Drooling over Sydney's Fashion Scene
***When you accidentally spend $500 on clothes within your first few weeks of moving to a new country*** ?
But ok. It’s not entirely my fault. I mean it’s 100% my fault, but I have been extremely excited for the fashion in Sydney. Plus, the American dollar is worth more so it was technically only US$380.75 right??
I was saving money for so long, knowing that I would soon be delighted by window shopping in the city and strolling through markets by the beach. I LOVE Chi-town, but the Chicago fashion scene is not so much my style. Every time I visited my good friend in LA, she was entertained by me gawking and being overly enthusiastic about all the cool outfits I saw there.
As a result of my geography, this was my American shopping style: Buy nothing. Not even practical things (until I finally gave in and bought my first real purse in January…). But then anytime I saw something beachy/quirky yet appropriate for city-wearing, and quality but not overly expensive, I would just immediately capitalize on the rare clothing find and purchase it.
That method has not proved to work in Sydney, because about every ten feet (I mean meters, I need to get used to the metric system…) I see something that is extremely cool and quirky and quality and expensive and I must have it.
I really don’t like owning too much clothes but I also really enjoy finding a great piece to become part of my lil wardrobe. You should’ve seen how many bags of clothes I gave away before coming here! Even if it was cute, if I wouldn’t wear or buy it now, it had to go (to my sister. You’re welcome).
Once I realized that I’m not on a trip but I actually live here now, I started to calm down and slowly build my Sydney wardrobe, observing the fashion scene around me. How I’d describe it all for now:
- Quality-beachy - lots of denim, really nice white t-shirts, pastels, unique patterns, interesting cuts, florals, and flowy tops/dresses.
- Sporty chic - The athleisure trend has certainly taken the world by storm so of course in this active city it’s popular. Literally every person here owns a pair of Adidas sneakers and wears them all the time. I’m not kidding you-- Every. Single. Person. ? I get compliments all the time on my shiny gold adidas slip ons. You can’t even tell they are adidas so I just think Australia/the world loves Adidas.
- Quirky - I see a lot of people wearing really nice jeans and a t-shirt, but then add a really cool piece like crazy shoes or beautiful jewelery or funky sunnies or a nice hat. That kind of outfit would be easy to travel with, just mix up the small pieces!
- A bit more casual than NYC or Chicago - every time I wear heels people are like OoOoOo. So I wear them a little less which is fine by my feet. But the black chunky heel boot is very popular. Particularly the Australian-made RM Williams boots...lots of girls have em, they are beautiful. Would love a pair ? http://www.rmwilliams.com.au/
So I came here with two suitcases but who knows, might go back to Chicago with around seven…
But actually I am trying to break even on how much clothes I have (more on that later), so I'll be giving some away soon, look out for that :D
Here’s what I’ve bought so far! ?
- Some quality Wrangler jeans... wow you can make so many outfits when you have a pair of jeans that fit you!!
2. While I was on a denim kick, I got a wrangler black denim skirt... LOOK AT THAT POCKET DETAIL
3. Overalls! Prediction: An absurdly large proportion of women will own a pair of overalls by September 2017.
4. Got this up in Byron -- Minkpink is everywhere here. How fahn
5. I'm new to warehouse sales, which are apparently a thing in NYC and LA. One of Australia's nicer designers Shakuhachi had a sale just around the corner from my work. I got there right when it started at 8am and snagged these awesome baby pink real leather shorts. ?
6. More from the Shakuhachi sale. This top is beautiful on, you don't even need a necklace
7. Another Shakuhachi find ??
8. Some cool accessories from the Bondi Markets! Also, those little pom-poms on the bracelet are on everything now. Cool vibes
9. Okayyyy and a one-piece swimsuit. Couldn't resist. (it's ripcurl)
10. And of course a flower crown for the Melbourne Cup race day (most girls get a fascinator, but didn't suit my vibes)
But seriously I’m done shopping for now.*
*unless I see the most amazing piece that is so Emi G and then I might have to have it
3 Days in Byron Bay is Not Enough
A week into my life in Australia, my friend Anna invited me to fly up to Byron Bay for the long weekend (New South Wales celebrates their Labour Day the first weekend in October). Byron Bay is brand itself now….an icon for hippie and surf culture. Amazing beaches, tasty food, my favorite kind of fashion ? This is what I came to Australia for, so of course I went!!!
