List of Lists | Daily Edition

Way back in 2013 I wrote a post called My List of Lists and even now it's one of the most popular posts on Julz Obsessions. Guess it just shows how many list lovers like myself are searching the web for list-spiration (?) 

Back then, I realised lists weren't just scraps of paper for to dos but could:

• be an alternative to journalling
• help me set goals
• let me reflect
• keep me motivated
• help prioritise what's important
• make me feel in control
• organise my life when I have a lot on
• mark myself at a certain point in time
• reduce stress

Treasures from the Old English Company

Happy National Stationary Week everyone! I saw that this was a thing today on my instagram and knew there was no better time to share my new bits and bobs from the Old English Company* with you all.

If you've followed me for a while, or even if you've just landed on this page and have had a first glimpse, you'll know that I have a real penchant for beautiful notebooks and anything pink. You can imagine my delight when I found the Old English Company's website: a sanctuary of dreamy homeware, stunny planners and subtle colours. Swoon. 

Old English Company hand letter all their own products with cute quirky messages. I for one am obsessed with the selection of unique fonts which make each one of their products extremely instagrammable. Their website is really easy to navigate (or ahem, spend hours on) and there's even a cute little feature which pops up to tell you who is buying what as you browse. Maybe it is just because I'm nosy but I love this. I guess it's like when you're in a shop and see someone pick something up to buy and suddenly you need it too. 

After a long time of umming and arring I finally narrowed my selection down to:

The Blush and Gold A5 Planner

Don't Worry Bee Happy Mug

You've Got This Keyring

Love Heart Keyring

I love the gold theme of what I got. I'm going to be straight with you - I did get the 'Love' keyring purely in honour of Louise from St. Louis. The 'You've Got This' keyring is for a little reassurance whenever I need it. I had my last EVER university deadline on Tuesday and although I am so happy to be finished and have lots to keep me going for the next couple of months, I think it might be easy to slip into panic mode about the big wide world or the rest of my life. So, this will serve as a friendly reminder to take my worry hat off. I don't even need to explain why I love the mug - between the copious amount of tea I drink and the sheer cuteness of it, I'm sure you can guess. The planner is simple and gorgeous: a very pale pink cardboard cover with 'Old English Company Made in England' embossed in gold on the back and each page inside printed with bullet points for 'Today's Tasks', space for 'Notes', and a header to mark in the date. Nothing motivates me like being able to tick a task off my to do list.

I am so glad I discovered Old English Company - it is such a gem and the perfect place to buy unique gifts and treat yourself.

*These lovely products were sent to me for consideration for review, but all opinions are my own.

Wilko Have Done it Again!

You may remember in August last year I wrote this post raving about Wilkinson's gorgeous range of affordable stationary. Well you'll never guess what? They've gone and done it again and this time the range is, if possible, even cuter.

Project Book: £2.75 | Exercise Book: £1 | Colouring Book: £1| Desk Planner: £2

I'm an absolute stationary fiend and have been using my Wilko organiser religiously since the beginning of the year to keep track of my schedule and to do lists. There's nothing I like better than writing a list and getting organised because it makes me feel in control during the chaos that is a university semester. When I write things down, not only do I remember them, but I am so much more likely to actually get them done.

As summer approached, one of the things I was looking forward to was Wilkinson's new stationary collection (is that sad?). This new range, called 'Enterprising Britain' has a beautiful colour scheme of pink and mint; each page is fully lined and coloured; and there is an uplifting theme of positivity and affirmation. But the best part? Nothing in the range costs more than £4! I've said it before and I've said it again, I think the quality and design of Wilkinson stationary easily rivals more expensive brands. It took a lot of willpower not to buy the entire collection.

Have you bought any stationary from Wilko?

