The Leibish Prosperity Pink Diamond - Mined at Argyle (Leibish & Co)

Pink diamonds just can’t stay out of the news, especially with special finds such as the 12.76-carat Argyle Pink Jubilee Diamond unearthed recently at the Argyle mine in Western Australia making headlines. (By the way, that was the largest pink diamond discovered in Australia to date.)

Argyle pink diamonds made a statement at Sunday’s 84^th annual Academy Awards, with Livia Firth (wife of actor Colin Firth and a well-known advocate for sustainable jewelry and fashion) opting for diamond jewelry featuring not only pink but also blue diamonds from the Argyle mine.

The Rio Tinto Diamonds website quoted Livia Firth praising Argyle diamonds as “not only rare and beautiful, but [also] ethically mined.” Firth continued to discuss Argyle diamond jewelry, explaining that she was wearing earrings and a ring designed by John Calleija.

Josephine Johnson, manager of Argyle Pink Diamonds, also had warm words for Calleija. “There are many hands involved in the transformation of a rough Argyle pink diamond into a beautiful piece of jewelry, and the details of this journey are very important to us."

"We are immensely proud of John Calleija whose passion for exquisite pink diamond design, with a conscience, has captured the attention of one of the world's most envied women," Johnson said.

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Shulman worked with jewelry designers from Kwiat Heritage Jewels to come up with a custom ring designed specifically for his beloved. All of Kwiat’s diamonds are certified as conflict-free. The result? According to the Radaronline.com blog, the ring features a four-carat cushion-cut diamond.

A representative of Kwiat told the JustJared.com blog that the jewelry company was “honored to have the opportunity to work with Adam. He had a strong vision for what he wanted to present to Anne and we worked with him to make a custom design.”

Pictures of the ring zipped around the Internet after Hathaway and Shulman spent a romantic day together in New York’s Central Park (accompanied by her chocolate lab, Esmeralda.)

From Kwiat’s website: Kwiat complies with all guidelines and regulations of the Kimberley Process, the United Nations sponsored program designed to certify the origins of diamonds from sources which are free of conflict. Kwiat diamonds are mined in many different areas of the world including Russia, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Canada.

All Kwiat diamonds are purchased from legitimate sources not involved in funding conflict and in compliance with United Nations Resolutions. Kwiat guarantees that our diamonds are conflict free, based on personal knowledge and/or written guarantees provided by the suppliers of the diamonds.

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Polished diamonds - now politically correct (IDC)

This past year, the UK-based Responsible Jewellery Council has made impressive strides in its efforts to recruit major players in the jewelry and diamond industries.

Chaumet, Chanel, R. Steinmetz and Sons, Piaget – these well-respected names are just a few of the high-end jewelry and diamond companies who have been certified as complying with the RJC’s social, ethical, and environmental standards. And we’re not only talking about retailers – in recent months a number of major diamond traders and manufacturers have successfully been certified by the RJC.

Last week, two more of the world’s best-known luxury jewelry brands –Boucheron and Van Cleef & Arpels – completed the RJC certification procedure.

Boucheron CEO Pierre Bouissou said that since 1858, Boucheron has adhered to the highest standards, not only in its jewelry and watch design, but also in its ethical code.  “The RJC certification corresponds to the House's continued endeavor to embody excellence and responsible business practices both internally and externally,” he said.

Stanislas de Quercize, CEO and President of Van Cleef & Arpels, said that “trust is the foundation of our craft and [RJC] certification leverages this trust.”

Van Cleef & Arpel operates 89 jewelry boutiques around the world as well as three maisons in Paris, New York, and Hong Kong. Boucheron, founded 150 years ago, has 50 jewelry boutiques worldwide.

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