I thought three days would be plenty of time for a beach town and man was I wrong. I can see why so many Australians and people from around the world stop in their tracks and settle in Byron. Every step towards the airport was like walking down the plank. UGH I can’t wait to go back!!
So here’s what we did…
(at the end I made a list combining things I did and didn’t do that I would recommend for anyone going / this is what I’ll be doing the next time I’m there!)
Lots of beach chilling–a must. The surf was actually pretty dead while we were there but obviously surfing on any of the five main breaks at Byron is supposed to be awesome. Next time I go back hopefully I’ll be good enough to shred ? The beach we went to above is Whites Beach–luckily we knew some locals and this is one of their favorite spots. We had to take a car up a winding dirt road for a while, and then a cool hike through trees to get down to the beach. Obviously chilling on the Byron beaches is a must while in Byron, but you should definitely look for one of the locals’ favorite spots because it’s cool to get away from the crowd too.
Most important part: WE SAW WHALES!!!!! This was my first time seeing whales ever. Someone was casually like “oh cool, a whale” and I flipped. Some of my crew said they enjoyed watching me see whales more than they enjoyed actually seeing whales. If you just picture me flailing and jumping and sprinting and being completed shocked and amazed, that’s about it. I almost want a little tattoo on my ankle of a whale because it was so exciting and I want to always be reminded of how magical that moment was ? So now I am officially obsessed with whales. And apparently seeing whales in Australia is a thing. COOOOL. I have officially realized I am in a place completely different from Chicago… ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Of course we hit up the party scene a bit! Labour Day weekend is also the Grand Final weekend for AFL (Australian Football League) AND for NRL (National Rugby League). Since Anna and I are of course huge Swannies fans we might’ve spent 6 or 7 hours our first day at the Beach Hotel, a massive bar on the beach. They put up extra screens for the game. It got pretty rowdy. Good thing we had the most AMAZING breakfast at the Bayleaf Cafe–could’ve been my favorite meal the whole trip (and that’s impressive) so I would definitely say hit it up.
For my friend Erin’s birthday, we had ‘breaky’ at Byron Fresh. Yummmm it’s all really delicious health food and amazing coffee and muffins. Really close to the beach too. Then it was a bit rainy that day so Erin and I did some shopping…cannot disclose how much money I spent but let’s just say my excitement about Australia’s fashion manifested itself in this day. Then we commenced the number one rainy day activity (drinking) at the Stone And Wood Brewery. This was super cool–their Pacific Ale is most popular and with good reason… After tasting a flight there we headed back near town to the newly renovated Byron Bay Brewery and then hit up Railway Friendly Bar which was probably my favorite (chill vibes, live music), and then back to the Beach Hotel for a boogie.
Ugh then I had to wake up at 6 and head to the airport to get back to work in Sydney. I know Sydney is supposed to be like a vacation for me but Byron just blew everything out of the water. Really got to do some of the Aussie things I came here for, so I can’t wait to go back ?
Checklist – Must Do’s While Visiting Byron Bay
- EAT: Cafe scene is strong. Bayleaf Cafe, Byron Fresh and Cafe Byron are all in town and are very good. But if you have a car consult this article for other delish options.
- DRINK: An ideal night would be Stone And Wood Brewery –> take a cab back in town for Railway Friendly Bar –> walk in town for a boogie at Beach Hotel. One of the Byron boys said he really likes the bar Woody’s too, sounds like it has a divey late-night bar vibe and sounds really fun!