Current Makeup Setup

Hey Everyone!
With the changing seasons comes a slight change up of my makeup setup. I've said it before but I love this acrylic makeup stand as I can see where everything is without raking through a bag for what I want and it also looks interesting (and hopefully not too cluttered). 
The most important new addition to my everyday makeup is MAC Mineralize Satin Finish foundation which I have been wearing religiously and really liking (full review to come!). You may also notice the reappearance of Kate Moss Lipstick in Shade 107 for A/W- its so weird- it feels like only a few days ago I said I was putting this away for summer. I've also been wearing my Maybelline Baby Lips to school as its so quick to apply, has a sight colour and smells amazing. You might notice that the Maybelline BB Cream is still hovering- I don't know what to do with it as I'm never going to use it (review here).
I also had a major makeup clear out a few weeks- it was crazy how much makeup I had that was wayy too old, way finished or I would never wear. 

Included in the toss pile were a few orange powders, mascaras which had gone off, questionable shades of eyeshadows (lime green anyone?) and kiddy/ play makeup. I think its important not to hold onto things you aren't going to use because someone else might be able to get some use out of them.

How do you store your makeup?

Get Organised with a Life Binder!

Hey Everyone!

I've always been interested in the concept of 'Life Binders' since hearing the term in a school organisation youtube video last year. It seemed to me like a very American, 'mumsy' type thing. A few weeks ago though I stumbled across organisation blogs and blogs offering free printable blog planners. I was immediately drawn in as I desperately needed some way of managing my time and collating the numerous lists I have around my room of,  for example, blog posts to write.

First off, for the month of August, I used this free planner and found it so, so useful. I actually wrote and scheduleded the months posts weeks in advance. However, the layout of the planner wasn't quite exactly what I needed so a last week I set about creating my own Blog Organiser and thought while I was at it I may as well incorporate other aspects of my life which needed a bit of order.

My Life Binder contains the categories: "Blog", "Finance" and "Bucket Lists" and I want to add more as ideas come to me. I designed them on Microsoft Word (you can tell I'm a pro haha!) and printed the pages on photo paper. Although the border didn't print off perfectly (there wasn't supposed to be any white edges), I love how they turned out, especially as I've never done anything like it before. I made the dividers out of purple card and I was a bit afraid they ruined it (yet another Julzy DIY Fail), but for convenience purposes they work well.

It was so fun filling out each page and its great having all my lists in one place. I've also been keeping track of my finances which I think is very useful (and eyeopening) in seeing whats coming in and going out, especially now I'm working. 

I'd love to see how you all organise your ideas! Let me know if you try/ already have something similar.

My List of Lists!

Hey Everyone!
You may remember in my 'The Summer Bucket List- Review' post I mentioned that list making is my new obsession. Primarily, lists are great for keeping track of what you need to do and your goals. I have also found that they're a great alternative to journal writing to look back on and think "Oh! Remember I used to spend my time doing that!".
One day during the summer I took it upon myself to fill a whole notebook with different lists. It was actually really enjoyable! I got most of my ideas online but took bits and pieces from different places so I thought I'd share the ones I did to maybe inspire you!

Lists to make...

• Bucket list
• Achievements
• Things to do on a rainy day
• Things I love
• Things I'm good at
• My dreams
• My favourite songs
• My favourite TV shows
• My favourite makeup items
• Things I find funny
• My dream home would have...
• Causes I believe in
• Why I love spring / summer / autumn / winter
• Qualities I admire
• Things to buy
• My favourite places
• My hobbies
• Things I should do more
• What's in my bag
• My favourite animals
• My good traits
• My bad traits
• Words / phrases I use frequently
• I may be young, but I know...
• Things to do if I won the lottery
• Foods I like
• Ways to save money

Filling up the lists was, in general, a lot easier than I thought and they're great to have to hand. I found "Things I find funny" difficult to do as it wasn't very specific and also, the "My Favourite Animal" one only consisted of "Giraffes". Other than those though, I filled most pages! And I was glad to use up a notebook that would have otherwise been doing nothing.

Do you have any ideas for other lists I could make? Will you be giving any of these a go?

PS- I have said the word list so much while writing this that the word has lost all meaning!

Current Makeup Set Up

Hey Everyone!

With the changing season, I thought it was a good time to do a little switch up and tidy of my makeup stand. I love having everything out where I can see it, yet still organised. I also find that if I switch products up often, I use them more.

