2016 Calendar

I realise that we are halfway through February already but I have had so much on, that I decided I needed to take a break from this blog for a little while. It's great to be back, and I am really sorry to all of you that I haven't posted any new content in four months but the reasons I needed the break were more of a priority to me than this blog is.

So anyway following the trend of last year I am going to share my 2016 Calendar with you again. I want to thank everybody who downloaded it and used it as it makes me so happy that I can make something that can benefit others. As well as brightening up their life and making them a little bit more organised.

The calendar is slightly bigger than last years, it uses more of the page allowing more room for writing. the calendar includes all 12 months of 2016 (yes I realise that two are almost useless now). So I hope that you enjoy.

You can download the calendar here.

How is your new year going? Tell me how I can improve on this calendar for next year? Is there anymore printables that you feel would be great for college organization?

Taking Notes in Lectures

Taking notes in a lecture can be stressful, the lecturer talks too fast, too slow or they just use slides all sorts of things can change the way that you are able to take notes. So I though that I would write a post on taking notes in a lecture the way that I found has worked in many different situations. See my other College Series posts for other forms of note taking.

First of all I like to get to class early, this gives me time to read over my previous notes and get my pen and paper sorted out. By doing this I am more focused and not in a rush at the start of the lecture, therefore putting pressure on myself to keep up.

At the top of the page I write the date and the name and number of the lecture. During the lecture I tend to write as much information down as possible. As long as it is somewhat readable I really don't care what it looks like.

I underline the headings in the colour corresponding to the subject that the lecture is on. I mainly take these notes in a bullet point format, this allows me to jot down as much information as possible without having to worry about sentences.

After the lecture when I get home I rewrite my notes into my notebook. I add in details from the slides (if there are some) and add in diagrams.

After I have rewritten all my notes I will go through and highlight things like references to the textbook, people's names, important dates and key words and concepts. This means that I am inadvertently studying my notes by rewriting them, and it helps me to remember what was covered.

How do you take notes in a lecture? Do you like to rewrite them? Do you have any good study tip that you find help?

Back to College Organization

I started back for the second semester two weeks ago, so I thought that I would share with you the little tips and tricks that I use to stay organized and keep up to date with all the work. Also considering that a lot of you will be heading back to start a new year at college.

First of all I want to say that I live at home, so any moving of apartments and things are something that I really can't help you with...

I have adapted some of my earlier college organization ideas as I am always learning new ways to stay organized. I use my Assignment and Readings Printable that I talked about and shared here. I have changed the way that I use this and now I work out with my weekly planner, which I shared here which classes I will be studying that day. So on this printable I work out what tasks I want to get finished and cross them off as I go. So in someways you could say that it is type of to-do-list and well yeah it is.

I also write this list in my planner, colour-coded in the colour that represents that class. This is one thing that I cannot stress enough. It helps with working out what assignments are due when as well as simple things like which notebook to take to class. In my planner I also write the to-do's for today with little check-boxes. Similar to that of a bullet journal.

To class I always take with me the notebooks that I need for that class. My planner, my pencil case as well as the textbooks I need in case I have some spare time to do some study.

In lectures I always write my notes. I have shared a post on note-taking but I am going to be updating that soon and making it more specific for lectures. So look out for that soon.

When do you go back to College? Are there any little tips that help you stay organized at the start of the semester? How do you stay on track with study and assignments?

Budget Planner - Transaction Record Printable

A while ago I shared the Monthly Budget Sheet of my Budget Planner and it has had a lot of downloads and has been extremely popular, so today I thought that I would share with you another printable of my Budget Planner, the transaction record sheet.

I love to keep track of my finances and these printables are fun and colorful, meaning that I really look forward to writing up my budget and they make me want to.
 
One day I might open an Etsy shop and sell my printables, but for now I am happy with just sharing them with you guys for free so enjoy this free transaction record sheet.

Here you can download the transaction record sheet.

Below is a photo of what it looks like:

How do you manage your budget? Do you plan a budget or not?

Weekly Planner Page

Hi all,

Its been a while since I shared my last printable as I have been busy studying for finals. So I thought that today I would share with you a great printable that I created to help with weekly tasks and is really useful for studying and planning in general.

So here is my Weekly Planner Page.

And here are some photos of it:

As you can see it is in the same style as my other printables, meaning that it works well with them and they create a great base for an organized life, or study, .or whatever you choose to do with them.