- DO: Bike out to The Farm and have coffee and/or a delicious meal. Hike up to the lighthouse for a magnificent view of Byron’s massive beach and then head down to the rocks to watch the surfers shred (and/or do some shredding yourself).
- SHOP: Hit up the shops in town for cool clothes, art and gifts. If you really love fashion check out Spell Byron Bay. I’ve been following them on Insta for years and was bummed I didn’t get to check them out, but I will one day 🙂 Also if you time it right, the Byron Market is the first Sunday of every month. We were actually there for it but traded off for a beach day with the local boys (good decision) but I would LOVE to check them out.
What else should I do next time I’m in Byron???? Besides see more whales ?
Moving vs Traveling: the big move to SYD!
Whoa. Four weeks ago my world flipped upside down. ⤵️ On September 5th I traveled down under to catch the tail-end of Sydney’s ‘winter’ and start a new job at an integrated marketing agency (Now Comms Group, for those curious). I went from Lake Michigan to the Pacific Ocean. Cubs baseball games to Sydney Swans footy games (Australian Football League - I am an avid Swans fan now). Living 2 hours from home and 2 minutes from 30+ friends to being 16+ hours ahead of most of my family and friends! ?
This all happened very fast. Emotional highs and lows but all-in-all it’s been super amazing so far. The first couple weeks were really hard, and the past couple weeks were not at all. Funny how things work like that. I felt things I’ve never felt before, but they were good feels to have. Moving somewhere far away is very different than traveling somewhere far away--The glamour and excitement are pushed aside to make room for the reality of figuring out a new life while a fun familiar life you once knew continues at home. To illustrate, here’s some thoughts that crossed my mind during the first few days of my Sydney life:
“I don’t think I’m cut out for this other side of the world thing”
“WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!!!”
“This move has cost me so much $$ already. I could’ve built a nice base for my freelance business and joined Soho House and moved to California and all these things. I’m so close to my family and friends how could I leave them. This will be cool but is it worth it???”
“This is an indescribably sad feeling.”
Okay those depressing thoughts and then some all happened on the plane ride over ?
After finding my lovely house in Paddington, a neighborhood I sat in just 9 months ago looking around thinking ‘this is where I need to be’, I felt a little better. I still could’ve burst into tears any moment but I was, you know, at least slightly pleased to be in Sydney. I took a nice run to Bondi Beach, met my welcoming housemates Lachie, Maddie and Alec, and went to my fun agency in the ~trendy~ neighborhood Surry Hills to meet my team. I got a smoothie bowl (YES) and was able to Facetime my family and my boy Chris when I got my phone figured out. Knowing I could still laugh and share moments with my family and friends while being on the other side of the world was sooooo comforting. I guess I forgot that Facetime would be readily available while I was having my little freak-out.
The new place in 'Paddo' aka Paddington. This is a signature old house in Sydney with the New Orleans-esque porches and gates. Coooool!
My first night in Sydney, a bunch of my friends who convinced me to move here happened to be having wine and dinner in their cool backyard. All things considered it was an awesome first day. But still super surreal. My head was a bit in the clouds that first week, just taking everything in. My friends, my job, Sydney...they was all so good to me. I mean, my first weekend I went to my first Swans game, a sweet music festival to see Flight Facilities in one of Sydney’s main parks, and then went with my friend up to a beach town the next day to relax and eat healthy foods and watch movies. ?
(not everything was perfect-- I discovered a massive cockroach in our kitchen and realized these are my new friends. Also it’s been in the 60’s up until the past week...a bit chilly eh?!)
As things started picking up at work, I slowly started assimilating to my new ‘normal.’ On my fourteenth day I had an off-day. I was slightly over having to adjust to everything. Sometimes you just want things to be familiar and easy. That day I felt very ‘meh’ about this ‘exciting’ expat life I’m leading.