I recently bought the Collection Illuminating Touch Concealer and was given the MAC Satin Finish Foundation. I brought out my Benefit "that gal" primer mini as my foundation was getting a bit patchy. For everyday eyeshadow I'm using this Clinique quad, and I've stored away the lipglosses I brought out a few weeks ago- they're just not for me! I've also got out a lot of mascaras (I think almost all I have) to get the most out of them before they dry up.

How are you switching up your makeup for summer?

Makeup Declutter for Spring

Hey Everyone!

I'm the first to admit that I'm a bit of a perfectionist. Everything in my room has a home, and its always pretty tidy. However, when I'm completely bombarded with studying, tidying moves its way down my list of priorities and my shelves become a bit unruly. Take my makeup shelf for example. It still had Christmas lights (which albeit pass as normal fairy lights), it had all my shower stuff piled on it for convenience, and the actual stand had a heap of makeup that I don't actually use all that often. All this accumulated to one big problem- clutter.

Before:

I finally thought enough was enough a few nights ago and decided to tackle the shelf. It actually took less than half an hour and that included going through my makeup, giving it a bit of a clean, and deciding what was to stay out. 

After:

I think that looks pretty darn fabulous, even if I do say so myself. Its minimalist but still cute and I have my everyday products at hand without being overwhelmed with choice. The Soap & Glory products found their way back to their case which makes the shelf look less crowded and the Christmas lights are in the drawer ready to be taken out some other time. 

As well as my acrylic make up stand, do you notice a glass brush holder to the right? That's an old candle jar! I think its so perfect for brushes. While I was in the mood for whacking my stuff into shape, I also completed the laborious task of washing all of my makeup brushes: and they came up a treat.

This was such a simple, quick thing to do, but it made my room seem a lot fresher and of course: if your environment is organised you will be too.

Have you done a little bit of spring cleaning lately?

Out With The Old...

I'm posting everyday at 6.00pm this week: let me know in the comments if you would like me to post at set times like this more often :)

Hey Everyone!

With spring just around the corner (kind of), its time for reorganisation and clear outs. Having tackled my wardrobe, I thought it would be fun to go through all my makeup: cleaning, rotating and chucking! I shopped my stash and have rediscovered products that have been hiding at the bottom of my makeup bag, gave everything a good clean and parted with the products that I don't like and will never use or are finished. I am quite a hoarder with makeup, adopting the 'I'll use it one day' mentality but since my collection is growing I want to ensure I like and use everything I have. I thought that today I would show you what I let go and the reason I did so! 

 Firstly, Stila powder and tinted moisturiser. You may remember the crazy time a few months ago when every blogger and their mum was running out to Poundland because for a short time they stocked Stila. I later found out on a channel 4 documentary that Stila had no knowledge of Poundland selling their cosmetics and the products were at least 8 years old. Eek. They lay in my drawer for ages and I finally said to myself I was never going to use them because of the scandal and they weren't the right colour anyway.

Along the same lines is the Chit Chat Juicy Lipstick which I actually quite liked but I'm chucking as I'm now pretty cautious of Poundland makeup altogether.

The Bourjois Flower Perfection Foundation, Tea Tree Stick, Rimmel Stick Concealer, Sweet Jelly Lipgloss and Clinique Face Wash are all either so old they must be growing new life or are just finished.

I was actually preparing for another round of L'Oreal Telescopic in my current makeup but it smelled really funny so I thought it was time to say bye.

Finally, the MUA primer and MUA stick concealer were only used once or twice but in my opinion did nothing for me and there is no point hanging onto them if I'm never going to use them.

So there we have it! I think its really important not to hoard makeup for months and months (or maybe even years eek!) as it does have a shelf life (although I myself am often guilty of using a product longer than I should). Not only does it free up room in your makeup bag, but decreases the guilt that comes with that new purchase!

I Love Stationery!

I'm posting everyday at 6.00pm this week: let me know in the comments if you would like me to post at set times like this more often :)

Hey Everyone!

