UCAS (in my Filofax)

Greetings humans!

Sorry for not posting in a while; I've been swamped with work and have been putting the final touches to my UCAS application. Today I want to share with you how I've organised the latter.

It's got its own little sub-section, which I've tabbed with a Martha Stewart x Avery tab and a cute owl sticker from Paperchase. On the front page I just placed some washi tape and wrote over it with permanent marker.

When it's opened up, the first page is a (very messy, so I won't show you) to-do list page, and then my login and a timeline. Of course, I've hidden the details, but I've written my username, Personal ID (it's amazing how quickly one can learn that off by heart when Track's being checked every other second) and the answers to my security questions, since I always forget them. Then, I have the school's timeline for our applications (I haven't applied to Oxbridge/for medicine or veterinary science, but our school ask for them to be in super early because although it's not meant to, the chances are it'll give you an advantage).

On the back of that page I'm keeping a log of my application, so the date it was processed, the date I received my welcome pack (which is hardly a pack, more a piece of paper telling you where you've applied and for which course), and a record of any offers I've received (I got my first one yesterday lunchtime - yay!). Not only does this put my mind at ease, but I can also then compare the offer(s) and consider where I wish to put as my firm/insurance choice nearer the time.

I also have this checklist for what to include in the personal statement. Obviously some of these are paraphrased (eg. "Why I'm so bloody brilliant") but I found it really handy to have a structure to follow when writing it. Of course, there is no one set formula for a good personal statement; these are just tips I have picked up from various open days/humans who have done this before/school.

So there you have it, the UCAS section of my Filofax. I can't believe it's ten and a half months until I should be leaving home for uni!

How I Organise My Filofax Supplies

Greetings humans!

Today I thought I'd share with you how I organise the supplies I use in my Filofax. Even though this isn't a Filo-specific blog, I decided not to show you my folders/refill pads/pens because they're on shelves/in pen pots respectively and I don't do anything spectacular with those. These supplies, however, are in boxes and stretchy folder things (there I go with those technical terms again), which are infinitely more exciting than shelves, right?

This is the main box in which I keep my bits and bobs - I believe it was bought in a pack of many from Costco. A couple of weeks ago, it was almost empty...and now it's almost full. Oops?

Here's the inside. As you can see, some items are stored loosely, and some are stored in more boxes. Regardless of anything, it's all packed in some kind of warped, 3D, stationery tetris. The loose items include packs of sticky notes and to-do lists, craft papers (for making dividers) and some magnetic bookmarks. 

One of the first storage containers that I use is this Cath Kidston tin. Inside, I keep some mini paper tapes from Paperchase and fashion paperclips from Wilkinson and Tiger.

Then, I have this Really Useful Box. In here are sticky notes, stickers and mini-notepads, sourced from a variety of stores. I used to use a couple of these to store my pens (until my collection went out of control) and they're stackable, which is handy for saving desk space.

Another Box! This was bought in a pack of three from Family Bargains (think 99p stores, Poundland etc), and the lid barely stays on, which is not ideal, even though it sits in a box most of the time. Here are just sticky notes, memo pads and notelets (which I got from The Range's clearance isle - always worth a check). 

I also use Filofaxes and other ring-bound organisers to store stuff. I bought a first edition Flex from Homsense for £7.99 in which I keep stickers and a record of the washi tape I have. In my Paperchase organiser I keep spare inserts, since it was starting to get a bit worn and I don't want it to break with constant use!

Now, not everything fits in my Pink Box of Wonder. I keep sticker sheets and washi tape in separate containers.

Tape! This is a box, about half the size of a shoebox, which I was given for my birthday (it's from Tiger). I just put a bit of washi on the lid to let me know what was in it, just in case I forget(?!)

This is an expanding sticker folder. An expanding folder for my stickers. (Really not much else to say, right?) There is the potential to customise the tabs, but my sticker supply is in constant rotation so it would probably be a waste of time.

I hope you found this post vaguely interesting, and that it may have given you some inspiration as to how to store anything paper-y.

London Haul! (Muji & Artbox)

Greetings humans!

It was my birthday over the weekend, and how better to spend it than going to Covent Garden and buying a few goodies? (I also went to the British Museum's "Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum" exhibition and I saw The Book of Mormon, which is DEFINITELY A THING YOU SHOULD DO)

Firstly, I went to Muji, mostly because I wanted to buy some more erasable pens for my Filofax.

I already have them in light blue, pink, purple and green, so I wanted to add some variety (spice of life, eh?). Unfortunately I couldn't see the dark blue anywhere, so I'll have to pick that up online. I far prefer these over the Pilot Frixion; not only are they cheaper (£2 as opposed to £2.99 in Ryman), but they have a finer point (the Frixions with the same size points are even more expensive) and I just prefer the design. 

