Twinsies (+ a Giveaway)

There are two themes to today’s post: (1) gratitude and (2) friendship.

You also have two chances to win these gorgeous handbags – details at the bottom of this post.

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GRATITUDE.

During the holidays especially, I aim to make a more conscious effort to be present during and grateful for the meaningful moments in my life.

This is a conversation that Jessica and I have often.

Because we work and blog full-time, life can become one big spiral of hustling, writing, e-mailing, editing and so on. As a result, sometimes we both forget to sit back, unplug and say thanks — most importantly, to readers like you who support and inspire us to push forward on five hours of sleep every day. (Gimme six and I’m mother f’ing Beyonce.)

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FRIENDSHIP.

Post-college, it’s hard to find girlfriends. Like, really good ones. You know? Especially in a city of 10 million people and in an industry that can seem, at times, incredibly cut-throat.

Hands down, my favorite perk of being a blogger is meeting and making genuine friends who push you to see things (including yourself) in a different way. The ones who come to know your drink order, your shoe size, how you take your coffee, and your unfortunate drunk food routine — among many other things.

… I can never run for President.

If you’re lucky enough to have one of these types of women in life, hold on to ’em.

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Okay, I promise we’re getting to the good part.

Lydia did a fantastic job capturing our friendship in these photos — and the funny thing is, we aren’t posing. We don’t always skip through Madison Square Park arm-in-arm, but figuratively, that’s how we tend to approach blogging and life in general.

Instead of going the competitive route, Jessica and I leverage our unique personal tastes and points of view to collaborate — which is why it was a no-brainer when Joelle Hawkens asked us both to style up a giveaway for one of her fab bags. Friendship, gratitude — two birds, one stone.

If you haven’t heard of Joelle Hawkens, here’s your cliff notes version: She’s a handbag designer that hits all the high notes – think affordable luxury in a vibrant array of hues and custom, distinctive hardware.

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Joelle’s entire collection is a series of must-have modern classics that’ll go with anything in your wardrobe — I’ve been wearing mine on repeat.

That said, here are details on how to enter to win your own Joelle Hawkens handbag (if you have questions, leave ’em in the comments, please) — just click the form below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*For my outfit details, click here // for Jessica’s, click here.

Don’t forget to visit Bows & Sequins to see Jess’s post and enter her giveaway, too — it’s definitely worth a read.

Logistics: Contest ends Friday, 12/6 at midnight EST. One winner will be selected randomly on coralsandcognacs.com (to win my blue bag); another via bowsandsequins.com (to win her gray bag). US only (apologies). Good luck!

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25 comments

    • Thank you, Justine! That means a lot to me. And I love seeing Chicago through the lens of your blog! Next time I’m “home”/in town, we’ll grab a ‘tini or two.

      Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving!

  1. You two are so cute! I love your genuine friendship- something that everyone should have a chance at in life. Keep doing what you are doing, guys!

    Xo
    Sloane

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