BOOM- then suddenly the start of my third week here, I had a very social week with my work and with friends, and it went so fast. I got into the groove with my job and the gym and was joking with friends back home and making plans with friends here and blahblahblah I was having a blast!! A new thought: “Things are good. I made the right choice to move to Australia.”
My first Sydney sunset with my friend Anna up in Avalon, a beach town
After my third week being amazing and fun, I had a moment where I felt really bad that I wasn’t constantly thinking of my life back home anymore, like I didn’t care about my family or friends as much. That’s not the case. I can still become a better Emily and have a great time without losing that. After all, what a waste it would be to have flown all the way to Australia on a sponsorship and not have a great time ?
My girl Mia at the start of an awesome weekend in Jervis Bay
We just had a long weekend (for the New South Wales’ Labour Day, Monday off!!) and I took a last-second trip up to the legendary Byron Bay with my friends Anna and Erin. You’d think for smallish beach town, three days would have been enough. But having to fly back to work was so sad. Beaches, delicious hippie food, amazing Aussie clothing (ooooh went on my first shopping spree oops) and the cool chilled out people up there. ? Oh also I SAW MY FIRST WHALES EVER!! So many of them. The most exciting magical wonder I’ve ever seen. That’s the kind of experiences I want! It made me so excited to explore even more and continue getting to know my cool peeps here. And seeing more whales. ? ? ?
But a funny thought I had coming back today (after getting over the sadness of leaving Byron): “Stinks to leave but I’m excited to be back. I’ll get some more sleep and back into my gym routine and working on my website and flossing and starting to cook again (bc I literally can’t afford anything)” Like...I was thinking about all the things you think about in your normal life, when you’re at home. Finally the thoughts going through my head weren’t anymore “holy shit I LIVE HERE???? What am I doing?!?! This is cool!! Wait this is scary!!! Ahhh!"
I guess I have settled into my new normal a bit more. It’s not forever but good to feel settled for a minute. And don’t get me wrong, I still can’t believe I followed through with this and am living the dream in Sydney. The jury’s still out whether/not I’m cut out for this whole other side of the world thing, but I’d say my Aussie future is looking bright ? ?
Trees overlooking Bondi Beach. I LOVE Aussie trees <3
Some of my new coworkers on double denim day 
Friends and flames 
pics from home :)
My new ride I found on gumtree, the Aussie version of Craiglist 
Ocean viewz 
There's tons of pop up shops and cafes in Sydney which is kind of cool--get to try new things. This pop-up coffee shop was outside of my work for the first two weeks I was there. 
Aussie trees <3 
on the new running trail
Budapest is so cool
Nine busy days full of sightseeing, activities, late nights ? , long driving days and dwindling bank accounts left our crew with a small amount of traveling enthusiasm. When we arrived in Budapest Thursday night, the last three of us standing (John, Brad and myself) were a little envious Chris and Jesse had flights home the next morning, leaving us in Budapest for three more nights (they hit Budapest at the start of the trip before I got there, so they didn’t totally miss out).
But the second we dropped our bags and strolled the streets to find our last dinner as a group, the three of us stragglers were stoked to be in this city.
Budapest is so dope.
The architecture is mesmerizing. Budapest served as a crossroads between Eastern and Western civilization, so you sense a unique mix of the two cultures. There’s classical, roman, gothic, and modern architecture everywhere. There are vast green parks in the city and it’s very bicycle-friendly.
The day I arrived was the day after Sziget, one of Europe’s largest outdoor music festivals. I met a lot of cool people who attended the festival. We visited the island in the middle of the river flowing through the city–the festival is held here. So nice ?
The culture is really fun to be around. Great music and art. We did have a traditional Hungarian dinner–not for me. Really heavy meats, pasta and stews…. eeeeehhhh but I tried it ?
We of course went to the bath party out at one of the geothermal spas. It was indeed epic.
We also got 90 minute Balinese massages for like 50 bucks each. SO WORTH IT ??
Budapest, I’ll be back!!!