How do you like to plan out your week? Do you use a planner or write out your tasks separately?

5 Tips to Help with End of Semester Motivation

 Finding the motivation to do anything is a push for most college students, but add in the stress of the end of semester and impending exams it makes it so much harder to push through and get things done.

I have been struggling with finding motivation to finish my last few assignments. Something that is so unlike me, I am usually the one who starts things three weeks early. So I thought that I would share with you some helpful hints on how to find motivation and achieve whatever you set out to achieve.

1. Organize:

My best advice for you is to make a schedule, whether it be a study schedule or just a schedule for the day it really does help. I made a study schedule that maps out the exact times that I am going to study. I then printed this off and stuck it on my wall above my calendar with some washi tape.

2. Break it Down:

After I have made the general schedule I break every single task down and write what I need to get done, when I will start and when I will finish. I like to allow only 30 minutes for each task and I will come back to it if I don't get it finished. This means that I stay focused on that task and before I have time to drift off I can move on to the next thing.

3. Procrastinate Productively:

If I do start to lose focus I will find something productive to do, so instead of wasting time scrolling through Pinterest (let's be honest this still happens...) I will clean, tidy my desk, grab a drink or a healthy snack, go for a walk outside or make a schedule for the things that I need to do tomorrow. By doing something that you ultimately need to do when you can't focus means that you aren't wasting time.

4. Have Everything at your Fingertips:

I like to have everything that I am going to be working on right next to me. This saves time when I am switching between tasks as I am quickly able to find what I am doing and start quickly.

5. Cross it Off:

Once I have finished a task I like to cross it off and write the time that I finished it by next to it. This is extremely handy for me to realize how long it takes to do certain things and also promotes a sense of achievement as I can see at the end of the day how much I achieved.   

How do you find motivation? Are there any special ways that you like to plan out your study? Do you have anywhere special that you like to study?

 

Winter Gear Organization

It's no secret that I love organizing. I love having a place for everything and making my day so much simpler and faster. However I recently stumbled over a problem. Half of one of my drawers were being taken up with gloves, hats, scarves and everything else that comes with winter. So I set out to solve this little problem.

Now I feel that it should be said that I don't live in the coldest place. It snows maybe once a year, a few frosts but generally is not the freezing cold place that you think that it would be. Leave that for the central south island were the lowest recorded temperature is something like -26c (-14.8f) in 1903 In Ranfurly or -21.6c (-6.88f) in 1995 in Ophir, that's what I would call cold.

Moving on... I quickly thought of ideas for where I could store my winter gear, and after a few pinterest searches decided on a wire basket that I could put at the bottom of my wardrobe.

You think that this would be simple enough, but I live in New Zealand, I see things online then start to see them pop up in shops anywhere from 6 months later to never.
 

After searching high and low for a basket that was the right size and shape for the space and that also suited my budget (I ain't gonna pay $50 for a place to store things that I hardly use in), I almost gave up when after looking in Kmart I saw a few items that would seem like I might find one in there, but no... So I went home and looked up the Australian Kmart website because we always get the same products and lo and behold there it was a blue wire basket for $12.

Of course I had to wait about a week before it was in-store here but it was worth it. It was the perfect shape and when I got home I quickly filled it up and felt super happy.

How do you organize your winter gear? Does it get cold where you are from? Does it snow where you live (I like snow!)?

Monthly Budget Printable

Managing my budget is something that I feel I have to stay on top of. I am a College Student so working out how much I earn and spend a week is really really important. I talked about my Budget Organizer here.

This printable is a great place to work out your monthly budget and I thought that I would share it with you. However I did have to make some changes to make it more universal, as I have mine with things that only relate to me and others in New Zealand.

So feel free to download and use to your hearts content!!
Download Here

Desk Drawer Organizing

I like stationery, I like it so much that I tend to have more pens, highlighters, tape, and every other thing that you can think of. However this problem leads to me having a very packed desk drawer. I shared what my desk looks like here. 

So today I thought that I would share with you the organization of this drawer as it has changed (several times, because I just can't seem to get it to work). Do you have that problem where it just doesn't work for you, it annoys you so much that you tend to not open the drawer, let alone have no idea why you are keeping thousands of pens when you never use them.

I started by pulling out everything. Then I lined the drawer with some polka dotted wrapping paper and stuck it down with clear contact paper. Unfortunately the drawer doesn't pull out any further than this so it was rather hard to get it stuck down evenly.

