01.27.16 ~ Finally Got Around To Redecorating My Study Space For The New Semester This Is The Space Above

Words of wisdom senpai. 😊

I used to have a lot of trouble still do with procrastination and I realized that, in my new studyblr days, I didn’t know how to utilize my studyblr to help me and it was just another way for me to procrastinate and feel productive. If you can relate to this, you could probably benefit from this little dose of studyblr realness.

Don’t use your studyblr just for aesthetics: studyspo is great for inspiration and motivation, and it’s probably what drew you to the studyblr community, but it shouldn’t be what makes you stay. You won’t be able to take anything worthwhile from your blog if all you reblog is photos of beautiful notes. Mix it up with masterposts and printables and photos of “non-aesthetic” notes.

Don’t use methods that don’t work for you: if you absolutely cannot understand mindmaps but absolutely love the way they look, resist the urge to make them. You’ll only end up confusing yourself and wasting time. Only use note taking and studying methods that make sense to you. 90 percent of the time they’ll be things that you used before you made a studyblr. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t experiment with different styles and methods, but only stick to what works for you.

Discipline over motivation: imho, the study community  overstates the importance and effectiveness of motivation. Don’t get me wrong, motivation makes studying more enjoyable when you have it, but more often than not you don’t. In the end, motivation isn’t what makes you study every night, or stick with self studying a language. You have to discipline yourself to study when you don’t want to, or work when you’re tired. My old French teacher used to say “Don’t fall into the trap of waiting motiviation, and just do it” and I feel like that’s super important with this. (1, 2, 3)

Talking about studying isn’t studying: sort of related to number 3, don’t let your studyblr be another way to put off work. It’s all to easy to think “I’m blogging about studying; in being productive,” but it’s a dangerous thing to do. Studyspo is great, but don’t let scrolling through your feed become another method of procrastination.

Take photos after you study: or during, but not before. I used to spend so long taking pictures of my notes, that I wouldn’t have time to study them. I still take too long photographing my notes to take picture, so I’ve started using a pomorodo timer. After 25 minutes, I’ll use my five minute break to take photos. It’s increases my productivity so much, and I’m not sure how I ever functioned without that system.

Just get it done (and prioritize): honestly, sometime you just have to forget about trying to make your notes look pretty and just go for functionality over looks. Just let go of any studyblr ideals and do what you need to do. If you don’t have time to bullet journal and get your work finished, use an electronic calendar or don’t spend so long on your journal. Most importantly, be real with yourself. At the end of the day, you know yourself best, and you know what you need to do.

Good luck on your studyblr journeys lovelies, hope this helped!

xx

Museum of Moss 

I started this comic almost a year ago, but finally got around to finishing it! 

op. iii — hello, august

I still haven’t figured out how to sit across from you, and not be madly in love with everything you do.

William C. Hannan (via lovelustquotes)

Why I don't like talking

Other People: you should talk more!

Me: *tries to talk*

-gets ignored

-gets interrupted

-gets talked over

-no one pays attention

-no one cares

The Houses as Studyblrs  [click to enlarge // info ⚡  insp]

hey do you know much about creating icons? i was just wondering how i could make my own and how people get the cool mildliners and notebooks as their icons

I’ve been getting asks about how I make my icons, so I figured I’d make a mini masterpost on it. These are the basic steps I go through when making an icon

there are tons of different icons you can make: check out my icons tag for inspiration!

what I use: Adobe Illustrator canva. If you’re broke or too scared to torrent this is probably your best bet. You have to sign up, but it’s completely free