The rocks are really old
Going out to some cool pubs
Image from http://www.bathsbudapest.com/budapest-bath-parties We definitely took showers after the bath party.
BROATIA 2016
August 2016: After three spectacular days in Slovenia, we drove through Croatia to start exploring in the old city of Dubrovnik. The drive from top to bottom took about 6 hours. The gas stations were very clean and each included a full-service bar and cafe. Even when I bought an apple they served it to me (not sliced or anything) on a plate… But the Dalmatian coast is very mountainous and beautiful, and we caught an epic sunset as we drove into Dubrovnik
We stayed near the Old City, which is an enclosed palace, with narrow alleys and old castles and such. Never been in anything like it. Super cool. We even went to a club that is in a castle!! During the day we did the Game of Thrones tour–a lot of well-known scenes were filmed in Dubrovnik. Then we bought some brewskis and rented kayaks to paddle to Lokrum, an island that looks close to the coast but when you’re paddling for ages to get back it feels pretty far. We did some cliff jumping and rock-climbing ? Pretty epic!!! 
I was nominated as the world’s most awkward diver but let’s assume I looked like this #croatia #cliffjumping #gopro A photo posted by Emily Griffith (@emigriff) on
Then after being pretty good tourists in Dubrovnik, we drove up to Split, parked our car and hopped on to a ferry to the island of Hvar. This is a popular destination for the ‘Sail Croatia’/yacht week sort of things, so we met a ton of wild Europeans and Australians on this island. This was essentially the party leg of euro-trip ?
Lost odds and had to get cornrows… 
Spent a day at Hula Hula Beach bar. You can jump off the dock at the bar and swim whenever you feel, and then get right back to your table for some more drinkies. Pretty nice…. 
view from our place in Hvar
After a wild time in Hvar, we were pretty tired. We spent a day exploring Split, another old city in Croatia, before dropping off our car in the capital city of Zadar so we could catch a train to Budapest for the last leg of this euro-trip. ?
If there is one lesson to be learned: if you are a female traveling with the boys, doesn’t mean you can always drink like the boys ?
See pretty Instagram picture ➡️ go to Slovenia
In honor of Instagram inspiring our spectacular 3-day visit to this country:
After seeing an awesome picture of Lake Bled on Instagram, I tagged my friend John and suggested a sneaky lil day trip from Croatia up to Slovenia. With plans to travel Budapest and roadtrip in Croatia, figured might as well stop by this less-visited country. We ended up staying for 3 days, and man, I wish we had at least 5 in this amazing country! 
We chose Ljubljana (loob-lee-ana) as our home base. It’s only a 45 minute drive to the well-known Lake Bled (at least in the summer. This is near the alps so some roads may be closed in the winter). In retrospect we would have liked to spend a couple nights near Lake Bled or somewhere in Triglav National Park so we could more quickly access all the fun outdoor activities and adventures, but hey, it was still awesome. We also wish we had at least one more day to explore Ljubljana more during the day, but we got a great taste for it at night after our fun days in the Triglav area ? 
The crew minus 1. Doing some explorin. Highlights of Slovenia:
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- The food was delicious! Turns out, Slovenia is extremely close to Italy, so we got a nice taste of Italian food just by stumbling into an Italian restaurant for dinner our first night in Ljubljana.
- The people were very nice. We got a few comments from locals – “what are you doing here??” Just because Slovenia is surrounded by more popular destinations–Italy, Budapest, Croatia, etc… locals were surprised to see our big crew of six Americans spending a few days in their country. Of course there are backpackers but it was nice to be a little ahead of the tourist curve for this one. We got a better taste for the actual Slovenian lives before the tourist industry takes over–seeing that is one of my favorite parts about traveling.
- Going out to the bars in Ljubljana was a blast. Lots of songs in Spanish/other languages that people would go nuts for. Pretty funny.
- Ljubljana reminds me of Venice. I mean, I haven’t been to Venice, but the center of the city features beautiful old buildings along the river.