 I then put everything back in working out what things needed to be nearer the front, so I played around with the layout a few times.

So I eventually landed on this, it means that my mouse and hard-drive (the things that I use the most) are at the front and things like my calculator that I hardly use are further at the back. My pens were already in a plastic organizer (yes I do have crayons...). Also leaving place for my label-maker to fit nicely in the middle.

My desk only has the one small drawer. I was looking for a desk that had a drawer along the whole front, but I couldn't seem to find one, let alone on my budget. But somehow I manage to fit everything in this drawer, it is not as accessible as I would like but now it is super pretty with polka dots!

Are you a stationery junkie like me? How do you organize it all?

School Computer File Organization

Staying on track of assignments, making sure they are handed in on time and nothing is left out is really really important. So I am focusing today's College Series post on Computer File Organization.

I find organizing my computer files really fun (does this make me really weird?) it is so easy to save things in their proper place and then when you come to needing them again you can find them really easily. Now I have a laptop running Windows 8.1 so this will mainly apply to those of you with similar laptops or computers, but you can use my advice from this post and use a similar system with other operating systems.

It is getting to the middle of the semester here, which means a lot of assignments due before we break up for Easter (it has gone really fast...), so having designated folders for classes and assignments is just a little thing that I find saves so much time.

 First of all I have a Uni folder on my desktop, because my semesters run March to June, and July to October I arrange the folders inside this by year, you could label them as 14/15, depending on where you live.

 Then inside these folders I label two folders "Semester 1" and "Semester 2", this way I can easily locate the things that are relevant to what I am doing at the moment.

Inside these semester folders I have a folder for each class, I only take four classes at a time so I just label these by the course code.

Finally inside the class folders I have sub-folders for each assignment and lecture slides as well as the other things that may be relevant to that course that I feel I should keep.

How do you organize your school computer files? Are there any organizing ways that help your stay super organized all semester?

Assignments and Readings Printable

I love to stay on top of all of my college work, it makes me feel relaxed and free to enjoy my day. Most of the time this doesn't happen, as much as I plan and make sure I get everything done on time I always feel like once I have finished one thing there is a thousand more things to do.

So I made another printable.... And I am going to share it here with you!! (yippee!) 

 The printable is made to be printed on both sides of the paper, so on one side you will have the assignments for the week, or classes however you want to categorize them (the photos have the dates and my classes printed, but on the PDF they are blank).

So on the back will be the readings, which again are left blank, so you can write them by class or date or however.

These really help me in staying organized and on time with assignments and readings and I hope they will be a big help to you too!

You are welcome to download them here

Budget Organizer

 I love organizing. I love the way that it makes you feel lighter and just generally better after you have tackled a project. I hate it when you organize something then after a while it looks like this....

 I know, it is really really bad. But wait it gets worse.... This is our bill paying cupboard. These are our bills. There is no organization system. If you want to find something in a hurry you are dead out of luck because it is all in different books, in envelopes thrown into the cupboard and tied together with a rubber-band (don't even get me started on the rubber-band).

So I decided to do something about this shambles I created a Budget and Bills Organizer. These handy sheets were created by me to work purposefully for us. So I thought that I would share with you the system that is soon going to be in place (I just need to buy a binder and dividers). I printed six months of these pages so we will try them out and see what works and what doesn't.

This is the monthly budget page, where everything is budgeted for and then the actual amounts are put in. This allows us to keep track of both the incoming and outgoing money for each month. On the back of this page is a notes page, useful for working out balances and other miscellaneous notes.

The next page is a transactions sheet, this page allows us to track all of the money we have spent and what it was spent on. There are two of these for each month.

Other pages that are in our new Budget Binder are a checkbook register because the one in the checkbook is always so small, a monthly bills page to keep track of when bills are due, a calendar and a cover-page. I will let you know how this system works out for us. I will put some dividers at the back and label them as either a space to store old bills or to divide the months, I am not quite sure yet.

How do you organize your bills and budget? Are there any special ways that you feel are really helpful in staying organized when it comes to you budget? 

Planner Organization

I have an addiction to planners, particularly cute and functional ones. I use mine so often that I cannot see how someone can function properly without one. In this post I will share with you how I use my planner as well as my color-coding scheme that I keep mentioning.

This is the fifth post in my College Series.

