7 items every fashionable college girl needs to take with her

Fashionable college girls come in all types and sizes. Some will carry their stuff in a huge backpack due to having heavy and big textbooks; others will get away with a clutch because they can take notes on their smartphones. No matter what type of bag you have, however, there are 7 items a fashionable girl must carry with her at all times in order to keep her looks nice and neat.

First comes a small mirror. The mirrors in the toilets on your campus are likely to not shed a good light on how you really look, so with a small mirror you can detect the need for upgrades of your looks anywhere. They are also handy when you want to see how a dress, skirt or pair of pants fits around your butt when you are out for shopping. 

The second necessity is lip balm and/or lipstick. Throughout the day, your lips get dryer and dryer, at least, mine do. In order to keep a comfortable feeling on your lips and to keep them smooth, make sure you have lip balm with you for emergencies. When your lips have had their hydration boost, you can colour them with lipstick. Even if you wear no make-up at all, lipstick can boost your whole face by drawing the attention to your lips instead of to your sleepy eyes or grey face.

Third is a hairbrush, especially on windy or rainy days. With a hairbrush you can save the day by making neat pony tails or just brush your strands so that they look tidy again. My hair is of the type that frizzes as soon as there is a little, gentle breeze, so a hairbrush is definitely a must-have for me! And although umbrellas might keep your head dry, they do not guarantee a messed up hairdo. 

Fourth is hand cream, especially during the winter season. Most hand soaps on campuses tend to easily dehydrate the skin of my hands, so for me the season does not matter, but during winter, there is nothing wrong with treating your hands every now and then. They are available for all skin types and in all price classes, so there is always one you can afford. 

Fifth item that must not miss in your bag is toothpicks. While chewing gum is easier to use and might look less gross for others, picking your teeth is usually more effective. For example, chewing gum does not remove that annoying little crumb between your front teeth, and it also does not help you get rid of that spinach leaf between your teeth, so toothpicks are necessity number 1. They are also far more effective in removing plaque, which can eventually cause cavities. If you then wish to go for a fresh breath, chewing gum is the next step. 

The sixth necessity is a pair of sunglasses. Where I live, the weather can change over the minute, so I have experienced that I walked through my city with squeezed eyes. Since that not so cool experience, I always check whether I have my sunglasses with me. Needless to say you need to carry them with you in a generally sunny climate! Sunglasses are ideal as well when you want to hide sleepy eyes or dark circles.

The seventh and last item you must have with you all the time as a fashionable college girl is a killer bag. Even though you might be one of the girls who needs to carry huge textbooks and binders, you can still add a cute clutch or envelope bag to your backpack. I personally feel like I am pulled to one side when carrying heavy books in a shoulder bag, so I combine my sporty purple backpack with either of the bags in the picture below.

What do you think of these must have items for fashionable college girls? Do you have them all with you already or do you value additional items as must-haves in your bag(s)? 

A must-have list for college - just so that you can study

It's a lovely rainy Sunday where I live, and I figured that I would have liked a must-have list for college, even while it may seem easy to buy school supplies. 

First and foremost, college =/= high school. Your teachers probably will not require you to have a separate notebook for each subject or to have (within a subject) separate notebooks for lecture notes and homework. 

Secondly, it is likely that you will not have as many subjects each term as in high school. Whereas I had between 7-15 subjects throughout the year in high school, I now have 3 or 4 subjects each term. This may differ for each course: for example, I know that the Bachelor Law school in Groningen works with about 6 subjects per semester, but Educational Sciences has 3 or 4 subjects per term, which is half a semester in time. So: count your subjects!

So, then, what do you need?

1. Your textbooks and syllabi / readers / whatever your teachers call them. Without your textbooks and syllabi, you do not have the literature available you have to know for your exams. If you cannot afford buying all the textbooks and readers, I would recommend to look at the library of your university or faculty, to see if you can loan the books there. Make sure you can have them available when you need them, either way. 

2. Notebooks! Yes, you still need notebooks, but probably not as many as in high school. How you value technology and neatness might influence how many notebooks you need. If you prefer reading from your laptop screen, you just need to have your laptop ready during lectures and if you do not mind having Constitutional Law notes next to International Law notes and other things, you can get away with 1 notebook. They are available in many price classes and designs. If you can afford it, buy some notebooks that suit your style. That way, it will be much more fun to use them. 

3. Stuff to write with: pens in different colours, pencils, an eraser, a ruler and text markers are things I have always with me. I personally like to have the number of the lecture in red on top of the page and the key words in blue. For drawings, I still prefer a good old grey pencil and a ruler in case rectangles and square shapes must be drawn in the notes. Text markers are handy to mark the most important words in a text from your book or syllabus. 

4. A diary. Not necessary a school diary though, since your life might continue during traditional holidays, but a diary is necessary. College students are busy people; we have to study, work, be on boards and committees for our CV, keep up with friends, take some basic care of ourselves, etc. Again, there is a wide variety, so it depends on your budget, preferences and style which one you take. I personally like my diary to be not too big, but still big enough so that a decent amount of activities fit. Preferably with the hours of the day, because I am somewhat lazy. The photos below are from my own diary.

5. A few email addresses of people in your class and your teachers' email addresses. Questions may arise while you're studying a topic or when you're working on an assignment. In such cases it can help a lot if you can ask someone who is involved with the same topics and assignments as you. 

6. Folders and/or binders. For the tidy, neat and organised people among us, not so much for the techno students who do everything on their laptop. As subjects advance, your teacher might hand out more stencils and paper work or (s)he will put them online for you to print. Once printed/received, it is tempting to put them on your desk and eventually have them drowned in plenty other stuff. This does not make for a successful academic career, so it is more efficient to have a folder or binder in which you can put away your prints. I have planned to buy one notebook this year, but put all my notes and prints in a binder, with a tab for each subject. 

So, that is my list of must-haves to succeed in college (or at least pass your exams). Remember this blog is young, so there is much more to come, but if you think I forgot something important regarding this subject, please let me know =) You are also welcome to share your thoughts of course or just randomly drop by and say something.