10 Steps of Organisation...

We all want to be more organised in life. It is sometimes the simplest things that make us feel ten times better, whether that's new stationary or writing a to-do list. I am a fan of the latter, making endless lists containing even the tiniest tasks that weigh a ton on my shoulders. Organisation makes life so much easier, but for some can be daunting and time-consuming. Truth is, it isn't. If it is, you are doing it wrong. Organising your life, your social life and work life, makes your week a whole lot better, finding you will have more time to have fun and relax which I'm sure we all need. Oh life, why are you so tough?! 

Most people say I'm a pretty organised person so I'm here to share with you the tricks of the trade that work well for me. It may not work well for you but hey, it's worth a try...

1. Make to-do lists

I make many. I put them on my whiteboard which I bought for a mere £2 from Asda. I draw bullet points as hearts and fill them in once I've completed the task and trust me, the colouring in of that little heart is an amazing feeling. 

2. Buy storage

Now storage comes in many shapes and forms and for pretty much everything. I even have a storage tray for my lipsticks as girls, we all know that lipsticks grow legs and escape from our bags. Storage allows things to not go missing, meaning you can save a lot of valuable time instead of frantically rushing to find things. It also allows you to categorise your belongings, from uni work to your toiletries. You will find you will become a much tidier and less stressed person.

3. Setting your clocks/watch 5 minutes early

Time is valuable so do everything 5 minutes before you were meant to. This is a hard one as you have to tell yourself that your watch is on time, but if you are an organisation pro you will just assume that your watch is correct. Imagine never being late for things, seems ideal doesn't it?

4. Begin a project as soon as you can

Even just laying out the foundations or an idea will gain your project some momentum. Obviously some projects can't start too soon, but start it as soon as you can. This will mean that you don't panic about what your doing and you will have more confidence in what you are doing, which will ultimately reflect in the outcome. 

5. End your mailing list woes

We all get emails from companies and shops that we no longer are loyal to. Simply scroll to the bottom of the email and click on the button that tells you to unsubscribe. Waking up to no annoying emails is a wonderful thing.

6. Make plans

Your social life tends to take the backseat in your list of the priorities so scheduling that time to go out and see your friends makes you become more organised to get things done as you'll have something to look forward to. Some would say this takes the fun out of it, but it only does if you make it. I always find this makes my week a lot more exciting. 

7. Get a family planner

I live in a house of 4 girls. We are not technically a family but sometimes it feels as if we are. So what else to make our family more like a real family than getting a family planner to document our whereabouts over the month. We were so excited about getting this that we began to question ourselves. Not only does this assist point number 6, it makes our life easier by knowing where each other is rather than sending out multiple texts if they haven't been home in a few days.

8. Bulk buy/Use the deals

Not that this is an excuse to shop more (it kind of is), buy the things you need whilst they are on offer. If your deodorant is reduced then stock up; you will never have to go through that annoying process of going deodorant-free whilst popping to your nearest supermarket/drugstore to grab one. It does save money in the long-term.

9. Take a trip to Paperchase

Sometimes the fancy stationary is the answer to making us more organised. I mean.. it's just so pretty...

10. Use folders

I use folders for pretty much every bit of paper I own. For my uni work, I have a different colour folder for each unit and for important documents, I have another. If I ever lose something, I look here first and 99% of the time it will be in one of these folders. As you can imagine, this saves time and stress as having to find the information elsewhere is a pain. Don't you ever just wish you could receive an email back-up for every bit of paperwork you get?!

I hope this helps you in some way.

I am most definitely open to more organisational tips... 

Vegan & Gluten-Free Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Since I am now a very complicated eater, meaning I cannot eat a lot of the everyday foods like dairy, eggs, or gluten, I have become a bit more experimental in cooking and baking. Creating the luxuries like cakes and biscuits using wholefood ingredients has had some pretty surprising results. After all, I will not let these intolerances stop me from having an indulgent pudding/snack every now and then. Behold the vegan and gluten-free peanut butter and chocolate chip cookie bars! These wonderful, cakey delights are made with chickpeas- not your average pudding ingredient some would say. The outcome of these cookie bars has a gooey texture that makes you wonder whether you are actually eating chickpeas as a sweet snack. Yes, it is true. Chickpeas have provided something quite revolutionary in the healthy cooking world. 

