Pre-Weekend Away Shopping Haul

Hello beautiful people!

We are very excited in the Graceful and Claire household this week. This is because next weekend, we are going to Sydney for a long weekend away with our bestie, Miriam! This is especially exciting, because this is actually the first holiday that we have planned and organised on our own, as adults. 

However, while our trip to Sydney will essentially consist of shopping and art gallery/museum visits, we felt that there were a few things we needed to pick up first. So, along with our good friend, Elektra, as our enabler (because every shopping trip needs someone to say that yes, you totally do need another navy and white striped jumper), we visited Bourke St Mall to see what we could find. 

Kate: The Future Queen by Katie Nicholl ($21.99 - Dymocks)// Confession time: I am a huge fan of the European royal families. Especially the Cambridges. So you can imagine how excited I am to have this book in my possession as my holiday read! I already know more than normal people about Wills and Kate by watching numerous documentaries, and those US biopics from Lifetime and Hallmark, but I am sure that there will still be more I can learn by reading this book. 

*This image is from the Target website. I couldn't photograph the material very well*

Navy Jacket + Quilted Vest (currently on sale - Target) // I have been looking at finding a jacket that I can wear in the winter instead of wearing a coat everyday, and this jacket and vest combo is perfect. Not only are they two separate pieces, but they are also waterproof, which makes a great piece for when Melbourne decides to rain, out of the blue. 

This jacket comes with quite a story. Instead of explaining it, I will tell you the short version. Basically: The original price was $89, but with it being on sale, and my cashing in on Flybuys points (I'm a real adult guys!), I only paid $7.05. I am fairly pleased with myself for that one. 

Striped Boat Neck Jumper ($39.95 - H&M) // (similar linked) 

We love navy and white stripes. It's a thing, let's just all accept it. It is nautical, french and classic, all at the same time. Feel the love <3 What I love most about this jumper is that I'll be able to wear it with some jeans or shorts and I have a cute, chic outfit. And so effortless as well! Isn't that just the dream? - C

Heeled Ankle Boots ($49.95 - Rubi Shoes) // 

I've been on the hunt for heeled boots, because who doesn't love them? I particularly like these ones, also am really into the whole open at the side thing. I also like the gold hardware (as I am such a gold person). I am very excited to wear these with jeans to Uni - C

Handbag (On sale for $69 - Zara) // Unfortunately, Zara Australia is not online, so I cannot find a link to this bag online. If you are as in love with it as I am, then you are going to have to go in store and find it. Trust me, these photos do not do this bag justice! This purchase was not for our Sydney trip, like the others. I actually bought this bag to use for Uni. For more details, I might do a What's In My Bag? post for the second semester of Uni. 

Union Jack Bunting ($5 - Treats From Home) // 
One of our grandmothers was born in England and we wear this 1/4 English badge with pride. Union Jack bunting is something we've wanted to have for the apartment for a while so when we stumbled upon this English food shop above Dymocks on Collins Street, we were like "hell yes!" Grace got a photo with a statue of the Queen and we saw like 5 mugs we want to go back and purchase.

Yay England! 

Stay Gold!

xx

25.6.15 - 2.7.15 | The week that was

Hello, all!

Here is what we've been up to this past week.

-

THURSDAY

We had brunch at Bowery to Williamsburg with some friends we haven't seen in a long, long time. It was great to catch up with them now that Uni is over for the semester, especially since one studies interstate and another just jetted off to America for a couple of weeks. 

The place is super cool and NYC Subway themed in Oliver Lane (#ClassicMelbourne) I took a bad photo of my bagel with lemon and vanilla smear and maple bacon. It was sooo good! We are definitely going to go back, especially for lunch and try out the rest of their menu. 

The gals after brunch. The laneway the cafe was in lead to Flinders lane and this magnificent view.

FRIDAY

We watched Chef on Netflix and this was a photo to show my appreciation for the coffee-popcorn-chocolate combo I had. (The movie has alright. Weird pacing?)

SUNDAY

I worked 1-5pm and this is the view I had on my way to the tram stop.
Chinatown/Swanston Street.

