Login
Over the years, Marc Choyt with Reflective Images Jewelry has been an active member of www.RainbowWeddingNetwork.com. He's offered his jewelry expertise through various articles on our website, and has offered his skills as a jewelry professional to LGBT couples throughout the country.
Recently, Marc's company has been named the first certified Fairtrade Gold Jeweler in the United States - an honor worth celebrating! As many gay and lesbian grooms and brides strive for the utmost authenticity within their ceremonies and receptions, this is one sure way to rest assured that the engagement and wedding rings are created with the highest standards.
“Reflective Images Jewelry has shown great leadership in becoming the first jeweler using Fairtrade gold in the USA. This move in the world’s largest jewelry market has the potential to send ripple effects across the globe,” said Harriet Lamb, CEO of Fairtrade International. “Americans buying that special piece of jewelry can now help make a change in the lives of artisanal and small-scale miners. These miners urgently need improved terms of trade and we congratulate Reflective Images Jewelry on setting the pace for the industry in the way jewelry is sourced,” she said.
“With Reflective Images Jewelry bringing Fairtrade Gold to the North American market, we are expanding the Fairtrade and organic movement and sourcing trends to include the mining sector,”said Marc Choyt, President of Reflective Images Jewelry. “The antidote to the disconnect between jewelry’s sourcing and symbolism is to create a new cultural narrative that actually connects customers to producer communities. There is increasing attention to the source and production ethics of food and clothing. Similarly, Fairtrade gold greatly enhances the value of our custom handmade jewelry to our customers through the relationships it creates,” he added.
Choyt has dedicated much of his time in the last ten years as an activist in the jewelry sector, educating clients and colleagues through Fair Jewelry Action, an environmental justice and human rights network which he co-founded. At his home in Santa Fe, he serves on the boards of the Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce and the Turquoise Trail Preservation Trust, supporting sustainable businesses and protecting the bioregion south of Santa Fe. Recently he initiated and co-lead a community effort that successful blocked a proposed gold mine.
_________
More About Reflective Images Jewelry
Reflective Images Jewelry was founded in 1995 under the direction of the designer, Helen Chantler, who is the Creative Director of the company in partnership with Marc Choyt, who serves as President and directs business operations. Chantler was born in England and spent her adolescent years in South East Asia. Throughout her life, she has traveled over much of the world in her quest to experience and understand rich cultures that celebrate the human journey. She has spent decades to developing her own style and techniques working sculpturally, cutting out tiny pieces of gold and silver, which she overlays, making textures to create base relief images and contemporary interpretation of ancient designs. Through her fairtade gold wedding and engagement rings and jewelry which align talismanic meaning with ethical sourcing and artisanal design, Chantler expresses her concerned for the environment and the essential beauty of traditional cultures. The new website re-launching their brand features her latest designs; she says that “Jewelry will always be more than just fashion. It is about what is essential and real and what can awaken us now to beauty and connection.”
___________
For more information visit their website:
Congrats to Braeden & Ryan, on their recent engagement! Enjoy their heartfelt proposal via the link below!
Remember the film?? 'Harold and Maude' is the companion novel to the 1971 American dark romantic comedy and cult favorite of the same name. Colin Higgins wrote the novel shortly after the release of his film, and it has remained popular ever since. Chicago Review Press is pleased to be releasing the latest edition of Higgins’ cherished story, with a revitalized and fresh cover that will appeal to a new generation of audiences.