A Place For Every-Thing!

There is nothing more great then wearing jewelry that makes you feel good and is for a good cause!  Recently The Leakey Collection sent me a few of their Zulugrass Jewelry to review.

About The Leakey Collection (taken from site):

Discover the Natural Elegance of The Leakey Collection

Based in The Rift Valley Kenya, East Africa, The Leakey Collection founders Katy and Philip Leakey, combine their talents in interior design and the arts with their love of nature to develop stunning handcrafted products for an international market.

Using natural elements such as fallen wood, grass and porcelain, these renowned designers create unique products while protecting the environment and providing economic opportunity to the local communities. Zulugrass and Zuluwood beads, bracelets and necklaces are sold in stores worldwide. The entire collection is now available on LeakeyLife.com, their online retail site.

From high fashion jewelry to home interior design accessories, The Leakey Collection's natural elegance distinguishes this high end product line as one of the world's premier offerings.

ZULUGRASS JEWELRY: Strands of colorful grass beads strung with sparkling Czech glass beads for a stunning effect.  Handcrafted by Maasai women of Kenya.

The concept of Zulugrass sold by the single strand to design your own jewelry is the combined creation of Katy and Philip Leakey.

 

Each piece of Zulugrass is designed by Katy and Philip Leakey and assembled by the Maasai women of Kenya.

 

Zulugrass is a design your own jewelry that can be worn in a variety of ways; necklaces choker or long, bracelets, belts, anklets, hair-ties, and is also used creatively as gifts with other applications.

 

The grass is harvested by hand, blade by blade from tall stands, and cut by hand, bead by bead. The grass grows with a hole in it and is hard and durable, often used in the furniture industry because of its strength.

 

Zulugrass is water proof, salt water and fresh, colorfast, and long lasting, the elastic has a memory of over 6 years and still going even if warn every day, sun, shower, pool or ocean and tied in any number of ways from day to day.

 

Zulugrass was born out of a need: by the end of the devastating drought in Kenya around 2001 the Leakey's were supporting as many as 100 Maasai families by giving them money for food, school fees, medical expenses and housing. This was not sustainable for either party. The men had left the women and children behind as they had to take the surviving cattle far up country in search of grazing land. The men had been away for as long as two years. Philip Leakey came up with the idea to create jewelry made from grass. At first the designs were rather traditional and the Leakey's found too small a market to do much good for the Maasai as the line was considered too "ethnic" by the western market. It was then that Katy Leakey came up with the modification of the single strand on elastic as a design your own jewelry system and the contemporary and global Zulugrass Jewelry with the Zulugirl logo was born.

 

Zulugrass is currently sold in over 20 countries world wide and growing.

 

My Thoughts:

I was sent a couple of single strands of Zulugrass Jewelry to review. One was black with gold beads and the other was purple with red beads. 

I quickly started to imagine what was I going to wear to wear these with and to my amazement I was able to wear them with just about anything.  I wore mine as necklaces, bracelets and sometimes as anklets.  I wore them together and I wore them separately.  They are so versatile and comfortable... I love them.

Buy it:

You can purchase Zulugrass Jewelry from The Leakey Collection.  Remember that not only is this great jewelry, but it also is a great cause. 5% of all sales goes back to the communities in the form of health benefits, infrastructure, and education.