Ethical engagement rings

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14th February 2019

Are you looking for a more ethical way of popping the question? Lydia McCarthy-Keen has launched a range of engagement and wedding rings using exclusively lab-grown diamonds, offering a more ethically conscious choice for couples this Valentines Day.

The stunning range includes 24 designs, including wedding bands in recycled gold, palladium or platinum and engagement rings, featuring lab-grown diamonds and lab-grown gem stones. Prices for Lydia McCarthy-Keen engagement rings range from £598, for the 0.17 carat Bijou Etoiles design to £10,900 for the Impressioner, a 2.08 carat ring with a 1.26 round brilliant diamond centre stone, surrounded by 12 lab-grown diamonds.

Lydia McCarthy-Keen is launching the business to begin the end of the diamond mining industry, citing child labour and environmental damage associated with traditional diamond mining as reasons to source and supply an ethical alternative. Child labour is conducted in Republic of Angola, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Liberia, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, and Republic of Guinea. A popular labour in the diamond mining industry, children are cheap to use and are able to enter narrow cavities in mines and have better eyesight to locate diamonds.

Unusual twist shoulder set lab grown diamond halo engagement ring.

The children working in these mines carry 50-60kg of gravel from mines to workplaces, where they then pan the gravel to look for tiny diamonds. Conflicts in these regions have meant that violence is playing an increasingly large role in the industry, with rebel forces controlling mines and selling diamonds to fund arms.

Lydia McCarthy-Keen, founder and CEO,

“I have been there and know first-hand how tricky it can be to feel completely certain that a ring you are interested in is really going to be the right one for you. It's how I got into the diamond industry, after my husband and I felt disappointed with the quality and ethics of the engagement ring we feel we were wrongly sold”.

“We want to help as many couples as possible to make a financially sound, ethical choice they can be proud of - one that supports their own dreams without contributing to violence, slave-labour or environmental destruction.We guarantee a luxury ring designed to last a lifetime, manufactured completely independently from dirty, industrial processes. We also guarantee that you will absolutely love your ring, and be excited to show friends, family and colleagues.”

Lab-grown diamonds are grown in controlled laboratory conditions, free from the natural impurities found in the Earth’s crust. To re-create the heat and pressure of the Earth, the diamond seed is placed in a chamber where it grows of its own accord. Grown diamonds are anatomically and optically identical to their mined counterparts, with the difference being that they are often of a higher quality owing to the carefully controlled growing conditions, and up to 40% better value.

To see Lydia McCarthy-Keen's rings, visit this website: https://www.lydiamccarthy-keen.co.uk/

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