Papital Gallery makes jewellery out of ceramic tiles that never see a kiln, in a workshop where the women who make it set their own hours. Neither of those is a marketing decision. Both came out of the same question: what would it take to make something beautiful without anyone paying a hidden cost for it?
Kiln-free by design
Traditional Persian tilework is fired — twice, usually, at temperatures above 900 °C, for hours. It is the single most energy-hungry step in the whole craft, and for centuries there was no way around it.
We found one. Our tiles are made from a purpose-made clay mix — clay, rock dust and natural binders — that cures in open air instead of in a kiln. Each tile dries for 10 to 12 days, which is the step a kiln would force through in a few hours. No furnace, no fossil fuel, no firing emissions at any point in production. The result is not a compromise: air-cured tiles come out lighter than fired ceramic and hold up better to a life spent being worn. A single earring tile weighs about two grams, which is why our largest drops still feel like nothing on the ear.
Because they are not fired, the tiles are water-resistant rather than waterproof. Rain, humidity, a splash at the sink — all fine. Swimming and long soaking are not.
How a tile becomes a piece of jewellery
Every piece passes through six pairs of hands.
- Moulding — the clay mix is prepared and pressed by hand.
- Shaping — the geometry is cut: crescent, oval, arch, rhombus, octagon.
- Glazing — the surface is sealed and given its depth of colour.
- Pattern transfer — the arabesque and floral motifs are applied by cold transfer, one tile at a time.
- Assembly — fittings are set: allergy-free stainless steel, nickel-free brass, vegan leather bands.
- Quality control — checked at several stages, not just at the end.
We make in small series, and with every series the workshop changes a detail — a closure, a bead, an extra strand. That is why much of what you see in the shop is the last of its series.
Made by women who chose this work
Our workshop exists because in 2017 we started running free jewellery-making workshops for single mothers and women under financial pressure, together with the Ghalb-e Sefid (White Heart) Charity Organization — an NGO whose work is child welfare and ending child labour.
The logic is direct: if a mother can earn a proper living, her children do not have to work, and they stay in school.
- Participants are paid for every piece they make during training, and their commute and meals are covered.
- Those who finish are offered ongoing paid work at fair wages.
- The Entrepreneurship Center gives them a safe workspace, proper workstations and a social worker on site.
- There is free daycare on the premises and volunteer academic tutoring for artisans’ children during working hours.
- Hours are flexible, and those who need to work from home can.
Over 50 women have been trained so far. More than 20 people now work with us across design, production, packaging and sales. We also work with the Dastadast Network, which helps marginalised Iranian crafters build skills and reach a market.
Fair trade, and audited by the people who sell us
We were the first certified Fair Trade producer of handmade ceramic jewellery in Iran, and we are co-initiators of the Fair Trade House of Iran, which brings artisan groups under one set of ethical standards.
That is not a self-assessment. Our partners audit us:
- CONTIGO Fairtrade (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) has stocked us since 2018 and maintains a supply-chain profile covering wage transparency, anti-child-labour policy and non-discrimination.
- altraQualità (Italy) has distributed our collections to Italian ethical boutiques and botteghe del mondo since 2019.
- We are catalogued with BAFTS, the British Association for Fair Trade Shops, for retail in the UK and Ireland.
Plastic-free packaging
Every piece ships in a reusable cotton pouch — no single-use plastic, no filler. Reduce, reuse, recycle, in that order. The pouches outlive the packaging job: most people keep them for earrings, cables or coins.