I found this recipe on Pinterest (my favourite website ever) but I have adapted it to make it a little better (sorry original recipe). It uses only a few ingredients and are so easy to make that I read over the recipe twice before I put it in the oven just to make sure that I did everything. It only took 5 minutes! All you need is:

1x can of 400g chickpeas

1/2 cup of peanut butter

3/4 cup of maple syrup

tsp of baking powder

tsp of vanilla essence

2oz of gluten-free flour

1/2 cup of dark chocolate buttons

(sunflower margarine for greasing)

And all you need to do is:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180 celsius

2. Blend everything together (minus the chocolate buttons) with a hand blender (or food processor) until it is lovely and smooth

3. Stir in the buttons to give it some chocolate lovin'

4. Put it in a fairly deep baking tray and sprinkle some more chocolate buttons on top so it looks delightful when it comes out of the oven

5. Bake for 12-15 minutes

6. When the knife comes out clean, it is ready! Allow it to cool for 30 minutes before cutting it into squares

What I love about this recipe (besides the taste), is that it is so simple and does not use ingredients that are expensive, which is common in healthy, vegan recipes. Being a student, my bank account would not allow it but 80p for a can of chickpeas is more like it! 

These cookie bars are perfect for a snack or warm with some ice cream (my favourite is Booja Booja). Now that my first batch has run out, I think it's time to make some more mmm... 

How To: Easy Up-Do...

I'm currently going through a bit of an experimental stage with my hair since it has got to the length where I feel I can do most hairstyles with it. After many hours (sadly) on Pinterest, I have found various incredible up-dos that seem near-on impossible. I did however, find one which seemed pretty achievable. This hairstyle is perfect for long to mid-length hair, and can be adapted easily for straight or curly hair- in fact curly hair will be perfect for this up-do (think of all the time you can save on curling it!). My hair is naturally quite straight so I needed to wash it the night before so it wasn't too silky to fall out the grips. You need this to be as secure as possible so it lasts all day/night. Here's the easiest guide for this hairstyle that I can scrape together:

You will need:

- Lots of kirby grips

- One hairband

- Hairspray

- Curling tongs/straighteners

- Dry Shampoo

1. Brush through your hair. Knots will only make you regret not doing this (think, a birds nest). I spray Batiste Dark and Deep Brown dry shampoo to my roots to get some volume so my hair is full of secrets (please appreciate the Mean Girls quote…).

2. Separate your hair into two and clip the top half so you can forget about it for the moment. This doesn't have to be neat because you'll be covering the wonky parting with your luscious curls. Mmm.

3. Secure the bottom half with a bobble in a low ponytail so it is tight to your head. The more securely this is fastened, the less time you'll be worrying about your hair falling out. Not literally- just the style. 

4. Now, backcomb the ponytail. If you think you are finished, you probably aren't. Backcomb until you feel your arms are falling off or until your hair resembles that of blonde/brown cotton wool. You will thank yourselves later.

5. This is where the hairstyle starts to take shape. Twist the ponytail upwards and curl it into a large bun- using your fingers to hold it into place. Then, clip this with kirby grips onto your head, making sure its secure. Spray it with hairspray so you don't get any stubborn fly-away hairs. 

6. Release the top half of your hair and use curling tongs to give it some lovely curls. The size of these curls is up to you. I tend to do them quite small, then brush through them to get a nice wave. To get even more volume once you're done curling, backcomb the roots as it's your last chance to all night! Your hair at this stage will look very strange like a doll, but don't worry, the next bit will make it all come into place…

7. Using kirby grips, bring your curls over the backcombed bun and pin into place underneath, on top and on the sides. Don't worry about making this look perfect, it's meant to look quite messy and boho. To complete, spray hairspray all over so your head feels invincible.

The finished result! 

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