Breastmilk jewellery: a keepsake from a magical time
Breastmilk is the best thing for a child. But did you know that you can have high-quality jewellery created from your milk?
Weird. I’ll admit that was the first word that sprung to mind when I first heard the phrase «breast milk jewellery». And this despite the fact that I happily breastfed both of my kids for a long time. In fact, when my now two-year-old son decided to wean himself at twelve months, I was so fuming that I wanted to write him out of my will.
Even so, breastmilk jewellery piqued my curiosity. What is it? I mean, really? Is that a thing? How is it made? Browsing the web, I came across Muttermilchkosmetik.de (site in German), which sells breastmilk jewellery by the label Mémoire. Heading up the shop is Levke Lorenzen, a 36-year-old mother of three from Bordelum on the North Sea, who launched the company in 2018. She patiently answers all my questions.
«First, the mother sends us her breastmilk and chooses a piece of jewellery, such as a stone or a pearl component,» she explains. To do this, mums pump their milk into special breast milk bags, then send them off with an ice pack. «If the milk fails quality control, it can’t be processed,» Levke says. Her company collaborates with two goldsmiths to process the milk into jewellery. It’s only the pigment present in the breastmilk that’s processed, which is done by mixing it with curing components. Levke adds, however, that every other component of breastmilk can be personalised using elements such as hair or umbilical cord.
The clientele: mainly mums, but also dog owners
The clientele, unsurprisingly, mostly consists of mums looking to create a lasting momento.
Having experienced some teething problems at the beginning of her own successful breastfeeding journey, Levke wanted to create a memento of that special time. While this was going on, she met parents at baby classes who wanted that kind of jewellery too. In the beginning, she made jewellery for herself and her mum friends.
«Besides that, we have a lot of parents of angel babies, who might only have breastmilk or a footprint left and want to immortalise something from that,» Levke tells us. «Angel baby» is the term used for children who’ve died before birth. Levke’s team also creates a number of jewellery pieces without breast milk: «For example, we’ve made jewellery using dog fur before.»
Rings and necklaces are especially popular
Are any pieces in particularly high demand? «One of our top sellers is the Lije necklace, which has a 7.5-millimetre pendant enwrought with a bead of breastmilk,» Levke says. She adds that the Ava ring, with a two-millimetre diameter breastmilk stone is popular too. The necklace costs 129 EUR, the ring 149.
«Breast milk jewellery lasts a lifetime!»
It may sound pricey at first, but it’s a good investment. «Breast milk jewellery lasts a lifetime!» Levke assures me. «We do, however, give our customers very clear recommendations on how to wear and care for the jewellery, for instance, that you shouldn’t wear it in water.»
Source: Levke Lorenzen
For Levke, who used to work as a travel and traffic tourism clerk for a major automobile club, things didn’t stop at jewellery. Her offers to make breastmilk jewellery went down extremely well with her friends and acquaintances. «It spread like wildfire,» she says.
This gave her the idea of producing not just breastmilk jewellery, but breastmilk cosmetics. «Skincare products made from breastmilk are a perfect match for your needs,» Levke explains. In 2021, Levke presented the idea on «Die Höhle der Löwen» (the German equivalent of The Dragons’ Den). To produce cosmetics, breastmilk is processed into a powder, which is then mixed with a base lotion to form an emulsion. As the lotion contains ingredients found in the body, it’s perfectly tailored to the child’s needs.
After Levke explains the manufacturing process and shows me photos of her creations, «weird» is the last word I’d use to describe this unique jewellery. I’m not going to have any more children, but if I happened to have some frozen breastmilk lying around somewhere, I’d be all over it!
Header image: Levke Lorenzen/Muttermilchkosmetik.de19 people like this article
A true local journalist with a secret soft spot for German pop music. Mum of two boys, a dog and about 400 toy cars in all shapes and colours. I always enjoy travelling, reading and go to concerts, too.