I also bought some sticky flags and a six pack of their 0.5mm gel pens in black. I use sticky flags to put either uncertain or future (ie past the current week) events in my Filofax, so I'm not restricted when I decorate any future weeks regarding colour or design. I've heard great things about their gel pens, so I thought I'd give them a go. So far, my handwriting has been far neater with them, which is always a positive!

Finally, I needed a new folder for RS (yes, I'm thinking about back to school already), so I just bought this clear one. It seems far more sturdy than my old WHSmith one, and that took some beating. 

Next I went to Artbox. It's a little hard to find, but that was easily made up for because EVERYTHING THERE WAS SO CUTE. (Unfortunately, this is where the picture quality gets worse - I had to rotate half of these photos because my camera wouldn't change its orientation. Sorry!)

Firstly, I bought some washi tape. It's a simple overlapping circle design and cost £1.99, which is about standard for 10m of it. Is it just me or is the branding reminiscent of Ikea?!

Here are two mini notepads, both from San-X. When turned landscape, they are a little taller than the weekday boxes on a Filofax brand WO2P insert. Each pad comes with one hundred pages, fifty of each design. I'm going to start using them as my weekly to-do lists - the less space I have to write, the less unnecessary pressure I'll put on myself. 

I've seen these memo pads EVERYWHERE and I've wanted to try them out for ages. I noticed that they were a little more expensive in store than online (£2.50 as opposed to £2.40), and that the adhesive isn't particularly strong. This shouldn't be too much of a problem, since if they're only being used temporarily then they'd be thrown away soon (not at that price!) or if they're being used as a permanent diary fixture (that's more like it), a bit of glue or some decorative-yet-functional stickers would do the trick.

Very soon afterwards, I saw this book of sticky notes, which I believe is Artbox's own brand. On each side, there were these phrases:

(The bottom one says "We want to live a happy-go-lucky life")

As the book is initially opened, there are two illustrations and another phrase, this time saying "Please always know that I love you more than anything else in the world. Being with you makes me so happy".

Finally, the notes. There are two full sized, two half sized and five flag-sized patterns, and I estimate there are 25 or so sheets of each design. The adhesive on these notes is miles better than that of the animal ones above.

This is a simple, wide-ish ruled notebook, which I think is around A6 size. I won't show you the inside - I'm sure you know what ruled notepaper looks like. It doesn't have a margin, which is a bit of a disappointment because more often than not my writing starts sloping down the page, but to be honest that really isn't much of a bit deal at all. There is space on the front to write the subject of the notebook on, which I thought was rather handy.

Stickers! I love stickers. All of these were £1.20, apart from the stamp-style ones on the far right which were 99p. For the first two packs I thought this was great value, since there are three sheets in the pack on the far left (entitled "Episode Story") and five on the second one in. The third only had one sheet, but the stickers were metallic which I suppose makes up for it. 

The final thing that I purchased was this Rilakkuma plastic A4 document folder, entitled "Rilakkuma Cafe". I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to use it for yet, perhaps for storing any physical communication regarding UCAS and my university application. 

So, that's what I bought for myself over the weekend. I hope you had fun nosing at my purchases :-)

The Magic Notebook Haul - Stickers!

Greetings humans! Recently I found out about this company called The Magic Notebook. They're based in Cambridge and specialise in Japanese and Korean stationery. As a "well done, you've finished your AS levels and you're still alive" present to myself, I ordered some stickers to use in my organiser and used the adamsfilo promo code which meant MORE STICKERS (offer ends 30th June) (also check out his internet presence - it's fab!).  I placed my order on Tuesday and it got here today - Thursday. How's that for great service?

The envelope was sealed with this tape, which I thought was a lovely touch.

Upon opening the envelope, I was greeted with my order wrapped in a translucent envelope, also sealed by some patterned tape - I soon peeled this off and decorated my diary with it! 

These are the two items I paid for - they are fabric-effect stickers by the brand Dailylike, and the two editions I purchased were "My Memory" and "Blooming". At £3.75 each, considering there are six sheets of stickers per pack, with shapes ranging from rectangular to circular, I thought these were reasonably priced. 

These are other items included with my order - the geometric stickers are E2 Deco, and came in violet, lilac, red, green, yellow (x2), light blue and hot pink (these were as a result of the adamsfilo promo code - thanks again!) and I am unsure of the brand of the wildlife stickers - very lovely, though.

Overall, I am incredibly pleased with my order from The Magic Notebook, and I will not hesitate to do so again!