MONDAY - WEDNESDAY

We both had a couple days off work so we took a quick trip to our hometown for a couple of days. We hardly left the house but it was good to see our parents, older brother and my favourite friend again. There was also Foxtel and a lot of Say Yes to the Dress <3

Also, we are both currently reading Harry Potter. I'm up to Goblet of Fire while Grace just started Deathly Hallows.

THURSDAY

We took three trains to get to Geelong, but it was worth it, because we got to see our aunt and uncle again, and meet their new twin babies! Another set of twins int he family, how delightful!

Stay Gold!

C xx

21.6.15 | Claire

Sunday the 21st of June, 2015.

Good morning! We were off to the train station at 9:30am, and it was quite the brisk morning. Also, I debuted my new bag, which I purchased at the op shop on Saturday. It's a carpet bag in the style of a bowling bag. It's perf and I'm so in love. (Plus it was only $8!)

Brunch at: Brighton Shoolhouse

We shared the Glee Club Pancakes (blueberry and ricotta pancakes with a scoop of white-chocolate ice-cream, bacon and maplebutter)

 It was delicious. Sorry for the lack of pic, we were just too eager to eat it all!

We had brunch with our fave, Lizzie. She's moving to Boston on Saturday, so this was a bit of a last hurruh for a while. We are going to miss her immensely.

OOTD Grace:
Bag from Collette (similar), Shoes from Target, Scarf from boohoo.com and coat from K-Mart

OOTD Claire:
Dress form JayJays forever ago, Coat form Target forever ago, Hat from Target (recently), boots from Target, bag from The Shop of Op on Chapel Street.

Photographic proof that Lizzie has been in our apartment.

Hard at work or hardly working? We spent the afternoon on the couch, under a mountain of blankets watching The Lizzie McGuire Movie and The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. The perfect movies for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

---

Hello, all!

This blog is a learning process for us, so we are still trying to get a feel for what type of posts we want to do. So here is the first post of a new approach: a photodump/A Day in the Life. Often we feel like we don't know what to post about, but since this blog is about our lives in Melbourne, why not document it this way? So let us know what you think, there will be more to come!

Stay Gold,

Claire

A Post About Grocery Shopping | Claire

Hello, all!

EXAM PERIOD IS AT ITS END! 

I (Claire) finished last Wednesday, after having 4 essays due in 3 days (living the fast life), and Grace finished today! For all of you who have also finished, congratulations! May your days be spent in bed binge watching Netflix/Stan/Presto (ok, let's be honest. We're all using Netflix, aren't we?) as your life is free from academia once more. 

And to those of you who are still going, YOU CAN DO IT. But ugh, studying is the worst, isn't it? Remember to take breaks and don't work yourself too hard. Passing is important but so is your health. 

With swotvac and exam period, we were two very busy bees. So much so, that by the end of last week we had no washing powder, had squeezed the last bit of toothpaste out of the tube, and all we had to eat were 2 minute noodles, soup, and mac and cheese. All great food options, but not ideal to live off. When you have so many essays to write, grocery shopping just doesn't seem like an option. So last Friday morning, when I was enjoying the start of my Uni break and Grace had a couple days until her next one, we wrote a list, took our personal shopping trolley (this nifty thing from ikea), and set off to our closest Coles. 

Now, if you haven't already gathered, Grace and I live out of home, and so grocery shopping is up to us. Planning meals is probably the hardest part of independent living, as well as finding the time to go to the supermarket (check out  part one of Grace's adventures in the kitchen here). However, grocery shopping is Grace's favourite time of the week, and I will have to agree. You see, we have a routine. Every Saturday morning we clean the apartment (somewhat) and then we go grocery shopping. This is the same routine our Mum has back at home, which we helped with and carried through with us here. (Thanks, Mum <3) 

We really enjoy grocery shopping, but we are not sure why. Is it the freedom to put whatever food you want in the trolley without someone to say no? (Kind of. We still stop each other from getting unnecessary food items from time to time. Remember to keep an eye on that budget!) Or is it the "adult-ness" of it? It is all so grown up, doing your own grocery shopping. We think this must be it. 

