Sea coral is blessed with wonderful colors, an intricate design and memories of the lapping ocean. It’s no wonder that the worlds of fashion and home decor are in the midst of a love affair with it.
Some argue, though, that coral is too precious to wear.
“We want to discourage consumers from purchasing coral,” scientist Andrew Baker says. “It’s like ivory. It’s a product of a living animal, and the harvest of this item is unsustainable.”
It’s unsustainable not because new coral won’t grow, he says, but because there are no limits on the use or sale of coral, and it’s being harvested at a rate that nature can’t keep up with.
But, you can have your coral and save it too.
The marine conservation group SeaWeb’s Too Precious To Wear campaign offers alternatives to coral to capture its beauty without harvesting any of the real thing.
“There has been a huge trend toward coral in the past five or six years,” says artist Michael Aram, who sculpts faux coral household items out of enamel-painted metal. “I don’t know how and when it all started, but it became an incredible trend.”
A sampling of coral-inspired items:
Anika Brazil Swim bathing suits with glass coral-colored beads as ornamentation.
Stetson coral-colored cowboy boots. “We love using it as a natural complement to the rich brown leathers you see so often in western boots,” says Pam Fields, CEO of Stetson. “For women, the warmth feminizes the collection and ties nicely into the coral and turquoise accessories that we see dominating the ladies area. For men, it is a way to wear a rich color that isn’t ‘pink.'”‰”
Coral-print sheets and resin-sculpted coral candle-holders from Pottery Barn.
Tiffany & Co. jewelry with a coral-branch motif. “We have a collection in sterling silver with a necklace, bracelet and charms, and earrings in white gold,” says Linda Buckley, Tiffany’s vice president of public relations. “The few people who have asked about coral and why we don’t sell it, once we explain the reason why, they are very supportive.”
Michael Aram’s hand-hammered steel bowls with lacquered faux coral-branch bases.
Torn by Ronny Kobo’s coral-motif tank tops for shopbop.com.
Creme de La Mer’s World Ocean Day moisturizing cream. While technically not a coral product, it is based on a sea-kelp formula, and the company donates to a coral-saving campaign and says without healthy oceans — to which healthy coral reefs are key — there’d be no secret “miracle broth” ingredient.
