I know spoon wear has been around for a while, but it’s one of those things that I always forget about until confronted with it. It is a very clever craft that recycles the ordinary and turns it into the extraordinary. Thinking that these rings are the cat’s meow I purchased a fork ring which now sits comfortably on my hand.

Want one of your own? A quick trip through Etsy brought up a couple of designers that specialize in this area and are doing a fantastic job of it.

LT Creates Jewelry makes many wonderful items out of cutlery. Rings, bracelets and even watches made from spoons and forks can be found in their shop.

Dank Artistry also makes spoon jewelry. Check out the rings, bracelets, earrings and even bell pendants made from the end of a spoon and given a clapper. I can hear the small ting, ting that it would make.

Have a piece of cutlery you wear? Tell us about it in the comments.

Image credit: LTCreatesJewelry

I have a little longer left to plan fortunately and I’m feeling very inspired by an article I found at Portovert on making your own wedding rings, specifically making them from old silver coins. These DIY wedding bands could even be made from coins manufactured in the year of your - or each others birth, what a lovely touch.

This wikiHow article gives detailed instructions on making the rings as well as explanations of what can go wrong and why - always useful. But even if it does take a couple of attempts to perfect, at $3 a shot your hardly going to break the bank.

First up: Gold. We'll give you the skinny on how to make sure your Valentine's bling is eco- and people-friendly.

The movie Blood Diamond brought mass attention to the issues surrounding conflict diamonds. But did you know that gold has just as dirty a past? Here's the statistic that will make you shiver: the production of one gold ring produces 20 tons of mine waste.

Gold is harmful to the environment, the communities that are involved in the mining, and is dangerous for the workers. The mining pollutes the air and water, creates massive amounts of solid, toxic waste, and of course threatens natural areas (including ones that are protected).

According to No Dirty Gold, many mines leach a cyanide through piles of ore in order to find the gold. They later abandon these huge toxic masses of waste. Can you imagine?

About 80% of this gold goes to make jewelry, which means we as consumers can make an impact. Many large retailers have already signed on in support of 'The Golden Rules' for more environmentally and socially friendly gold practices. If you're going to buy new gold, they might be a good place to start.

However, as always with the environment, reuse is the best solution. Look for an original vintage, used, or recycled gold ring and you won't be using any new gold at all! You can even melt an old ring into a new one and make it quite romantic.

Rebecca says: I only recently learned of all of the waste created to produce just one ounce of gold. I wonder what untold stories my own rings hold.

Resources:

No Dirty Gold

Earthworks

greenKarat