It's that time of the academic year where organisation is everything. I truly believe that sometimes being organised outweighs actually being smart 'clever' so all these notebooks better help me out! 

Also, that is just another one of my excuses to have a pretty bookshelf.
Most of these things were gifts but they are definitely things I couldn't live without now

First of all my MacBook Pro is actually my life. Until recently I hadn't been into using an electronic/online calendar but it now I like to use both for practicalities, as it can be quite heavy to carry my laptop AND diary to uni (First World Problems) and because I get a reminder on my phone and on my laptop. 

To the right is my week planner, this is great to write down shifts at work or blog posts or your gym schedule! This was a gift from John Lewis, you can find it here

Next up is my Cath Kidston Pencil Case. All the Cath Kinston stuff you can see here my boyfriend bought me for my birthday, I can't believe he spent that long in there! I guess you could say a pencil case is a bit childish, but a lost memory stick is no laughing matter, so I like carrying around my essentials in this. I also keep lip balm, earphones etc in there. This is the 'Billie Goes to Town' Pencil Case.

My Pen came in a box which makes for a great gift and is so pretty... too nice to use for scribbling notes at uni! I couldn't find the exact one but here is a similar version .

The notebook is great to use as a diary. It is hardback and doesn't have any dividers so not the best for university, but great for blog ideas or just general life notes! Here is a similar one. 

I don't quite know how I coped without a wall calendar before this! It's so handy if someone asks you if you are available last minute, and you can just glance at the wall. Also, it's great for me to see when my deadlines are due so I can see how close together they are and cry plan accordingly.
I couldn't find a link to where this was available online as you can imagine (It is February!). 
But you could probably get one discounted now which is even better! 

Last but not least is my 'Life Book' it says that is for organised mums ha! But it is actually so helpful, there are pages for you to write down your budget, and just about  anything you can think of. 

So I have a bit of a stationery addiction and it seems like everyone knows it!
What are your favourite ways to stay organised? 








This is the Aunt Jackie's Curls and Coils Curl La La Defining Custard. 
I had read lots of amazing reviews of this product online and it was one of the more affordable curl creams available in my local hair shop at just £5.99. I bought this because I wanted to find a cream that would help define my curls with adding frizz or leaving residue. I


I always look for reviews online of products I am intending to buy, so here is another one out there for people like me.  I thought I would keep this review simple by just doing a list of the Pros and Cons! 



Pros 

First of all, this is the BEST smelling product I have used probably ever. It smells so fruity and the smell lasts all day!

It is affordable and is widely available on the high street

The packaging is cute and the tub can definitely be re-used

It is very moisturising and has a nice texture. I would say it is better as a moisturiser than a curl definer as it isn't sticky and it prevented my hair from drying out after being in the cold and wind!

My ends did stay curled!


Cons 

I think the texture is too 'liquid-y' (if that makes sense) to keep my hair from frizzing, it isn't heavy enough for my 4C hair 

It did define the curls but as my hair is so thick, once I had un-sectioned all of my hair it was just a big damp mess, therefore I think it would only work for me in a half up half down hairsyle.

Overall....

It's not something I would rely on if I was going on a big night out or for a special occasion. I think it would let me down! 

I would rate this a 4.5 out of 10 


I prefer....

Eco Styler Argon Oil Styling Gel.
This is the best for me to define curls and for around £3.50 you can get a huge tub! The only issue I have with this is that you do get quite a lot of build up, but if you wet your hair under the shower it will bounce back to life and you can add more! 

Remember....

Not everything that works on other people will work on you and things that work on you won't work on other people... 






It has been 1 month since I embarked on my journey of heat free styling!

The main reason for my decision to cut down on blowdrying/straightening was simply because of boredom. I was bored of wearing it the same everyday and I think that the natural texture of my hair has a lot more versatility. I follow a lot of the natural hair bloggers and pages on Instagram that inspire me and I didn't want to inflict any more permanent heat damage on my hair.  

I'm not saying I won't ever blow-dry it or straighten it again, but at least I know what I can do with it now!

So here is a few things I learnt this month!

  • Curls will come back! It's all about patience. As you can imagine I had quite a bit of heat damage on the ends (luckily not as much as I thought) so that initially put me off wearing it as an afro, but I just bit the bullet and you will see that straight ends will start to revert. 

  • It takes a while to learn what works on your hair and what doesn't. Not everything that you see  hair bloggers use will work on you so prepare for a few rough looking days when things go wrong! 


  • It takes WAAAY more time getting ready in the morning now. I thought it would be the other way round! 


  • You don't need to have a lot of money to achieve different styles. My go to's are Ecostyler Gel and Water! 





January is possibly the best month to read (and watch on YouTube) all the bloggers favourites, as it follows Christmas and everyone has time to test out things they are loving. 

This is a quick post to show the things that I have been obsessed with in January. 

First of all my 2016 Cath Kidston calendar is sooooo pretty and helps me to stay organised now that final year is getting stressful. With birthdays and deadlines looming now until May is quite honestly going to be the most stressful time of my education so far, but keeping organised and writing everything down is one way to stay sane. This was a birthday present and my birthday is in September so I have been waiting a long time to use this! 

Eco Styler Gel has been a lifesaver this month whilst I have been cutting back on styling my hair with heat. It is SO windy right now in Birmingham so this helps to keep my hair in place (as much as possible) I have tried both the green Eco Styler and this one that has Argan Oil in. I'd recommend this as it isn't too drying and it holds your hair right in place quickly. It is also quite affordable. 

The Scrub from Soap and Glory is actually the Scrub of My Life like it says on the bottle! It smells amazing and makes me feel like I have just had a massage. LOVE. 

My favourite scents this month have been Cashmere from Next and Lady Million by Paco Rabbane, both were gifts. I am into really strong warm scents and these both are. That is the best way to describe them. Also, don't underestimate perfume from Next, the scent lasts so long and I always get complimented on it! 

The Ice Twins was a completely different type of book to what I would ever usually read but it was definitely one that made me sit back and think. I will be uploading a review at some point!
What are your January favourites? 



So this is the first tutorial on my blog and I am very excited at how it turned out! I have a lot of improvements to make but we've all got to start somewhere. 

My hair was very dry after a day out in the cold and wind as you can see in the first picture. I had it in a low pony tail with a puff at the back and it felt really tangled and wiry by the evening, so I had to do something about it ASAP. I heard that the LOC method was the most popular way to lock in moisture but I didn't have a lot of products to work with and I thought it would be interesting if to see if it would work on a student budget!

L - This stands for liquid. As I said, this is a budget version so I just used water! Water is the ultimate  moisturiser so you can't really go wrong! However most other tutorials use a water based leave-in conditioner, If I had it, I would have used the Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In Conditioner. 

O - This stands for oil. The oil works as a sealant to keep the moisture locked in. I used Jasmine Oil because it was to hand, but Coconut Oil is a popular alternative. 

C- This stands for cream. I used Shea Butter as it is quite heavy, but really a styling cream is supposed to be used for this. Next time I would like to try the Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie but I think this worked for now! 

I then used Eco-Styler gel and twisted my hair to save myself some time in the morning to define the curls, I then put flexi rods and curlers at the ends because I do have some heat damage on the ends and it ensures that it is curly all the way round. I then wrap my hair with a silk scarf. 

I will keep you updated with how this keeps the moisture in my hair, I have read other blog posts that say their hair stayed moisturised for a week, so let's see if that works!