Back to School

Although I'm now at University, I still get those "Back to School" nerves before term starts. I'm excited to see all my friends in one place, excited to catch up on everyone's holiday experiences, excited to start a brand new pad of paper and excited to wear any new clothes that I have acquired over the summer.

There are a few things that I make sure I do before term starts, and they are the following:

I always like to have a fresh haircut before I go back. The sun makes my hair grow at an even faster rate than it normally does and can also dry my hair out so I like to have a fairly drastic chop and get rid of all the straggly rats tails that are my split ends. It might be a little daunting to have quite a bit of length off but it makes my hair feel so much healthier afterwards and - remember - hair grows!

I have such a weakness for stationary, always have and always will. I like to get myself a nice pad of wirebound Oxford lined paper. It's pretty pricey but I can't stand thin, flimsy paper that rips and creases easily and this paper is so nice and thick to write on. The wirebound pads are my favourite because I don't have to rip the paper out to go on to the next page, I can just turn the pages like a book. Then when I do have to take the paper out, it's already hole punched and has perforations to take off the extra bits to make it all neat and pretty to go into a folder! Can you tell that I'm a bit obsessive?! Oh god I sound like a crazy woman.

As a general life routine, I always keep an annual diary with me to note down special events etc. in. When it comes to term time, these are super useful because I can write down any work I need to do and for when it needs to be done. I also write down my schedule for lectures; where they are and at what time.

When it comes to my pencil case, I love my trusty Parker rollerball which I refill with black ink - it's so smooth to write with and I love that! Nobody likes a scratchy pen. If I ever need coloured ink, I use my BIC 4-colour ballpoint pen, and for any "colouring in", I use my Staedtler Triplus colours set. I don't tend to use pencils, but I always keep a PaperMate Non-Stop Mechanical Pencil in my pencil case just incase!

For my back to school wardrobe, and apologies if you have to wear a school uniform, there are some absolute must-haves that become staples in my wardrobe. Living in South-East England, chances are that the summer weather is well and truly behind us. Over the summer I like to have planned in advance; as well as buying some cute dresses for the nice weather, I've also been stocking up on cosy jumpers (see my July haul for some!), lots of new socks (and thrown out any that are starting to look a bit threadbare or aren't soft anymore) because its most probable that boots will be worn a lot, and invested in a nice jacket that can be worn in most weather types. It's a good idea to keep an eye out for any comfy hats, scarves and gloves, because Autumn will be upon us before you know it and they will most definitely come in handy.

I would definitely recommend investing in a good pair of boots. Don't go down the money-saving route when it comes to these because the cheaper the boots, the most likely they are to not last the Autumn/Winter season and practical boots are priceless when the weather really gets cold.

If you're allowed to wear make up to school, wear a bare minimum. From experience, there is nothing worse than being all dolled up at school and as a result getting creepy men whistle at you on your walk home from school. Just use a little mascara, some concealer or BB cream if you're skin-conscious, but save your nice make up for the weekend and any special events as it will make you stand out more when you do wear more make up.

If you have bought your friends any little souvenirs from your holidays, make sure to only give it to them when it's just the two of you. There is nothing worse than being with a group of friends and having them all give each other gifts but not you. Be considerate of the people around you so that the people you consider "friends" but maybe not your "best friends" don't feel left out, because they might consider you more of a "best friend" than you consider them. If this makes any sense.

A good medium would be to get all your friends a little friendship bracelet each from a market or something small and cheap like that. Those kind of presents always go down well. If there's someone you want to get a more special present for, do as I mentioned previously and give it to them when it's just the two of you.

Be sure to listen to each others stories of summer, show some interest! It's always nice to share stories in groups and it just makes the whole back to school atmosphere so much nicer. If there have been any fall outs pre-summer, forget them. Life at school is too short to stay bitter and the only person who will suffer from negative feelings is yourself. 

And most of all, HAVE FUN. This is the beginning of the rest of your life and if I could go back to school and relive those years, I would. I made some mistakes then and have learnt from those which has helped me to give you these pieces of advice. You don't have to take them, they're just there for those who would like to read.

I hope you all have a great start of term!

Until next time

xxx