As a dedicated Vegan and lifelong animal rights advocate, we do not use any animal based products in our ranges. Nor are any tools or consumables used in production both in the UK and Thailand which are derived from animal products. All our products are 100% Vegan.
We are members of the Vegan Traders Union and Vegan Founded
But…..
Did you know that silver jewellery is not always vegan?
Most people are really surprised to hear that the majority of silver jewellery is manufactured in such a way that it is not vegan.
The obvious telltale signs are the use of pearls, leather or silk cord incorporated into jewellery. These can be easily avoided as a vegan.
But it is the actual manufacturing processes which are traditionally filled with tools, equipment and consumables derived from animals. And this animal exploitation is hidden from the vegan consumer.
So a piece of jewellery in itself might be vegan but it could possibly (and most likely) will have been made with animal exploitation.
The only way to be sure your jewellery is vegan is to purchase from a vegan business like us.
Equipment and consumables used in traditional silversmithing and their vegan replacements
Rawhide mallets are used to shape silver (and other metals) without marking the surface in anyway. An essential piece of kit which can be easily replaced with a vegan friendly nylon hammer.
Leather workshop equipment such as protective aprons, bench skins (to catch metal off cuts and shavings), sandbags (to steady steel blocks etc) These can all easily be swapped to other fabrics which are vegan and do the sames jobs.
Traditionally beeswax is used as a lubricant for saw blades. Plant oils are just as good and vegan. At the Luna Tree UK studio a bar of soap (vegan of course!) is used to lubricate saw blades.
The most hidden non vegan items are used when polishing silver. Wool polishing mops and animal derived polishing compounds are the norm. These polishing compounds traditionally contains Stearic acid which comes from animal fats.
Cotton or vegan felt polishing mops can replace the woolen ones, while water based polishing compounds contain no animal derivatives. They can be sourced easily from suppliers to the industry.
In casting silver cuttlefish bone is a traditional material. The cuttlefish bone is soft for carving out a space for molten silver to be poured into. Other methods for casting such as sand and lost wax methods can be used instead without the animal origin equipment.
Religion and a Plant based philosophy
The use of vegan equipment and consumables does not end in the UK either. Our artisan partners are very much aligned with our vegan ideals and do not use any equipment of consumables derived from animals.
In all our years of working with the Karen Hill Tribe silversmiths at Huay Dtom we have never had to question any of the tools or materials being used in their silversmithing and query if they are of animal origin.
Traditionally Karen life is dictated by the spirits, and they are a highly superstitious people. The Karen believe their ancestors taught them how to live in harmony with their natural surroundings. Working with the natural ecosystem of the forest for all their needs. This has carried forward with the embrace of Buddhism at Huay Dtom. The large Wat Phra Bat Huay Tom is the largest Wat (temple) in the area and is home to footprints of Buddha which bring many people on pilgrimage to the area. Most of the village are practicing Buddhists alongside their more traditional animist rituals.
Following a Buddhist path, Huay Dtom is predominantly a plant based community and follow the philosophy of doing no harm to other living beings. Find out more about this here