Create your document: any size bigger than 400x400px is probably fine, but make sure that it’s a square shape (do this by going to create a design → use custom dimensions)

a ‘lil note: canva does this annoying thing where if you’re zoomed in or out all of the shapes will be slightly off. Unless it’s at 100%, the preview you see won’t be accurate, which is annoying when you’re making something with a lot of shapes

find a reference image: whatever your icon will be, a pen, a book, a calculator, a reference image will help immensely with accuracy and amount of effort going into your icon (I used this photo for the leuchtturmicon)

background color: I usually start with a light grey so that it contrasts with al the color I’m using in the icon, then I change it at the end if i need to (do this by going to background → document colors)

create your icon!: easier said than done, obviously. canva doesn’t have a pen tool, so you have to take the shapes they give you and build on them. Notebooks are probably the easiest; just use rectangles, and you’re good. For more complex shapes, you have to take several shapes and put them together. If I was making a notebook with rounded edges on one side, I would use a rectangle for the base then put a rounded rectangle overlapping one side that makes no sense I’m sorry It’s often really tedious and a bit complicated to test with different shapes, so message me or send an ask if you have any specific questions. (shapes and things are in elements → shapes)

logos and things: because canva is so limited with shapes, theres basically no way to make company logos. What I do is google search the logos then drag them into the uploads box on the left side of the screen. Then I just add them to the icon (that’s what I did on the rhodia and muji notebooks in this and the kanken in this). If you can’t find the icons in the right colors or with transparent backgrounds, put them in LunaPic and go to edit → transparent background and adjust → color changer.

color scheme: I’m super lazy about color, and I usually use the extension Palette Creator to create a palette for my reference image and I use those. Tip for lazy people: light/low saturation colors are basically foolproof

add shadows: if you want to. Shadows add dimension, but they are also very tedious to do if you made your icon with lots of different shapes. There are two basic types of shadows you can make (these or the book icon in this).

add any other details you didn’t add before-compare your reference image and your icon

save your icon!!

and thats it! hope this helped at least some of you, and message me or send an ask if you need any more specific help

If you go to school/uni and have friends, this post is for you. Here are seven tips to help you balance school and social life. Read on.

Use social events as alarm clocks or deadlines for you to finish your homework, or any school work. If you’re going out with friends on a certain time, do everything you have to do before that certain time.

Know when you can actually do what you have to do. Don’t force yourself to finish everything because that can lead to frustrations that will mess up your work, leading to more work, which is counterproductive.

Use social events as rewards. It could be after you’ve finished exams, or if you have reached a goal. This is what me and my friends do. Even the simple act of getting ice cream after exams is a gift when done with friends.

Never go out a week before any exam. Dedicate that time to studying and reviewing. Nuh-uh. Gotta stay firm on this. You’ll thank yourself.

Use social events as a challenge to yourself. This is something I made up. I study before going out, and make flashcards or type questions. When I arrive home, I question/test myself. If I got at least 80% of the questions right, I reward myself. The reward depends on my current mood, really, but I usually reward myself with reading a certain number of pages of a book (not academic books, please, I need a break).

Make flashcards. You can review these flashcards even when going out. Just don’t overdo it. Your friends might think it’s inconsiderate. I mean, hey, you came there to have fun, put down those flashcards and actually have fun and relax. You had your time, and you’ll have more time for that later. Tip: don’t go out unless you’re done or unless you still have a lot of time on your hands. Be honest to yourself.

Commence a group study! For people who study better with people (not me), this is a great way to bond with your friends and your lessons. You can ask your friends about something you don’t understand. And, come on, if you’re with your friends, something fun/crazy is bound to happen. Just be careful not to procrastinate.

unconventional study tips

- buy yourself new stationery: i get so excited about using new pens that i don’t mind writing that essay i’ve been putting off for days

- use a playlist as a study timer: have a selection of instrumentals and songs with lyrics. take a break everytime a song with lyrics comes on and work during the instrumentals

- make your study space smell fresh: mint and lemon tend to be good options

- write down how much time you spend studying for a test and then the grade you got: then you can figure out how time you really need to spend to get a good grade. this will help you use your time more effectively

- spend your study breaks showering or exercising for about 30 mins: then come back fresh and quickly review what you have learned. this will help the information sink in

- don’t always study in comfy clothes or pyjamas: do your hair or makeup if you want too. this will put you in ‘get shit done’ mode

- record yourself explaining topics you’ve just studied: explaining/teaching topics helps you learn so much better, and you also have a little video to review before tests