Have old, fancy jewelry you never wear — maybe because it’s broken and can’t be fixed? Try recycling it — and making some money while you’re at it.
Just take your jewelry — if it’s unplated platinum, 10K 14K 18K 22K gold, or sterling silver — to Liza Shtromberg Studio in Silver Lake. The store will take your discards, test the purity of the metal, send the pieces to a local plant for recycling — then give you back 100% of the recycling proceeds as a store credit.
The process takes about 2 – 3 weeks, and the money you can expect depends on the amount and quality of what you bring in plus the market price for gold and silver that day.
The store also recently got a new line of jewelry designed by Liza Shtromberg (below) that, according to the store, is “made out of 40% post-consumer eco-resin” that’s also biodegradable. I wasn’t, however, able to get from the store any more information about what exact materials these things are made out of or under what conditions they’re biodegradable. The woman behind the counter was very nice about setting out the jewelry to photograph, but looked at me funny when I asked for details, and just said the store’s unwilling to reveal the manufacturer of their “eco-resin.” (I didn’t ask for the name of the manufacturer)
Since Liza Shtromberg’s also the owner of All Shades of Green, I’d like to take the store at its word — but you really will have to just take the store at its word about the “eco-resin” — which’ll be unsatisfying for eco-fashionistas who prefer companies that back up their product claims with more tangible proof.
Liza Shtromberg Studio. 2120 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles. 323.913.1444.
Update, 5/18/09: Eco Chick recycled jewelry for the eco chic
i haven’t been to this store but its right down the street from my house. i am definitely going to check it out soon. The owner of All Shades of Green donated a gift card to my breast cancer benefit silent auction. I love that store so I can’t wait to see what this place is all about! too bad most of my jewelry is from the 99 cent store =(
Comment by taylor — April 21, 2009 @ 4:37 pm
oooh this is so cool! i love liza’s designs. they’re usually little pricey, but it’s nice to support a local jeweler.
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Comment by moye — April 21, 2009 @ 4:54 pm
There’s only one eco-resin provider right now in the marketplace and that is 3Form. Their resin is made with a portion of post-consumer resins, but it’s not biodegradable. The earrings on the left look like it comes from one of their lines called Varia, so I’m guessing that’s where they get it from.
That said, eco-resin isn’t as green as many other materials. And the process of manufacturing isn’t super clean. But it’s improving, and as a plastic like material, is definitely greener.
Thanks for the tip on this place Siel!
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Comment by Stephanie Zhong — April 21, 2009 @ 10:39 pm
Jewelry from the 99 cent store?! Make sure no children get a hole of that :P Gotta avoid lead –
Thanks for the details on the eco-resin, Stephanie :) That’s much more informative than the details the store gave.
Comment by Siel — April 22, 2009 @ 4:52 pm
Happy to help. Thanks for the tip on her design studio! It’s a very interesting idea! I’m glad you keep us all up to date (I’ve been a very bad blogger the last few months and working on rectifying that).
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Comment by Stephanie Zhong — April 23, 2009 @ 9:09 am