Back To School - Whats In My College Bag/School Bag Essentials

Heyyyy! Look at me posting regularly ;)

My College Bag 

Today's post is all about what essentials every girl needs in their bags. Depending on your age you may not need as much as what I am showing you but I have thought about the things I personally used and will use both in secondary school(11-16years old) and in college(16-18 years old). Anything that is  in red are the things I think should be in every school bag!



I purchased my bag from George and its just your typical bag, it has a phone pocket and a zip pocket on the inside but apart from that it is just one open space. Its not overly big but it fits everything I need to take and it has enough room for my course books too.

THE MAIN SECTION 
The first thing I have in my bag is my ring binder, you probably wont need this at secondary school  but at college you need to be able to file your own work, in the ring binder I have some folder dividers to separate the subjects and I have some paper which I took from a refill pad, I also have a plastic popper folder to keep any loose sheets safe.

Next I have a Planner, again, if you're in secondary school they will usually supply you with one but at college it is really important to have one with you. Planners are a great way of keeping up to date with homework/assignments as well as important dates and term times, most planners come with a timetable section where you can note down which lessons you have. 

I then have two pencil cases in my bag, the reason I have two is because I keep black pens, a blue,red and green pen, a rubber, pencils, ruler and mini post it notes in one case and in the other pencil case I keep coloured pens and highlighters for taking revision notes. 

I have my purse which isn't essential if you don't buy your lunch at school or you don't need money during the school day but I keep my purse in my bag because I will buy my lunch and drinks from college. I also have some loyalty cards and receipts in there too. 

The next thing isn't an essential for most of you but for me having some makeup in my bag is important because my makeup doesn't last on my face so I always have makeup to touch up my face. You never know when you may need it! I probably wont do take my makeup for very long but I included it anyway.

I have perfume in my bag which is an absolute essential because its nice to feel refreshed at school and for me personally, If I smell good I feel more confident. I don't tend to bring expensive perfumes if I can help it because it could either smash in your bag or get used up quickly. 

THE PHONE POCKET. 

In the phone pocket section of the bag I obviously keep my phone. Although you may not be allowed to use your phone at school I would advise taking your phone especially if you walk to school alone as you may need to use it to contact someone in an emergency, or you may just want to listen to music. 

I also keep earphones in the side pocket because its an easier way to prevent tangling in the bag, we will be allowed to listen to music during the day at college so earphones are essential.

Next I keep a portable phone charger in the phone pocket in case I need to re charge my phone at school, I have a mini USB lead to put into the pocket but it isn't pictured.

Lastly I keep my house keys in the pocket because my mum might not be in when I get home from school, especially if I have a free period last lesson and decide to come home to study.

THE ZIP POCKET 

In the zip pocket I keep all of my other essentials, I keep these together because this way I know where they are and I don't have to rummage through my bag to find them. 

The first thing I have  is some wet wipes, the ones I have at the moment are face wipes but I want to use them up as I have had them fro a while but baby wipes will do. These are so handy to have in your bag because you never know when you will need to clean something. If, like me, you pump your foundation onto your hand before you apply it then you will know what its like to realise you have dried foundation on your hand. Well its for situations like this that wet wipes are essential, also if you spill something onto your clothes then you can quickly clean it off. Also if you have a pesky spot that needs covering up during the school day then its always better to wipe the old makeup off the area before you apply more.

Next I have some tampons and I will also put some sanitary towels in too because you do not want to get caught out at school especially if you haven't got a proper cycle yet and even if you do know when to expect it, its always handy to have some in case a friend needs them. 

I have packed a hand cream because in the winter I get really dry hands and its so nice to give your hands some moisture when they need it!

One of my biggest must haves is hand sanitiser, I love having this in my bag because the soap in the toilets at school really doesn't do it for me and often irritates my hands so having my own hand sanitiser is much better. Also not everyone washes their hands when they have been to the loo so instead of washing my hands and then touching the toilet door to open it which will have other peoples pooey germs on, I like to put a little bit on in the toilet to stop my germs spreading and then apply some more when i get out of the toilets to get rid of any I may have picked up along the way.

The next thing I have is a lip butter because I always have dry and sore lips and it really isn't very nice when all you want is a bit of moisture on your lips and you don't have any lip balm.

The last thing i have in my bag which isn't pictured is some pain relief, now if you are under the age of 16 then please check with your parents/carers if you are allowed to take this to school, but for me I get bad headaches and stomach aches so not having paracetamol when I'm in pain effects my mood and my concentration.

So that's everything in my bag. I really hope you enjoyed this post and please follow our blog for more updates, thank you,
Aimeexx 

Back To School Advice- Ways To Make The First Day Less Stressful.