- Triglav National Park RULES. The mountains were steep and magnificent.
- There’s tons of adventure to be had in Triglav National Park… Climbing, hiking, camping, kayaking, canoeing, rafting, canyoning, ziplining, mountain biking, regular biking (big bike culture in the Triglav area), watersports (lots of beautiful lakes) and in the winter, a bit of skiing! Such an equally beautiful adventurous destination.
- Definitely kept me wanting more ?
Image from https://ibellhop.com/2014/02/21/destination-slovenia/ I failed to get any great pictures of Ljubljana so others’ will have to do.
It seems like every country is interested in drinking #slovenia #travelettes A photo posted by Emily Griffith (@emigriff) on
At the top of a massive hill we biked up, at a castle overlooking Lake Bled.
WHERE WE WENT IN SLOVENIA:
Modelling at Lake Bohinj 
Biking around Lake Bled 
More modelling at Lake Bohinj
Yayyyy sprained my ankle on the first day at Lake Bled… oooops
A Roadtrip in Ireland is a Must
In 2015, my family visited Ireland for Easter. We rented an embarrassingly large van that my dad insisted on driving down narrow pedestrian streets in Dublin, but it got us through the hilly one-lane dirt roads throughout Ireland. Don’t just visit Dublin when you’re in Ireland, a roadtrip to the West Coast is unbelievably beautiful. We were also lucky to visit some family who still live in a small town in County Clare, and saw the graves of our ancestors on the windy Atlantic coast.
What we did: Dublin ➡️ Killalou ➡️ Cork ➡️ Killrush ➡️ Galway ➡️ Dublin ❌ Entire family somehow missed our 11am flight back to U.S.A. to stayed in Dublin an extra night ➡️ Chicago.
I went to Spain before I understood social media
During the summer of 2009, my soccer club was fortunate enough to send a team to an international futbol tournament in Barcelona, Spain. It was such a cool experience playing teams from all over the world and learning about their cultures and playing style. The tournament had both a guys and girls division so we got to know some other teams (particularly the Greek boys ?).
Our American team was definitely a favorite. The Swedish girls were definitely the prettiest but I believe we provided a nice combo of decent enough looks and soccer skills, plus personality. ?? We had three boys teams loudly cheering for us by the end…I forget which countries but this was a good stroke of ego as I entered my senior year of high school.
Anyways, soccer. We placed 3rd in the tournament, but I placed last for documentation with any decent photos. I must have relied on my mother for all the good ones. Or I just wasn’t that cute in high school (still got dates to prom tho). But here are the few from my first trip to Europe:
The fields were in the hilly Spanish countryside. Some fields were so close to the edge of a hill (the field would practically be walled-in by the hills), so that made some throw-ins difficult. 
Opening ceremonies, everyone reppin their country 
Visited Barcelona’s primary place of worship – the FC Barcelona stadium. More than a club.. 
With my legendary soccer coach. Look at that baby high-school-ness
We were randomly there for the Tour de France during one of their first times in years doing part of the race through Barcelona, so we watched it from outside Barcelona in the country so we were literally standing on the road for it and they blazed past.
young girls with young boys ? 
The Greek boys ?
Costa Rica Poster
This was a really fun and refreshing project. I designed a poster for a friend and fellow [way better than me] artist William Woodward (wheretowillie.com). William and his friend Shay (yogashay.com) are putting on an AMAZING yoga/photography/coolness retreat in Costa Rica and needed a poster design to promote the amazing experience. I loved this project for the great people and subjects involved (yoga, travel, photography, and beach vibes?!) and I love creating posters. At this point in my design career I accept pretty much any work but a poster that aligns with my passions? I'll take that with open arms.
I unfortunately can't go on the retreat because I have my annual family trip that week, but if you're interested (and you should at least be interested) check out the deets and contact info here. Also the deets are obviously on the poster, and check out the specs below too! We ran through a few iterations with cool backgrounds but in the end loved the palm tree vibes:
