How I Plan on Fitting My Wardrobe Into a College Closet !

Move-in day for is August 13th, which is in just a few weeks! One of the biggest problems I have spinning around my head revolves around how I’m possibly going to fit my entire wardrobe into a closest that is a quarter of the size of the closet I have now.

Sigh.

After reading blog posts, and watching YouTube videos, I think I finally have an idea as to how I’m going to decrease the number of pieces in my college wardrobe. As I begin my packing, I thought I’d share the best tips I found for creating my “college wardrobe.”

1. Pay attention to clothing items that you wear repeatedly. Those items  need to be packed. At the same time, clothing pieces you do not wear regularly probably do not need to be packed, since you’re not any more likely to wear those pieces in college than you are at home. It seems obvious, but it helps the process of elimination. ( I know, Duh Jessica).

2. UNLESS they are part of a specialty outfit such as:

• Business/interview outfit/s
• Workout outfits
•  Fancy dress for going out or going to fancier events.

The above items are needed for a given the occasion, even though these pieces are not a part of every day wear, and are not worn often.

3.  About bags…if you’re like me, which you probably are, you need another purse like           you need a hole in your head (you don’t).  To reduce the number of bags I plan on               taking to college with me, I thought about all the functions a bag would need to fill in          college. Here is what I decided:

• 1 backpack for carrying school books/supplies to class.
• 1 laundry bag to carry laundry back and forth from school to home, and vice versa.
• 2 cross-body bags, one black one brown.
• 1 reusable grocery bag for grocery shopping, carrying various supplies for clubs, etc.
• 1 cooler bag for taking leftovers from home, or packing lunch from my dorm.

4.  I plan on bringing a couple of hats for bad hair days.

5. School-spirit wear is a must. Any t-shirts or sweatshirts with your school’s logo are a          no brainier.

6.  Basics are really useful, and can help you to reduce the number of pieces in your                wardrobe. If you’re not sure what I mean, think of clothing pieces that are neutral-             colored, plain, with clean lines and modest cuts. These pieces can work in multiple             layers, and typically can be dressed up or dressed down.  MadeWell  (linked below) is       one of my favorite stores for basic pieces, but you can find these pieces of clothing             just about anywhere.

Check out MadeWell here !

7.  Try packing by season. Luckily, my university is only forty-five minutes from home, which allows me to avoid bulky sweaters and coats on move-in day. If  you have this option, I highly recommend packing and swapping your clothing as the weather changes, so you have the least amount of clothing in your dorm as possible.

8. And let’s not forget shoes. Overpacking shoes can be really easy to do, but similar to the process I used for packing bags, I think looking at the purpose of each pair will help limit the shoes you decide to bring to college. Here is what I ended up with:

• 3 pairs of sandals. One caramel-colored, one brown pair, and grey Birkenstocks. Each are a different style, and are go-to shoes when the weather is warm enough.
• 2 pairs of sneakers. One to exercise in, and one as a designated errands/going-out shoe. I think Vans or Sperry Top Siders are great dress-up-dress-down shoes. I may bring both pairs…
• 2 pairs of heels, one black pair and one brown pair, mainly for the sake of matching a given outfit. I do not plan on wearing these often, (lol who wants to wear heels to walk across campus?! not me.)
• 1 pair of rain/snow boots. It rains and snows in Michigan, so I think a good pair of Hunter Boots such as these are really good to have.
• I have a pair of L.L. bean look alike boots that serve as a good fall/winter transition boot. Not necessarily for snow, but to keep my feet warm.

And that is how I plan on packing for college! Below is a photo that showcases how I plan on transporting my clothes to college! All I did was cut holes in the bottom of garbage bags, and tied the bottom shut! The result was a make-shift garment bag! When I get to my dorm, all I have to do is hang the hangers in the closet! I think this will be a great time-saver!

Wish me luck on fitting all of  this (and then some) into my tiny new closet!

-J

What I Plan On Bringing To College!

College season is approaching more quickly than expected.  Although I started dorm-shopping the first of June, I still cannot believe how much I’ve accumulated, and thought I would share what I bought during my shopping tips.  Without further-ado, here are the items I’ve picked up for my dorm:

Bedding

• This quilt from Target is so cute! I’m in love with it.
• I grabbed a plethora of throw Pillows from HomeGoods, Meijer and my favorite from Target. I visited three Target stores before finding it in-store!
• I managed to gather a mattress topper, blanket, and sheets using extras purchased in the past, but I also picked up these Jersey Sheets from room essentials at Target, just to have an extra set. They are very soft, and reasonably priced for the quality. The only bummer is having to purchase pillow shams separate from the sheets.
• I also snagged this throw blanket!
• I received a tapestry from my Uncle as a graduation gift that I plan on hanging near my bed, and although I do not know where it came from, here’s a similar one!
• I plan on using a basket similar to this to store extra sheets, blankets, and towels.

As you can probably tell, I have no real color theme, I’m literally just blending together as many neutral colors together as I can and am hoping for the best. At least my things won’t clash with my roommate! *insert sassy-girl emoji here*

Tips: Use the extra bedding sheets and blankets from home before going out to buy new ones, especially if you have neutral colors that will probably match what you plan on purchasing.

Decor

• I grabbed my initials carved in galvanized metal. I’m pretty sure I got them from Hobby Lobby I plan on putting them on my desk to be all cutesy and such.
• I really love the coasters I snagged from TJmaxx. I don’t have an exact link, but I highly recommend TJmaxx or HomeGoods for a cheap pack of coasters.
• I printed out plenty of pictures of friends and family from the past few years.
• I also plan on bringing my potted aloe and cacti from home.
• I grabbed this trinket dish from Anthropologie with intentions to throw coins, hair ties, receipts, and other pocket-dwelling items on.

Tip: Tjmaxx and HomGoods have plenty of cute and reasonably-priced decor items for small spaces! Amazon is another great option for you online shoppers out there!

Clothing 

• I have a laundry bag I plan on bringing from a bedding set I used for my bed at home. It’s a lot more convenient than bringing a basket back and forth from school and home.

Check out my blog post on how to decrease the number of items in your wardrobe coming soon! (Okay, enough self-promo, continue on Jessica.)

Dinning

• I scored big-time on my Keurig Coffee brewer. Kohls was having a sale, but also allowed me to stack a 30% off coupon. I paid $82 for a $150 Keurig! Unfortunately Kohls no longer carries the beautiful “Sandy Pearl” color I selected, but I love this color as well. I highly recommend stacking coupons and saving up kohls cash for purchases that you know are going to be costly!
• I have an older microwave that we used to use at the lake. Although it’s notorious for burning popcorn, I think my roommate and I can make it work.
• I plan on picking up plastic cutlery because home-girl is lazy and does not feel like washing too many dishes in college.

Bathroom 

• I found an old pair of Aeropostale flip flops — throwback to middle school am I right? — to use as shower shoes.
• I picked up a towel set from HomeGoods for $24, which includes 2 bath towels, 2 hand towels, and 2 washcloths. I plan on picking up extra washcloths, because I literally use them for everything. I cannot find the exact ones, but here, here and here are similar sets to what I purchased.
• I found my shower caddy in Clearance at Bed Bath and Beyond. I only saved $3, but I guess that makes me $3 richer. I chose mesh because I though it looked better and would retain less water than a traditional plastic caddy.
• My make-up mirror came from Tjmaxx, and although it isn’t “lit,” (haha, get it?) I thought $20 was pretty unbeatable.

tip: If you start shopping for dorm and apartment items early, you may score clearance deals. It doesn’t have to be “in-season” to be functional.

I plan to pick up all my toiletry, food, and school supplies closer to move-in day, because as you can tell this is a lot of stuff to squeeze in the tiny corner of my room!

I am so incredibly excited to dorm at my university in the fall. So much so, I am jumping up and down writing this blog post (not literally, but figuratively of course). Let me know in the comments if you think there are any items you think I’m forgetting! Also – let me know if we’re twinning, because that’s cool, right?

I don’t know about my fellow classmates, but I am totally ready to take on this adventure called college.

-J

About Cookies (And Dinner-Parties)

I was having one of those days at work a couple days ago.  The letters I tri-folded at work did not fit in their envelopes. I forgot my lunch (BBQ chicken tostadas) at home. Customers on the phone were particularly difficult, such as having an attitude. I mean, common.

By the end of the day, I was just looking forward to baking the Panera duplicate of Kitchen Sink cookies with my boyfriend Chad for a dinner-party the following evening (yum). Yet, I was disappointed to read my text messages only to find that most of my friends had proposed to reschedule the dinner-party.

“I don’t know if we should bake any cookies,” I admitted. It seemed pointless to make cookies for a party that no longer was going to happen.

After a few minutes I decided that we should make the cookies anyway. Even if there were no guests, or no dinner-party. Even if it was just Chad and I who were going to eat the cookies.

The truth is, life is like baking cookies. Like myself, you may want to stick to the recipe. We all want the exactly 1/2 a cup of butter, but you forgot you only had 1/3 of a cup in the fridge. Maybe the last egg you needed cracked open onto the counter, or you spilt the sugar all over the floor.  Despite these hiccups, you can still have cookies in the end.

I’ve learned that  life contains many unexpected twists and turns; some more desirable than others. Its not about how drastic the changes you may face are. what matters is your attitude towards those changes, and using those changes to help propel the solutions to the problem you may be facing.

I was disappointed about how that day had went, but I still decided to enjoy the cookies at the end of the day.

And I was glad I did.

-J

 

ON DECIDING

It’s like the giant monster that  I insisted was hiding under my bed as five-years-old. And I believe I am equally as afraid of it. Although there is no physical monster (sorry), making decisions of great significance can be equally terrifying.

Perhaps you are trying to decide to take the promotion in a new city as opposed to staying in your hometown. Maybe you are wondering if you should propose to the love of your life.  Or maybe you are just deciding between two restaurants for lunch. Whatever the situation may be, the decision you make effects an outcome in your life in the near future. The uncertainty of an outcome, no matter the possibility of reward or failure, is terrifying.

I’m on your side.

It took me months to decide which university I would attend in the fall. I finished my applications this past August, and in January I had little preference towards a university. I visited campuses, considered scholarships, and weighed benefits and drawbacks. However, the immensity of the commitment had left me without an answer.

Hopefully I am not misunderstood. I am truly excited to finish my education and pursue the career I have only been able to dream about. And as I have considered my options, I have realized any of the three schools I applied to would eventually lead me to the career I desire. After consulting a friend about the matter, she replied with “you’re pretty adaptable.” However, I continued to stare at three doors, each with ungraspable knobs.

On the contrary to decisive factors, my decision finally resulted in “what felt right.” You heard it here. Sometimes benefits and drawbacks do not matter. Yes, each of the decisive factors need to be considered before you reach your decision. Overall, the “right” deicison is a result of choosing the option that just feels right. Sometimes, you wake up one morning and you just know, as I did when I chose the university I will attend starting August 2017. With every ounce of your being, you know the answer, and you cannot be swayed. I am no longer waiting for that day.

In the mean time, I’m going to reach for the door knob in front of me, and see where it leads.

ON STAYING MOTIVATED

 MIDTERM EXAMS….

Cringe.

Cry.

Shutter.

Those three words come to mind with the thought of midterms coming up in the next week or so. I guess you could say I do not have any motivation to study or take said exams. Nor do I want to think about how these exams will effect my grade for the course.

I think its  much easier to just grab a coffee and watch another episode of Grey’s Anatomy instead of studying.

Okay, now STOP.

Relaxation and self-worth are top priorities in today’s society. I mean who does not love a little “me time?” “Me time” is appealing compared to studying for a class, or crossing off items on my to-do list. However, too much “me time” or inconsideration in how our actions affect other people is a bad thing.

For instance, turning in a large project late because I decided to paint my nails results in extra stress for my professor. In all actuality, I probably had enough time to finish the project AND paint my nails. The extra stress for my professor was a direct result of the choice of “me time” instead of acting with motivation.

But we do not consider the results of our actions as they affect others. 

But motivation is just so difficult to obtain, right? I’m just too lazy to be motivated, do not have enough time to achieve this project, and I much rather have “me time” instead.

That’s the first problem.

When considering motivation, what you think is how you act. If convinced to be lazy, unmotivated, or time-lacking, you probably will not achieve as much as you intend achieve. Enthusiasm increases personal productivity, and is contagious. Enthusiasm also influences the people around you to act (which is really convenient for group projects, as I might add)

The second problem: time management, and goal setting. The best way to finish projects, get the A on the test you deserve to earn, or simply make the bed in the morning is to make a list of what you and to accomplish, and the amount of time you expect to need to complete said class. I use a planner organized by a weekly-layout to write the tasks I need to accomplish on a specific day. I also color-coat by type of task, so I can create a hierarchy of importance.

Once in the right mind-set, and goals are clear, hold your self accountable. In other words, no “me time” until you complete a certain number of said tasks. By contrast, sometimes taking a solid break of “me time” to refresh your mind and attitude will also keep you motivated. I know, I know, this is not what you wanted to read. However, some self-discipline and less frequent “me time” can lead to more enjoyable “me time”  since the time spent on oneself  is appreciated after a busy schedule.

Viola! there you have it, my formula to stay motivated.

I’m about to have a cup of coffee to recharge!

-Stay motivated –