Moving to Melbourne and having our own apartment/routine in the city is something we have always looked forward to while in high school. Is that weird? Perhaps we watched too many movies/TV shows growing up. But which TV show glorifies being an adult? Because Suddenly 30 (That's 13 Going on 30 for you non-Australians), definitely doesn't. Maybe it's our love of watching YouTubers and their vlogs... 

Nonetheless, trivial things like going grocery shopping makes us happy! It's like we have control of our lives, and being twins, I guess being independent is more important to us... even if we are being independent together, it's more like we get to ease into it together. Grace has been doing the independent life longer than I have, since I was at a residential college on campus last year and all of my food was prepared for me (shout out to the kitchen staff!), so we help each other. 

If you have made it this far with a post about grocery shopping, we love your dedication!

We don't have that many tips with grocery sopping, other than always look for specials, and even then, check all the price tags and see what the cheapest option is. Just because it is on special, doesn't mean it is the cheapest option. Also, try and plan your meals for the week before you go. That way you can stay focused and get what you need, as well as get in and out of there without wasting 10 minutes staring at a shelf. 

All in all, we appreciate the trivial things in life. We are so happy, and lucky, to be able to living in Melbourne and have this as our life. Like, we are living the dream, basically. Living in Melbourne with jobs, great friends, and studying what we love at a University we love. We are so grateful to have these opportunities. So yeah, we are happy we get to go grocery shopping. It means we are growing up and are at a place where we can afford to do that. Which is pretty special. 

Now that we are on Uni break, let's see if we post more! Here's to hoping!

Stay Gold,

Claire x

A Day In the Life: SWOTVAC Edition | Grace

Follow Grace around as she conquered a day of SWOTVAC, or as we like to call it, swot-WHACK. (I know, we're very funny), through a series of snapchats. And when you're done, give our individual snapchat accounts a follow for more looks into the daily lives of uni students living that Melbourne life.

Okay now... go!

I started work at 7am and it was freezing! I don't mind the early start, though. It means that I can get a lot more done in the day. 

After work I went home and changed, then Claire and I went into the city and met our fabulous friend, Miriam, for some lunch. We decided to try out Journal, which is next to the Melbourne City Library in Flinders Lane. I ordered a pot of English Breakfast because I don't usually have time to enjoy my morning cup of tea in the mornings I start work early, and the mushroom bruschetta, which was one of the specials for the day. I am so obsessed with mushrooms right now. I cannot get enough! 

As exams are coming up, we decided that we should actually do some study today, and hey, studying isn't so bad if you do it with friends! So we went to the Starbucks across from QV in Swanston St, where we set up camp like the other Uni students that were there studying, and did some work for a few hours. I was working on my American History revision essay/exam, just going over what I had written the day before and editing here and there. Something casual as I knew that I would probably get distracted being with Miriam, as she is one of my best friends. 

Then of course, there is the multiple journeys on the Melbourne Metro service. Nothing too exciting here.

(Boots: Target, two years ago (similar) | Boot Socks: Cotton On | Jeans: Cotton On, last year)

Also, totally not planned was me rushing to the bank at 4:30 in the afternoon trying to sort out an issue with my online banking. I totally felt like a real adult though, guys! I did not freak out at all and I handled the situation very maturely. Our Mum is so proud. Go Grace!

And of course, because it is SWOTVAC and today was a kind of Treat Yo' Self kind of day, Claire and I finally decided to satsify our multiple-weeks-long craving for donuts, and bought a Krispy Kreme each to enjoy as a dessert. Of course, while doing more studying. 

And there you go! Thanks for following along. Let us know if you enjoyed it and would like to see more posts like this. If you just CANNOT POSSIBLY WAIT (wow, enthusiasm), for another post to see what we get up to during our days, you should probably add us on Snapchat, because we post many many snaps a day. 

Grace: gracefulwhitex

Claire: clairencew

Until next time,

Stay gold!

Grace