I got my planner as a birthday present last year from here. I have been using the same one for a couple of years now and I absolutely love it. So here is a sneak peak of the inside (which is just as cute as the outside).

 As you can see I have put my color-coding to work. This semester I have decided to try out Organized Charm's Daily Prioritized Study List, so far it is working out all right, but it does leave me with very little space to write other things in definitely when College assignments start to roll in together.

I also added to her system to make a full-blown color-coding system for my planner. This includes colors for work/appointments, social, general College stuff, Events and Holidays and a Other category. I also use this same system on my wall calendar which I shared the printable for here.

 I like to write all the important dates in my planner first, this means that I always know what is coming up and combined with my color-coding it makes it easy to see what I have to get done that week as well.

 I love the illustrations in this planner as well as the extra pages at the back to record restaurants, movies, books, expenses and contacts makes for a well-rounded and functional planner. I also love how it comes with a little notebook, perfect for writing lists (my favorite thing to do ever..)

What planner do you use? How do you organize it? Do you wish you could find one perfect for College students too?

Note-Taking Tips

Taking notes is an essential part of college, without them you would fall very, very far behind and they are the easiest thing to help you remember what you have learned. This is the fourth post in my College Blog Series.

I like to hand-write my notes on a piece of refill paper. This way I can write down everything that the lecturer says and fill in the stuff from the slides when I re-write it in my notebooks. When I say write down everything that they say I mean everything. Why? because that way you understand the context of what they are talking about and not just have notes that have no meaning to you in the future.

 I don't care about how it looks because it is more important to get all of the information down. I don't use anything other than a black pen and a pink pen for underlining the titles (sometimes the lecturer goes so fast there isn't anytime to underline in a different color so I just underline it quickly in black to remind myself that it is a heading.

You have to remember that each class is different some lecturers don't use slides, some read off them so you have to adapt your notes to fit in with their style.

When I get home I re-write my notes into one of my notebooks. I know a lot of people don't see the point in this but I am a visual learner so re-write helps the information to sink in for me. 

I like to highlight the examples, people, and dates just like when I am note-taking from a text-book. In the lecture I scribble away the whole time about what the lecturer is saying, this helps to keep me focused on what we are actually learning. I also like to paraphrase what the lecturer is saying, this way I actually understand what it means and don't end up with a bunch of  long technical words. However sometimes these words can mean something, so always write it down if it does.

I have already shared with you the color-coding system I use for my notes. This is a great way to help you find specific examples and key words. Also for studying it makes it easier to remember the points as you can remember back to when you wrote it (is this just me?).

I usually use two pages of my notebook for an hour lecture, if I do anymore I find that it becomes too repetitive and hard to follow, so four pages for two hours and so on. I like to under-lined the title of the lecture, the sub-titles and the date in the color that corresponds to that class.

How do you take notes? Is there a studying technique that helps you a lot?

College Readings

Hi, this is the third post for my College Blog Series.
In this post I will share the ways that I keep up with my class readings, and how I take notes from them. As well as color-coding highlighters and organization of reading due dates.

First of all I write down all of the readings that I have to do, in the corresponding color for each class. I write down the day that the reading needs to be done by, usually the next time that I have that class. Therefore I know which ones need to be done first (less chance to fall behind this way). Once I have done the reading I cross it off.

I have piles on my desk of the readings that I have to do with a post-it on the top of the date that it needs to be done by. This however only works when you have printed out readings. So when I have readings from a textbook I will use a post-it to flag the page and write on the post-it the date it needs to be read by.

I also like to take notes and highlight the readings at the time. Therefore for exams or reading quizzes I have more of a knowledge of what I have just read, instead of just skimming through it. Note-taking from a reading/textbook also means that you remember what you have read.

 To take notes from your readings don't copy word-for-word but paraphrase or even write in your own words the important points. This also helps you understand what you are actually learning. I will write a post on how to take notes from a textbook so look out for that.

My highlighters are also color-coded (big shocker!). I used my label maker to label what the color corresponds to. This helps me remember what colors mean what and also helps me when looking back through my notes for a specific example, date or person. I use the blue highlighter to mark a page reference on my lecture notes.

How do you stay on top of your readings? Are there any specific ways in which you like to note-take from your readings?

Calendar Printable

Hi Everyone!

Last week I shared my tips on Things To Do Before You Start Back at College and in this post I featured a calendar that I had made. So today I am going to share with you this calendar as a free printable!!

