Gemfields collaborates on capsule collection in aid of conservation

The Walk for Giants initiative has been designed to raise both funds and awareness by highlighting the plight of endangered species, like elephants, and how critical their survival is to us all. It will culminate in a trek along one of Kenya’s most ancient elephant migration trails by some of the charity’s high-profile brand ambassadors.   To play our part in the lead-up to the walk, Gemfields has collaborated with 12 brand partners on a very special 44-piece jewellery capsule collection, which is being unveiled to kick off the campaign with a bit of sparkle. Each creation features Gemfields’ finest responsibly sourced coloured gemstones – emeralds from the Kagem mine in Zambia and rubies from Montepuez in Mozambique – set in imaginative, African-inspired designs, many of them featuring elephants. The 230-year-old British watchmaker Backes & Strauss contributed an African Green Elephant watch, which features Zambian emeralds alongside a hand-painted elephant and mother-of-pearl dial. Ever elegant, Fabergé – who are part of the Gemfields Group – created a one-of-a-kind ‘Elephant Surprise’ pendant, also using our finest Zambian emeralds. Also drawing on the elephant theme, Bina Goenka offer up their take on Elephant Earrings, these ones made from emeralds, rubies, diamonds and tanzanite; meanwhile, their emerald-encrusted Palm Earrings represent the verdant landscape that elephants have made their home. GFG Jewellery by Nilufer were also inspired by the greenery and endless skies of Kenya, using emeralds generously in their Maasai, Shield and Arrow earrings. New York-based fine jewellery designer Sandy Leong opted for the giraffe motif in her Sahara cuff, poison ring and ball drop earrings, all boasting Gemfields emeralds. Burma-born Fehmida Lakhany chose to honour the butterfly, with a pair of stunning earrings shaped like butterfly wings with a patchwork of rubies and diamonds in a zebra-style pattern. VAK Fine Jewels went with rubies, with their Mozambican Ruby Ring; the rubies symbolise the blood of elephants lost to poachers, a cause close to the heart of the label’s Indian founder. Also using rubies to make a political statement was Francis de Lara, whose ‘My Bleeding Heart’ earrings feature Mozambican rubies in the shape of tears, signifying the tears shed over the heart-breaking destruction of Africa’s native habitats. The sibling trio behind Zoe & Morgan designed an array of necklaces and rings, inspired by the landscapes and tribal patterns of Kenya and featuring both emeralds and rubies. Designer Margery Hirschey went for a geometric aesthetic too, with her Zambian emerald, gold and diamond earrings. AYA, the jewellery label founded by Chelsy Davy, created a stunning pair of emerald earrings, which can be worn as either an ear jacket or a simple stud; they evoke the style of African tribeswomen and were inspired by the continent’s brutal landscape. Also channelling the chic of an African safari is Valani Atelier, with a line of rings, earrings and wrist and ear cuffs, studded with emeralds and rubies. This inspired capsule collection has provided a great way to convey the passion of this campaign and the dramatic beauty of the cause it supports.   Click here to view this exciting capsule collection.   Image Credits: ‘Walk For Giants’, photography by Francesco Carrozzini, creative direction by Riccardo Ruini, shot on location at Enasoit Game Sanctuary.