Heyy Guys! I'm sorry I havent been on in a while I have had so much on and I havent really been in the blogging mood.

But...... Im here now and we should all be happy ;)
     
I know that most people go back to school this week and for Chloe and I, our first day is Wednesday 2nd September. As it's bank holiday Monday I know that none of you will be going back until at least Tuesday. Because of this I am doing a mini back to school series on the blog and this is the first instalment, there will be at least 3 posts but possibly more.

This post is going to be me  sharing my tips on how to prepare for going back to school as I know it can be so stressful trying to get everything done! Hopefully you will find these tips helpful and if you have any requests for posts or any questions then please comment them below!

A FEW DAYS BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS

1) Sort out your sleeping pattern. 
Its really easy to think that you will be able to roll out of bed on the first day looking like beyonce with amazing skin, nice hair and not be tired, well if your anything like me then probably going to have hair like a troll, blemishes,and feel like you have just ran a marathon.If you have spent the last 6-8 weeks going to bed at 2am and waking up at 2 pm then it will be a nightmare to wake up on the first day. A really simple way to prevent this from happening is to simply go to bed a little earlier and wake up earlier in the mornings, you dont have to do this in one night do it slowly,
Night 1- go to sleep 1 hour earlier than you would normally during the holidays and wake up between 8 and 10am (put an alarm on)
Night 2-  Go to sleep 2 hours earlier than you would normally go to bed and wake up at 8am.
Night 3- Make sure youre asleep for your usual school bedtime and wake up when you normally would on school day
If you still have more time off before you go back then repeat the third step and you should be used to the early mornings before you know it!

2) Pack your school bag a few days in advance.
It might seem like this will only take a few minutes to do in the morning and fair enough it might not take you too long but at least make a list of the things you will need and get them ready because there is nothing worse than not being able to find something you need 10 minutes before you need to leave and the whole point of the blogpost is to help you de stress :) If you want tips on what to pack for the first day and some 'school bag essentials' I will be posting that tomorrow!

THE DAY BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS

1) Wake up early.
As tempted as you will be to have one last sleep in, getting up early will ensure that you will sleep better on the night time.

2) Do some form of excersise.
This may be apart of your daily routine and if it is then carry on as usual. If,like me, excerise isn't your thing then just do something that will tire you out. I do sit ups most days because I enjoy them and it helps to tone the stomach muscles, but another really good excerise to do is walking/power walking. I like to take my dog for a walk through the woods and up into the hills, I don't go to far up into the hills because it takes too long but their is a path I take which is lovely to walk in and the scenery makes it very pleasant. Keeping up with the dog and throwing the ball gets the heart rate going and it doesn't get you really out of breath but because of the incline it tires you out. I walk for about an hour which includes half a mile up the hill and half a mile back down and then a mile and a half though the woods and back to the car so it's gentle but tiring. Doing excerise will tire you out and  allow you to sleep better so you won't be as tired. If you don't have a dog you can do some excerise in your garden; kick a football around, do some yoga whatever your happy with doing.

3) Plan and iron your outfit/ uniform and make your packed lunch(if you have one )
Again, preparing this the night before will save time in the morning.

4) have a pamper night.
Relaxing is key- if you want some pamper tips I'll have that post up on Monday night.

I'm gunna post my school morning tips seperately.

If you enjoyed this post please follow Us to get updates on when we post!
-Aimeexx

How I get a flawless makeup look!

So recently I have found my perfect full coverage makeup look! I live this flawless look that is super easy to do. I wore this makeup look yesterday and I forgot to take a picture of the full face but you can see a picture of the coverage of my face and the lip colour on our Instagram. 

FOR FACE 

First of all I prime my face using Rimmel Stay Matte primer. I use this primer because I do have oily skin in places and if I don't prime with this then my foundation begins to slip off my face before I have even put on my bronzer. 

Next I conceal my dark circles and my blemishes using the Soap and Glory Kick Ass concealer. I love how heavy duty the concealer is and it covers my blemishes flawlessly. I use my Real Techniques expert face brush to blend it in. 

I then use a Real Techniques buffing brush and buff 1 pump of The BodyShop Moisture foundation (in the lightest shade) into my skin and allow it to sink in. I then repeat this using half a pump of the foundation this really builds up the coverage. 

I then go back to my kick ass concealer and using a Seventeen blush brush to set my under eye makeup using the setting powder in the concealer kit. 

I use the Kick ass instant retouch powder by Soap and Glory to set the makeup on my chin,nose and forehead. I use the Primark powder brush to do this. 

