The Sourcing of Our Canadian Origin Diamond Melee

We're extremely picky about the ethical sourcing of our materials. Whether or not you've seen the movie Blood Diamond, you know that the materials used in fine jewelry can come with a hefty ethical pricetag - but they don't have to! One thing we do to make sure that every single aspect of our jewelry is sourced to the highest environmental and humanitarian standards is to use only Canadian Origin Diamond Melee. But what exactly does that mean, and why does it matter?

Diamonds were discovered in Canada in the 1990s, and Canada is now the third largest producer of diamonds in the world. CanadaMark is a special hallmark created to distinguish diamonds sourced from the Ekati and Diavik mines in the Northwest Territories. These mines are signatories to environmental agreements involving local Aboriginal groups, the federal governments, and the territorial governments. Both mines have undergone intensive environmental assessments linked to rigorous permitting processes, and have an established history of developing technologies and processes to help conserve the environment. Working with local Aboriginal groups, special care is given to ensure the long-term integrity of the land, water, and wildlife. In addition, the proceeds from these mines go to legitimate companies which can be held accountable, instead of to groups who acquired them with forced labor, exploitation, and theft. All things considered, Canadian diamonds are the most ethical choice when purchasing new stones.

One of our favorite things about the diamonds coming from Canada is the ability to trace the origin. Center stones from Canada are all accompanied with documentation and a special serial number to show which mine it was sourced in. Although small diamonds are not accompanied with this level of documentation, they are sorted and finished in sealed parcels, making them the ONLY traceable diamond melee on the planet - that's amazing!

Diamond melee are the small diamonds used in pave settings, or as accent stones. Anything under 4mm is considered melee. Outside of the Canadian parcels, it is impossible to trace the origin of these small stones. This means that even if you have a ring with an ethically sourced center stone and recycled metal, you may still be wearing blood diamonds.

By using ONLY Canadian origin diamond melee, we make sure that you can feel good about every bit of our jewelry. Our melee comes to us directly from our supplier in parcels sealed closed with the Canadamark logo, so we know for a fact that the stones we use are meeting our stringent standards.