The printable calendar features 12 A4 sized months, perfectly sized to write the things that you have on this month. Of course mine is color-coded (which I will share later in my College Series).

It is available to Download Here, so enjoy! 

What to Have In Your Bag at College

Hi all,

this is the second post in my College Blog Series. Today I am going to share with you what I have in my bag. These things are essential for everyday and for College.

 This is my bag, I got it for Christmas from my parents. It holds my 15" laptop, so it is absolutely perfect for College. The bag itself is from Forever New, and is unfortunately no longer available. No wonder why it is super cute. But they have similar here.

 It even has polka dot lining (jumps up and down in place). So in case you didn't notice anything with polka dots is amazing in my opinion (hello my blog is even called polka dots and rainy days...).

Inside my bag I carry the essentials as well as other College related items. I don't take my laptop with me everyday but it has its own velvet lined compartment. So starting from the top right corner and working clockwise I have:

Notebook:

 I have one of these for each of my classes (four in total), so in a day I only take the ones that I have that day, unless I am going to the library to study. This notebook is from Typo. It has a great space for holding A4 sized papers such as handouts and the syllabus. There are 120 lined pages, the perfect amount for note-taking.

Planner:  

I have already share a little bit about this planner, but I absolutely love the Kikki. K cute diary. It is just the perfect size for keeping track of assignments and social events as well as being able to carry it around in your bag.

Pen Case: 

 A pen case is a handy way of making sure that all your highlighters, pens and pencils stay in one place (not the bottom of your bag). I made this pen case after stumbling across the simple tutorial here.

Sunglasses: 

It is currently summer-time here so sunglasses are a must. But for most of the year I keep them in my bag just for the odd day that it is sunny, or for when I am traveling home in the evening into the sun.

Drink Bottle:

 A necessity for long hot days at College. Keeps you hydrate and more focused in class, as well as being super good for your complexion.

Muesli Bar:

 I always keep a muesli bar in my bag, just in case I get hungry in class (happens pretty often). Sometimes depending on how many classes I also pack lunch (normally just a sandwich) therefore you can concentrate on the lecture and not your growling stomach.

Wallet:

 It is always a good idea to keep your wallet with you at College, for things like your license, your I.D. and spare change for a coffee or a bus fare home. Similar bought here.

Umbrella:

I always keep a small umbrella in my bag. It is a long walk between some of my classes and it isn't under-cover so I am always prepared (I just don't like sitting in wet clothes).

Make-up Bag:

I keep a small bag of make-up necessities with me at all times, so things like lip balm, lipstick, concealer, foundation, sunscreen, nail file and a mirror all live in this cute little make-up bag.

What do you keep in your bag for College? Is there anything that you like to always have with you?

Things To Do Before You Start Back at College

I start back at college on Monday. It is now nearing the end of our summer and I am about to take the leap into my second year. I am both excited and nervous. Although mainly excited because I can't wait to jump back in and work my way to the rest of my life.

 I always am over-thinking the things I need to do before I start anything and college is no exception. I decided I would create this post as a lead in to my new College Series. A series of posts of things that I found to work for me in terms of studying, note-taking, planning and just managing college life. So the first in this series is this post. Things To Do Before You Start Back at College.

First of all you want to make sure you have selected your classes, and made sure that they all fit in  your schedule. If there are clashes you need to follow your school's system for changing classes or by going to one, one week and the other the next.

Before your first day there are a few things that you should buy so that you have them for the first day. Such as pens. Pretty obvious I know, but there are always people asking for a pen on the first day when the professor starts to talk about the course. 

Another thing that you should buy before the first day is Post-it Notes. These are really handy when it comes to marking pages. I use the page markers to mark the set readings (I will get to this in a later post in this series). I keep mine on my desk in a little glass bowl.

Another thing that is important to buy before you start is some notebooks. I like to use one notebook for each class, therefore it keeps all the notes together and makes it easier for studying and referencing later.

The next thing I suggest buying is a planner, this one is from Kikki. K and is perfect for what I want it for however you should look for one that suits your needs.

The other thing that I suggest buying is a calendar, this one is one that I made and I hang it right in front of my desk so that I look at it and know what is happening that day, this week and this month. Therefore I stay on top of the things that I need to do. It is also color-coded which I will post about later on in this series.

What are things that you like to get out of the way before you start back at College? Is there anything that you would like me to cover in this series?