I then use a smaller fluffy powder brush to bronze/contour my face. I use The BodyShop Honey bronzer.

For blush I want something subtle so I use the Barry M cream blush stick in the shade Rhubarb Crumble. I blend a tiny amount onto the apples of my cheeks which also highlights the cheeks and also adds a flush of colour. 

FOR EYEBROWS 

 Because my eyebrows are in pretty good condition I just add some colour and shape by applying the MUA tinted brow mascara in fair. 

FOR EYES 

 The first thing I do is use my sample of the urban decay primer potion to prep my eyelids. 

Next I apply a light wash of 'Naked' from the original naked palette- I just pass this all over the lid using my Real Techniques base shadow brush. 

I then take a small fluffy brush and apply the honey bronzer from the BodyShop (which I used on my face) in the crease and build the colour up but not to much- I use windshield wiper movements to do this. I then get a blending brush and just neaten things up. 

For highlight I take a tiny bit of 'Virgin' from the naked palette and apply it to my brow bone directly below the eyebrow using a fluffy brush. 

I apply 2 coats of the Maybelline Lash sensational two really lengthen and add volume to my eyelashes. 

FOR LIPS 

 I love love love nude colours on my lips- in the summer I will go for pinky nudes but as the whether starts to get colder (which it did on the day I wore this makeup look) I go for darker  nudes- the colour I used today was a pinky/brown nude and was for me the perfect addition to my makeup look. I applied one coat of the Maybelline Colour Drama lip crayon ( which is matte by the way) in the shade Nude Perfection and I can leave it like that and it looks good or if I want some gloss I will add the Rimmel Apocalips lip lacquer in the shade Nude Eclipse( I think) I only apply a very small amount of this though. 

And there you have it that's how I get my  full coverage makeup look which I think could be my autumn everyday makeup because luckily the whether has picked up now which means I can still wear my wake me up foundation😅 

I hope you enjoy this post and if you would like me to do another makeup look then please leave them below! 

P.S- see Instagram for the picture of the makeup look :) 

See ya, 

Aimee xx

        

Lifestyle Changes

Helloo Guys,

So I turned 16 on Monday and suddenly I've became aware of myself and the way I choose to live. I have realised that despite the many many diets I have tried in my life I have never thought about people who eat differently to me for reasons other than weight loss. I was brought up as a meat eater and I'm not going to lie, I love meat.(ooh cheeky) Today I was reading a blog about becoming a vegetarian and all about the health benefits of cutting meat out of your diet and it has really appealed to me. I have always wanted to become a vegetarian because I hate the thought of the animals getting slaughtered just so I can eat my Sunday roast but then again I don't see the impact I could have on the entire animal kingdom when millions of people still eat meat therefore I never did become one.

Today I have decided to try out vegetarianism but with some slight leeway to ease me in. I have been researching Vegetarianism and I came across the term 'flexitarian' which is when a person wishes to lead a vegetarian lifestyle but will occasionally eat meat/fish in certain situations now I know this may seem very hypocritical to say "oh I'm a vegetarian but I will eat meat sometimes" but no one in my family are vegetarians and I sometimes go to my sisters house for my tea and she won't exactly be pleased to have to cook seperately to suit my needs so in that scenario I will eat meat. For the rest of the time though I will only eat meat free dishes. I have had my first day meat free and it has been pretty good to be honest. Tomorrow I am cooking for me, mam, dad, sister and sister's fiance. I will be cooking chili con carne using minced beef for them and making a separate one for me using quorn mince which I am excited about. Please guys no lectures on how I am not a proper vegetarian etc, I know I am not but I will be eventually haha. I am only trying it out so bear with me LOL.

If anyone has any tips on how to switch from eating meat to not eating meat leave them below they are much appreciated!

Love you! Aimee xx

P.A.R.T.Y

Hey Guys, Aimee here.
So as you will know from Instragram, on Monday it was our year 11 leavers prom.  I didn't go to the actual prom because A; I didnt get my ticket money in on time, and B, I really hate things like that, my year group is the worst, half of them are stuck up and judgemental and the rest of us are just normal(ish). Now for me, the idea of spending anymore time with the same people who I have hated for the last 5 years seems ridiculous. The only reason I did want to go though was to spend time with my friends because in september some of us are going our seperate ways and some are staying as a group so last night was our chance to spend some quality time together.

