7 Summer Boredom Remedies

Hi internet!

If you've read the title, you already know what this post is going to be about -summer time blues!

Summer leaves students with almost 4 months time on their hands, which if you compare to the academic year, is more than a semester! There's so much more to summer that slothing around, and if you're already lazing around the house, being told to get off the sofa, maybe this list is for you...

Spend more time outdoors
Unless you're a vampire and allergic to the sun, summer is the best time for the outdoors. If you're in the UK, The Lawn Tennis Association have free tennis lessons this weekend at particular gyms and leisure centres: to find out more click here!. Sports isn't the only reason to get outside - festivals, free or costly, are a great experience, and they don't always have to be camping either! I've been to Wireless Festival when it was hosted in Hyde Park, and stayed in an apartment at Earl's Court. 

Create a reading list
Another thing that can be done outside, or on a rainy day. I've got a pile of books next to my bed that I want to try and get through in the next 9 weeks; Game of Thrones, Insurgent and Pretty Little Liars #15. That being said, there are so many books out there I need to read; The Fault In Our Stars, We Were Liars, and the rest of the Game of Thrones series included! There are great book guides on Youtube if you think you've read all the books in the world.

Get a job

The title sounds harsh, but being the marmite option of the list, either people are actively looking for a job, or don't want one. Positives of getting a job: something to go on a CV, making new friends, MONEY! Negatives of getting a job: not having money. Starting to think the pros weigh out the cons here...

I know jobs are hard to find in some areas, but if you want one, you don't take no for an answer! From what I've seen, pubs are usually looking for employees. Though Waitrose may be a great place to work, their application process is vigorous, and they only hire a select few. Plus you know what they say: 'one door closes, another one opens'.

Catch up on a TV series

Game of Thrones

 Orange is the New Black

Pretty Little Liars

Glee

Gossip Girl

Ok, the last three are more girly TV shows, but there are so many out there to watch, online or boxset! Also, if you've been meaning to start watching Game of Thrones, or any TV show, and haven't watched it yet, there's no time like the present! 

Learn a new skill
Never had enough patience to learn nail art? Now's the time! With so many How To's on Youtube, it's hard to avoid not to learn something.

Have clear out
Scrap spring-cleaning, with more time on your hands you can dedicate time to putting things on e-Bay or having a swap with a friend. Recently I've been altering clothes which were too big for me. Everyone has those impulse buys which looked great in the shops, but a month later don't seem to be the same, and this is a great chance to make a wardrobe where you're happy to wear everything!

Weekend trips
The UK has so many great holiday destinations, my boyfriend and I got away to Weymouth for 2 days, and that was enough time to explore and relax whilst sitting by the pool. If that fails, be a tourist in your own town; go find a new little cafe, or spend an afternoon wandering around. Getting lost is the best way to find something new!

Sometimes these things just need a little push, but there's no reason why Summer 2014 can't be the summer of self-improvement!


Thanks for reading x

Sunday Hauling

SUNDAY WANDERING: POUNDLAND

Poundland had a great voucher which I found on the internet, £2 or a £12 purchase.

So guess what I did; went and bought 12 things of course!

Some people would argue that I didn't save at all, because I had to spend in the first place. However I would argue that if these were things that I would eventually have to purchase in another shop, I will have saved in the long run!

This is a break down of what I went in for and the impulse purchases.

WHAT I WENT IN FOR:

CRISPS x2

Would have been: ASDA have 3x 6 Packs for £4

What I bought: 2x 5 Packs for £2

Deodorant

Would have been: £2

What I bought: 1x for £1

Listerine Mouth Wash

Would have been: £1.50 (Asda)

Kleenex Mini Packs

Would have been 6x £1

Got 8x for £1

IMPULSE BUYS:

Heart Fairy Lights

£1

Note: they are only around meter long, ones from Primark might be more of a bargin!

Lauren Conrad 'Sugar and Spice: L.A Candy' Hardcover

Would have been £12.99

Detol Surface Cleaner

Would have been £2

(Thumbs up for the fancy cleaning photography)

Creme Eggs

At the moment Asda have 12 eggs for £4

...so works out the same

Rimmel Nail Polish

Would have been £3.99 in Superdrug

Scent Diffuser Scents

Mango & Papaya

Vanilla

Fresh Linen

Unsure of the prices, but thought I'd test out the scents for only being a pound.

There was one last thing I bought, but I'm not sure what it was. Must have been really useful! So overall I saved around £19. Definitely something to be proud of!

