Gris by Modern Shades of Grey

Have you ever found yourself wishing you had more unique jewelry?  Something other than those sparkly silver hoops you find yourself putting on all the time even though you have tons of other earrings?  Something that you don’t happen to see on just about everyone else?

I know.  I know what you are thinking right now.  OK yeah, but how much would that cost me?

The answer is not nearly what you would think.  What if I told you you could get unique one of a kind jewelry for less than $30.  Less than $30!  Seriously!

After unfortunately missing them in the accessory showcase at Styleweek Providence, I had the opportunity to catch the Modern Shades of Grey Trunk Show at the Green Envy Eco-Boutique in Newport, RI.  Cupcakes and mimosas were served and it was a nice relaxing atmosphere to walk around and view Modern Shades of Grey’s new line of earrings ‘Gris‘.

How cute are these earrings?!

All of the earrings in the line Gris are hand crafted.  Also a plus?  Modern Shades of Grey uses vintage, Eco friendly and sometimes one-of-a-kind beads in their pieces.  Which means no one else will ever have your exact pair of earrings!  And since they are Eco friendly, you can feel good about getting to help environment as a bonus.  Throw in the affordable prices and how can you beat that?

I was able to personally meet and chat with Sarah at the trunk show, who makes the jewelry with her mother Mary Anne.  While they also make handmade scarves, necklaces and more, Sarah and Mary Anne have been making things together for years.  What was once a hobby for them, has in the last year turned into a new and growing business.  Their products are currently featured in 3 stores in Rhode Island.  They also feature some of their items online through Etsy, so you will be able to purchase them no matter what state you live in.

While Gris is starting to take off in Rhode Island, I would predict the line will be getting even much more popular soon.  Alex McCord of the Real Housewives of New York spotted the line at Styleweek Providence’s Accessory Showcase and loved it so much she had to get a pair for herself.

Check out Modern Shades of Grey, I promise you won’t be disappointed.  All of your friends will be dying to find out where you purchased your earrings.

Top/Featured Photo By Trisha Kelley Photography

Recycled Business Cards from 123 Print

I’m the kind of person who wants to be environmentally concious, but loves to save a buck.

These two values have come into conflict on more than one occassion.  It can be expensive to choose eco friendly products, and the easiest way for me to help the environment is usually to just consume (and buy) less whenever possible.

And so it was with extreme hesitation that I began the search for recylced business cards – that is, business cards made with recycled paper, not someone else’s business card that they’re no longer using because they got fired or something.

I’m going to a BlogHer conference in Chicago this summer and I want to take business cards with me.  Apparently people show up to these networking events and expect you to have more than a cocktail napkin with your email addresss hastily scribbled on the back of it.   If at all possible, I’d like to hand out business cards that are printed on recycled paper – because I’m pretty sure that most of them will be used to hastily scribble someone else’s email address on the back of them and it would be nice if they were at least doing it without killing a bunch of trees.

However, I will be paying for these cards myself so cost is a major factor.

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