Its okay though because our friend, Emma held an afterparty after prom which I did go to. Now that was my ideal way of spending time with my friends; just us,alcohol and laughter. None of us have to worry about being judged by the rest and we are all comfortable around each other. Now I would be lying if I said I was completely sober by the end of the night( well actually morning because the party didnt start until about 12:45 and we didn't lay down to go to sleep until 5:30am ) As with all of our social gatherings there was a lot of laughter and sexual innuendos and I had such an amazing night. I did have a reasonale amount of alcohol but I wasn't really drunk, just tipsy. Our other friend, Hannah, however was completely drunk and spent 2 hours talking about how much she loved a certain dead celebrity. We finally settled down at half five and we put an alarm on  for 6:30 because we didnt want to have too much sleep as some of us had to be home early and didnt want to sleep in, however I couldn't sleep and neither could Chloe or our friend Mary so we went and sat in the living room (we were sleeping in the dining room) and we chatted and had a goof around. Anyway I got home around 9am and slept until 12:30 and I woke up with the mother of all headaches, it wasnt really a hangpver more like over tiredness mixed with alcohol HAHA!

On Friday (the 17th) it was Emma's 16th birthday and again we found ourselves in a circle in her dinding room and we were having a laigh and playing drinking games and truth or dare. Unfortunately, I had to be home by 11pm and everyone else was staying over which I was really annoyed about but hey ho.. I have had two amazing nights spending time with friends and making memories and I am so grateful to have an amazing group of assholes as close friends.


So yeah sorry if this blogpost was really jumpy in content but I am rushing like mad to get this posted. I shall be posting some sort of morning routine or a get ready with me type post this week hopefully and there will be a few hauls coming up too.


If you  have had a good week comment what you have done!
Aimeexx

Random June Favourites & Quick recipe | Chatty Blog Post

Good Afternoon you beautiful bunch! Aimee here.

In England right now it is Boiling HOT!

So todays post is going to be a random favourites. The reason it is random is because I have such a wide range of things I want to talk about..

There is is only one beauty fave this month because my makeup hasn't really changed much. My favourite beauty product this month has been the YSL Touch Eclat concealer pen. The reason I love this concealer is because I have horrible dark circles around and under my eyes which are a massive pain in the ass! The concealer doubles as a highlighter and is amazing coverage so when I apply it to my eyes it covers the discolouration AND brightens my eyes! In the summer I like going for the Kim Kardashian under eye concealer look which is applying the concealer in a upside down triangle shape because it really highlights the eyes. It is quite pricey but if you have the money I would really recommend that you invest in it especially if you have dark circles like me!

My next fave of the month is food related.  As you may know I am trying(trying being the correct word) to lose weight, which to be honest I am having mixed results with, I am trying but then I am not being too strict with myself, I have dropped a dress size which is good but I have only lost 6.5lbs up to now. The past week or so I have been having the same thing for lunch every single day because I LOVE IT.

How I make my Lunch

You will need; Tuna(in brine rather than sunflower oil), sweet corn, extra light mayo, salt,pepper, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, a quarter of a red or yellow bell  pepper and a whole grain bagel. 

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Firstly, mix the tuna, sweetcorn, mayo, salt,and pepper in a bowl, cut the bagel in half and put the tuna filling in(avoiding the hole, duh) put the top of the bagel on and place in a sandwich maker, I actually use a george foreman grill to make my toasties and bagels because that's just what we have haha. leave it for about 6-7 minutes and you're done, take it out and serve with the cucumber,bell peppers and tomatoes.

I love having this for my lunch because it is filling and nutritious. It has protein,carbs and vegetables in which makes it a nearly balanced meal. I love tuna and I love bagels so this recipe is my ultimate food porn.

My next favourite thing of the month has been the Calypso Dry Oil Sun Protection. The last week has been so sunny where I live and I have been making the most of it to say the least, unfortunately for me though it has ended and today is chilly and miserable. But when it has been hot I have been covering myself in this sun oil in factor 30. The reason I love this is because it's not a cream it is a clear oil which means you don't really have to spend ages rubbing it to make it disappear into your skin, it doesn't make you sticky for ages either which is important for me because OMG that is like my idea of hell. It was also the sun protection I used last year when I went on holiday and that was one of the best holidays I have ever had and when I smell this on my skin it reminds me of then. The smell is just out of this world, it smells like a mixture of coconut and mixed fruit when you first put this on but then when it has time to settle it smells like coconut mainly.. Another reason I love this product is because every sale supports the Marie Curie Cancer Care charity and I think that 50% goes to them.

My next fave has been a specific search on youtube. That search has been: " sixth form haul/tips" which I know is like super super super cringe but anyone who knows me knows that I hate not knowing about things that are coming up, so I LOVE to plan everything down to as much detail as possible. Up until my induction day on the 26th of June(Chloe is in the middle of writing about that for you guys) I had absolutely no idea what sixth form was going to be like so I watched as many videos as youtube had to offer about the stationary I will need, the things I should/shouldn't do as well as just general info about sixth form life, I would like to think I am now pretty clued up about sixth form, but these videos are becoming my secret obsession, I am now really looking forward to starting sixth form now that it isn't so scary HAHAHA.