In keeping with expanding my blog themes, I thought I'd tell you about another obsession I have: stationery! During the #bbloggers twitter chat on Sunday I was very inspired by @_noire by her love for notebooks. She said how she always has a notebook to hand to scribble down ideas and I think this is lovely and I would quite like to try something similar. The pretty notebooks above are currently written in very little (anyone else do that- start one and never finish it?). My plan is to use the spotty one for lists, which I began doing in summer but never continued it and the bird cage one as a journal. The other two I'm not quite sure about yet, any ideas?

I also love stationery for the fact that it can be just as cute and pretty as makeup and decor. Take the rainbow pens in the first picture for example- these look amazing on display and they're amazing for mind maps. Also, how cute is this mini pink essentials kit? 

I realise this is an extremely random post, but I sometimes think its important to appreciate the small things in life, and wanted to share with you one of those!

What sort of creative, inspiring, wonderful things do you write down?

Cute Decor Ideas

Hey Everyone!

How are you? I am finished my exams (woohoo!) which means some time to myself! I'm currently sitting watching Friends all cosy with the snow outside. Today I done my History exam, then came home (rather drenched!) watched YouTube videos and caught up on Pretty Little Liars, which had me a nervous wreck to be honest- I can't handle the dramatic music haha! Do you watch it?

Looking back on old posts yesterday reminded me that I used to do decor themed posts and since I still really enjoy DIY and recycled decor, I thought I'd show you some of my ideas! 

 I think this is an amazing storage solution (if I do say so myself.) The medium and small jars are washed out candles and the larger one had sweets in it. I really like clear storage as you can grab what you're looking for really quickly. What's even better, I didn't have to spent a fortune- applause all around.

 This is another recycled container- it was the packaging of scented drawer pouches and I thought it was wayy too pretty to throw out. And anyone who knows me will know I am an absolute sucker for anything floral! 

I also think its really nice to just display some of your favourite products. Not only to they look pretty, but save me delving into drawers when I want to use them. And fairy lights are always a cute touch.

Finally, I put these miniature decorative plates on my wall (one attached with a cork pin, the other with blue tac because I'm just so resourceful!). They used to be my mum's and she was going to sell them at a car bootsale and I grabbed them! They're so pretty and vintage I thought they made lovely touches to my wall.

So that's everything! I hope you have gained a little inspiration from my ideas :)

Would you like to see more of this kind of post?

New Makeup Storage

Hey Everyone!

For ages, my makeup lay hidden in a bag: out of sight, out of use. For Christmas though, I received this amazing acrylic makeup organiser which I am 100% in love with. It takes pride of place on my shelf, and its is so easy and convenient to find what I'm looking for. There is nothing I love more than different size compartments in an organiser. I think its really visually attractive too and is great decor. What I also love is that as I buy new products/ shop my stash I can alternate products so they get a fair usage. Perhaps I'll even post every time I switch up my current products.

The storage is available on ebay.

Organisation | Nail Polish Storage

Hey Everyone!

Being the organisational freak that I am, I am constantly trying to find effective storage solutions for my ever growing collection ofstuff. (The term stuff covering make up, perfume, books, clothes, pretty much everything!). A couple of weeks ago, I had the 'genius' idea of making my own shelves out of an old shoe box and cardboard. Lets just say it didn't quite work out- paper shelves can't support multiple nail polish bottles. I ended up with bottles slipping off hitting my feet and me jumping around- not good. Anyway, it was at that point (well after nursing a few almost broken toes) that I realised my failed DIY shelves could make great dividers and I could turn the box on its back to make this cool nail polish organisation.

I have placed most of the bottles upside down so I can easily see which colour is which. I have arranged the bottles in order of brand on the left and right, then the small bottom compartment is random bottles and the small top compartment is bits and bobs like nail files, scissors and mini nail polish sets.

I don't think this will be my permanent storage but I think its a neat and compact way to store my polishes until I find a better option. I would really like a wall rack but I can't seem to find any affordable ones. 

How do you store your nail polishes? Would you like to see more organisation posts?