Green Jewelry News was received with overwhelming enthusiasm! It is wonderful to know that you, like so many others in our community, are interested in learning more about what you can do to make jewelry both beautiful and eco-friendly.
Because the holidays are an important time to consider the sustainability of our actions, this issue has ideas for recycled gift wrapping along with green studio practices.
Happy Holidays!
Christine Dhein
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Jewelry_cycle Update
Exhibition Closes January 4, 2009 - See It Soon!
Learn About Recycling Gold From Circuit Boards
 Jewelry_cycle, curated by
Christine Dhein and
Christophe Koch
, is an educational showcase of wearable treasures made from re-cycled circuit boards, on exhibit at the San Francisco Museum of Craft + Design until January 4, 2009. The exhibition has delighted visitors and international bloggers alike! Read the press from American Craft,
Design � Paris,
Ecolect,
JCK Style,
Jewelry Business Guru,
Amy Tavern,
and more.
Circuit boards contain precious metals, such as copper, silver and gold, which add a precious element to what would otherwise be considered e-waste. Awareness of the value of e-waste is growing throughout the world, as consumers and businesses begin to understand the value of reclaiming these precious materials. Learn more about how these precious materials are extracted from e-waste from these videos and articles.
Video on Recycling Gold From Computers
Article on Recycling Gold From Cell Phones
Recycle your electronics free of charge in the Bay Area and other Northern California locations through the
Computer Recycling Center.
Learn more about Jewelry_cycle. View photos from the exhibition and be inspired to find new ways to create value from discarded materials in your own work.
Above from left to right: "21st Century Breastplate, Detail" by Christine Dhein, "Fan Bracelet" by Aimee Golant, "Geek Bling Necklace" by Kelly Nedderman, "Completing the Circuit" by David Casella.
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Gift Wrap with Recycled Materials
Ideas for Beautiful and Eco-Friendly Packages
 This holiday season minimize your footprint by re-using household materials to wrap your holiday packages. With a little creativity, you can create a unique and stunning presentation for your customers, friends, and family.
Thoughout the year, I save colorful pages from magazines, catalogs, maps, calendars, and newspapers along with wrapping from other gifts, ribbons, fabric scraps, baskets, small containers and boxes. Calendar pages and maps are great for wrapping large items. Small boxes can be wrapped with pages from art and fashion magazines. Add accents with leaves, holly berries, ribbons, strips of paper, old Christmas decorations or fabric scraps. Recycle old greeting cards to create gift tags.
The holiday season is the best time to start your collection of recycled wrapping materials. Save your 2008 calendars along with the ribbons and wrapping from gifts you receive in a box or bin and add to it throughout the year. Then you will know where to find wrapping materials the next time you need them.
Using recycled materials does not mean your presentation has to look any less professional. Decide on the look you want to create, and then use your imagination and resourcefulness to find materials you can re-use to create that look.
Visit these links for more step-by-step instructions on using recycled materials for gift wrapping.
Creative, Recycled Holiday Gift Wrap
Wrap, Ribbons and Bows from Magazine Pages
Martha Stewart on Recycled Wrapping
Instructional Video on Recycled Wrapping
If you decide to purchase wrapping materials this holiday season, be sure to buy wrapping paper and boxes made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper and recycle the paper again after use.
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Green Jewelry Tip of the Month
Chemical Responsibility
Use a small pickle pot to reduce chemical use and the amount of
spent pickle for disposal.
Helen Driggs, Managing Editor of Jewelry Artist Magazine,
asked me to write an article about proper disposal of studio chemicals. We agreed that it would be best to report on how to adhere to California's
strict toxic waste disposal rules. These are good guidelines on chemical disposal,
even if your state is less strict. Read the article
from the December, 2008 issue.
For more information about green studio practices, look for my article
Reduce Environmental Impact with Green Bench Practices in the November issue of JCK Magazine and read more of my green tips on the Revere Academy web site. More tips on less-toxic alternatives can also be foud on the Society of American Silversmiths' website. |
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Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter and learn more about the Green Jewelry Movement. Check out this month's events, and send this newsletter to a friend to help spread the word about using recycled and ethically sourced jewelry materials along with eco-friendly studio practices.
Sincerely,
Christine Dhein
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| Christine Dhein's Profile
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Christine Dhein is a jewelry designer, author, and
eco-educator who has been using recycled materials for over ten years.
Christine's jewelry can now be purchased online at objectfetish.com.
View more work by Christine on Flickr.com, including her Fashion, Keum-boo and
Tribal Elegance collections.
Join Christine on Crafthaus, an exciting new website connecting fine artists, studio jewelers and designers.
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Christine In Print
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Christine's Necklace, Tribal Elegance: Silver Web, made from re-purposed rubber and recycled sterling silver, is featured in the Contributor Gallery of the December, 2008 issue of Jewelry Artist Magazine, |
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Ethical Metalsmiths
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Ethical Metalsmiths is a non-profit organization founded to simulate demand for responsibly
sourced materials as an investment in the future. The organization
stands for social responsibility, a healthy environment and materials
that are consistent with these values. Visit their web site to learn
more.
Learn more about Radical Jewelry Makeover, a community mining project sponsored by Ethical Metalsmiths, on the
Radical Jewelry Makeover Blog.
Above: Radical Jewelry Makeover Brooch by Kelly Nedderman. |
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To receive this
monthly newsletter,
send an email with "Green Jewelry News Subscribe" as the subject.
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Eco-Friendly Projects For the Holidays
The San Francisco Public Library and SCRAP invite Adults and teens to spend an afternoon using reusable art parts to make "new" and beautiful holiday projects.
This is a free event
Dec 12, 2-4pm at the
Glen Park Library,
2825 Diamond St., SF.
Above: Recycled button ring by Christine Dhein, 2001
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