My fave song of June was by James Bay and that was "let it go". Now when I told my mam to listen to this song she told me that she wasn't listening to any more FROZEN! After cracking up at her for about 15 minutes I explained that it was not a frozen song she listened to it and she now loves it. It is such a lovely song and I love James Bay. Another fave song of mine from this month was Little Mix; Black Magic, I'm not the biggest fan of their music but its such an upbeat and catchy song.

My fave band of the month has been 5 Seconds of Summer. As you may know, Chloe and I along with our friend Jayne, went to see 5sos at newcastle on the 2nd June. If you have read my blogpost about the concert you will know how much I loved that night so much!

Thats everything for now guys I am sorry this was a bit rambly and also late up but I have had so much stuff going on. I shall be posting a day in the life routine on Friday where a talk all about what I do in the day- look out for that won't you!

See you later,

-Aimeexx

Growing Up.

It's Aimee here guys.

Now I understand that the title of this posts makes it sound alot like I am about to talk about periods and erections. I'm not for a few reasons; it's awkward, I don't have a penis much to some peoples surprise, nor do I have much experience with them either...In all seriousness guys I want to talk to you about what it feels like to grow up in terms of responsibilities and life after school.

Background Information about post 16 options in the UK.

If you have read our other posts you will know that Chloe and I have just finished secondary school(if you're not from the UK, secondary school is education between the ages of 11 and 15/16 years old) and I can honestly say that the thought of me not being in secondary school anymore scares me.

When you turn 16 in the UK you now have to go onto further education for two years. You can do this by either attending college,sixth form(a smaller college either on the grounds of or inside your secondary school) or by doing an apprenticeship(a method of learning on the job, you get paid a small salary whilst working and learning about your chosen profession.) If you go to college you can choose to learn about one certain profession such as hairdressing or car mechanics etc or you can do your a levels( I will explain more about these further down.) Sixth form is just for studying A-Levels.

If you decide to study A-Levels you will do so in either sixth form or college. A-Levels are subjects that you will study for two years in great detail. Alot of the time you pick your A-levels around the career path you want to go down but also some people choose the subject they enjoy most. You can choose to do 3 or 4 subjects to study at A-level.

What I have decided to do.

I have decided to do my A-levels at the sixth form that is on the same grounds as my old secondary school. I have decided to study; Childcare,English Literature and Double award Health and social care. The reason I have picked these subjects is because I have not quite decided what I want to do as my job in the future but I do know that I would like to work in the care industry which is why I have decided to do double award Health and social care. I worked in a children's nursery for my work experience and I loved it so I would also like to work with children hence why I took childcare. I took English Literature because I enjoyed it at GCSE and hope that it will get me reading more.

The reason I decided to go to sixth form instead of college is because, and I am being honest, I wouldn't be able to cope with being around so many people; The college near us holds about 2000 students and it is huge whereas the sixth form has about 70 students in and is pretty small in comparison. I have anxiety which not many people know about, it is only mild anxiety but I get quite nervous around lots of people and I think I would be always too worried about being around the many people that I probably wouldn't be focussing on my work- as stupid as that sounds. With sixth form the atmosphere is so calm and relaxing which is perfect for little miss I hate crowds over here! Also, I know most if not all of the people at the sixth form because they went to my previous school which means awkward introductions are unnecessary. I just feel that sixth form is the best option for me and hopefully I will still agree when I begin.

Why I am scared to join sixth form is purely for one reason. I am in charge of how much I learn. At A-level, the teachers teach(wow no shit sherlock) and we have to make notes in our notebooks, what we don't get written down,we don't learn, it's our own fault. In secondry the teachers tell you the important things to write down and they will go over things you don't understand until you do, In the sixth form, if you don't get something written down then it is your job to find the teacher in your free time to catch up. That's what scares me the most. Being the master of my own future, being responsible for my own success. Arghhhhhh.Such a stressful time.

Anyway, Chloe and I have our Sixth form induction day tomorrow and I have mixed feelings if I am honest. In a way I am nervous because I am going to be meeting the teachers I will be having for the next 2 years and also the other people in my classes and the people in year 13 who will be there in September. But also I am excited because I hate not knowing about things that are going to happen and at the moment sixth form is one big confusing blurrr.. at least tomorrow I will know a lot more.

Any way I shall update you on how we get on.

Thats all guys,

Aimeexx