SunLit to Unveil Ocean Diamond Collection at Melee the Show

By Karen Dybis | January 29, 2026

SunLit Fine Jewelry founder Susan Hamilton Meier says her first jewelry pieces using so-called ocean diamonds mark a new direction for her, and she’s excited to share it at Melee the Show this weekend.

The nine-piece Ocean Droplets capsule collection, which Sunlit will debut at the New York edition of Melee the Show (opening Saturday), results from two years of research by Meier into ocean diamonds, the process used to hand-collect these gemstones, and the techniques she’d use to make jewelry with them that expresses her vision and values.

Ocean Droplets features ocean diamond accents on earrings, pendants (charms), and bracelets in 18k yellow gold or blackened sterling silver with gemstones such as lapis, citrine, and topaz. Prices range from $1,250 to $4,750. The full collection will be available on SunLit’s website after Melee, says Meier.

Her initial vision for the collection came from her days in New England, where her family still lives. Meier says she often thinks of how intrigued she was by the play of light on the ocean there.

Sunlit ocean lapis droplets — From the Ocean Droplets collection: a pendant ($2,750) with round lapis and three white ocean diamonds, along with earrings ($4,750) with round lapis and 10 white ocean diamonds, both in 18k yellow gold

“We call it ‘diamonds on the water’ when the light sparkles on the surface of the waves,” Meier says. “I wanted to re-create that joyful feeling.”

Another impetus to work with ocean diamonds was her longtime belief as an artist and jeweler in using sustainable materials, including metals and gemstones.

“I want to make beautiful things while also treating people and the planet beautifully,” Meier says.

She’s been interested in ocean diamonds since she founded SunLit Fine Jewelry in 2023. While visiting South Africa around that time, she had an opportunity to meet people who had worked in local diamond mines and hear about their experiences.

SUNLIT Ocean Droplets topaz — *SunLit Fine Jewelry’s Ocean Droplets earrings in 18k yellow gold with round white topaz and 10 white ocean diamonds ($4,750)*

“I learned about a small company that collects diamonds by hand from the ocean floor just off the west coast of South Africa, near Namibia,” she says. “The idea of diamonds found in the wild on the deep ocean floor, collected individually by highly skilled divers, was so compelling. What a difference from the traditional way diamonds are mined.”

Meier reached out to Melanie Grant, then the executive director of the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC). Grant confirmed that the company Meier wanted to work with had earned RJC certification, which means it made a commitment to ethical sourcing, human rights, fair labor practices, and environmental responsibility.

“I also spoke at length with the team at Ocean Diamonds to understand their operations,” Meier says. “Individual divers, properly prepared and supported, brave the stormy waters and work carefully not to disturb the ecosystem while finding diamonds in the seabed that were carried there from deep inside the earth by channels of river water over billions of years.

“This was something I wanted to be a part of my work,” Meier says. “I secured a parcel of these diamonds to use in my collection, and they are inspiring many new design directions.”

In addition to Meier’s SunLit, other exhibitors at Melee the Show—running Jan. 31 through Feb. 2 at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York City—include Anthony Lent, Ellis Mhairi Cameron, Vale Jewelry, and Tapp by Todd Powell, as well as newcomers Susannah King and Jake Matluck.

Top: At Melee the Show this weekend, SunLit Fine Jewelry is set to debut the Ocean Droplets collection, which includes the Supreme bangle ($2,750) with 36 white ocean diamonds and the Supreme Droplet Medallion ($1,850) with 16 white ocean diamonds, both in blackened sterling silver. (Photos courtesy of SunLit Fine Jewelry)