When I went in they also had a lot of beauty products such as the Sinful Colour nail polishes, Calvin Klein creme shadows/liners, Rimmel lip liners. I recommend going into Poundland if it's near you before checking out Boots or Superdrug for a impulse beauty purchase.

For people that have never been to Poundland, you're missing out!! 

All 'would have been' prices referenced from ASDA on the 29/01/2014 except for where stated otherwise

Reading Resolution

READING RESOLUTION

Hi Internet!

Going into 2014, I felt as if I needed to improve myself. How? I didn't know how to answer that question a couple of weeks ago.

Now, I think I realize it's about avoiding free time, free time allowing my mind to wander into a negative place. I have tried to limit my wandering mind through reading, and having started with a good book, my experience is so far positive.

I thought I would share these books; if anyone's going through a moment of doubt with how to use their time to a more beneficial cause, this could be one way to do it! (and a good excuse to huddle under a blanket with hot chocolate...)

The first book I picked up was Divergent by Veronica Roth. I had heard about the movie coming out ( April 4th) and wanted to get my hands on the book before I start imagining the actors instead of the character descriptions! Though I'm only a fifth of the way through, I think this is far enough to determine how much I like the book. The first couple of chapters definitely set the scene, and as the reader, we are made to understand the situation the protagonist. 

I have a friend who really doesn't like this book series, but she read it to the end to find out what happens to the characters. Unsure what all the hype was about if she didn't enjoy it, I figured I would like the make my own opinion of it. I like easy reading, books that get me hooked quick. This is definitely one of them.

(And it was on buy one get one half price in WHSmiths!)

The second book I bought was the first in the Game of Thrones series, by George R.R. Martin. Both this book and Divergent were on the buy-one-get-one-half-price offer, and thought I'd give it a try. I've been captured by the TV Series, and am highly anticipating the new season in April! I thought this book might help subside my excitement, but it wasn't until I got it home when I realized how long the book is (and how TINY the text is too) ... it might take me a while to get through this one.

Now a really easy read, Lauren Conrad's Sugar & Spice, the third in her 5-part L.A. Candy series. I bought the other two preceding books around the time when they first came out 5 years ago, however I put off buying this because it was originally £13, and though I'm sure this wasn't the price on Amazon, I could never justify it. However, after seeing this in Poundland (it will be featured in my Poundland Haul with lots of other good finds), I snapped it up.

I feel like the age it's aimed at is probably similar to The Hills TV Series, although the style of writing is very basic. Therefore nearing 20 years old, I feel like I will grow out of the series soon, and want to read it before I become disinterested.

I'm no avid reader, but I thought buying some books might get me excited about reading again. Also when the covers are nice, they act as decoration on my bed-side table, which is an added bonus. Hopefully it won't take me too long to read all of these books, but I'm sure I will enjoy them. I started on a positive note, making me even more enthusiastic to accomplish this goal.

Happy Wednesday!

Review Time: How To Be Prepared

REVIEW TIME


For a majority of the architecture students at my uni, the last week was a grueling, stressful nightmare, fighting time to finish our projects. Studying architecture, for every project we have a final review and for those who don't know, this is when our studio tutors critique our response to a brief which the whole year is given. I found that I coped pretty well with the deadline, but I know that people using computers to draw up their designs struggled, especially when they were new to the software.

Throughout the reviews you could definitely tell who struggled and who was prepared, and I'm not going to lie, my mind got a bit sidetracked and started thinking how people could have avoided this. I know that being organized isn't as simple for some than it is others, but I feel that by reminding myself of certain things I need to do, people in similar positions might benefit (maybe somewhat?!).

Things I do to prepare myself, usually in this order are...

1) Write a list of things I need to do 
You can never have enough scrap paper set aside for lists

2) Set reasonable achievements
If you think something will take a certain time, add some more time, it'll usually take longer with procrastination and all

3) Keep up with your course mates
Living with other architect students who all work at different paces, I find that knowing I'm at the same level as someone else re-assures me that I will finish in time

4) Tick things off of your list!
When I see how much I've achieved I feel really good about myself

5) Eat healthy (and don't stop taking vitamins!)
If a deadline is approaching, you don't need to be ill and spending a day in bed, getting more stressed about the work you need to do

6) Get a good nights sleep & get some me-time
When we're tired, we don't want to make decisions, we just want to sleep. Also, you don't want to present your project zombie-style


Those are the things which I have found keep me sane when coming up to a review or an important deadline, and I know everyone works different and these are probably things people have said before, but they really do work!! 

If all else fails, at least be proud and confident about the end result, then you can fool anyone.

Simples!

Instagram of Final Review Layout