Procrastination: every person's enemy

Oh hey!

So, if you're anything like me, you'll be reading this whilst you know that you should really be doing something else. Am I right? 

Everyday I put things off; homework, tidying my room, even just washing my hair or painting my nails. I always manage to find something to distract me, and you know what? It's infuriating! Sometimes I have to be so strict with myself and just say 'Right. That is enough. Just do it, you massive procrastinator!" 

It's especially bad when it's things like school work or piano practising that I'm putting off because I know that I will have to suffer the consequences in detention or my piano lesson the next day. But somehow, I can always convince myself that it's not that important, I can always do that maths homework tomorrow morning if I wake up extra early (NEVER works) or even at lunch just before the lesson! It is awful, and I'm horrible at disciplining myself. So I'm going to give myself, and all of you out there some tips to stop procrastinating and do what you're supposed to do:

Tip 1: A to-do list/schedule

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I cannot live without my schedules and to do lists.   It is an obsession that I can't cure - I just can't do something unless I have it written down next to a check box. But honestly, it does help to see what you have to do with the times you have to do it in. It really helps you organise your head and yes, it may be restricting, but isn't that kind of the aim here? Personally, it just helps to get things done, especially when I know there's a break round the corner!

I have a little book that I write all my schedules and to do lists in. It might seem sad, but I helps me to organise myself.

This is an example of a weekend schedule when I went to stay with my grandparents to revise.

Tip 2: Start with the easiest thing

Some people say to start with the hardest to get it out of the way, but I think that if you're trying to encourage yourself to do work, just start slowly with something you enjoy. It will help to ease you into your work and by the time you get to something more challenging you will hopefully be in the right mindset to get it done.

Tip 3: Turn off all your electronics

The amount of times I have used the 'but I need the internet!' excuse is shameful. It's just because I know that without all my gadgetry I will have to just get down to work. However, it really does help to just get out of the cyber-connected world and challenge your mind for a bit. I always give my laptop to my sister to hide in the house so I won't be tempted to just peek at Facebook or YouTube. But if you really do need the internet, go and sit where someone else is working so that you can keep an eye on each other and encourage each other do work!

Tip 4: Take breaks

Don't be so hard on yourself and work like a slave without taking a breather every (half) hour. It's proven that the human brain can't focus for more than 45 minutes so don't force it to. But, make sure it's no longer that 10 minutes and don't you dare go anywhere near your phone/laptop/computer or whatever you have disciplined yourself to stay away from. It's so important that you don't get tempted because once you go on it, the whole cycle will start again. Maybe go outside, ring a friend (on the house phone;) or go and chat to a sibling/parent. Just take a gentle breather to give your mind a rest and then get back to it.

Tip 5: Brain food

Make sure you don't starve/parch yourself. Before you start have a tasty plate of healthy snacks; fruit is a good one. But if you occasionally do need the odd chunk of chocolate, just go for it because it can help to stimulate the brain. Also, make sure you drink lots because it really does help refresh your mind and stop you from getting headaches. But water is best because fizzy drinks make you really tired after the sugar high has worn off.

And finally...

Tip 6: Reward yourself!

If you have done what you needed to do without distraction, you should be really proud of yourself! Make sure you don't finish too late so you can then relax and watch TV, go on your laptop, whatever; just indulge yourself and know that you worked hard and deserve it! There's nothing worse that knowing you have cheated yourself and going to bed thinking 'I could have done more today...' But there is also nothing better that the satisfaction of having done everything on your list and seriously deserving a good relaxing time afterwards.

I really hoped this helped guys! I know that it is just so difficult to motivate yourself but if you really try then you can reward yourself at the end :) 

Now get off blogger and back to what you were supposed to be doing!

Until next time!

xxxx

If you go down to the woods today...

Thought this was amazing...

And how do you pronounce this?

Such a beautiful view...

Got a bit snaphappy I think..

Where will this lead?

Kissing gate ;)

Loving the autumnal atmosphere

Berries!

yum yum

My faves

Shabby, but I love em

Hullo eye!

Yes, it is a heart shaped rock.

Apple orchard

Yesterday, me and my family went on a lovely walk in Kent because it was such a nice 

sunny day and we rarely get that here in England. It was so nice to breath some fresh air and be away from busy London life. It just made me realise, there is a lot more going on out there than you realise when you're cooped up in your room doing revision. So I challenge all you readers out there to take a break once in a while and venture out into the unknown (even the park will do!) and look at things from a different perspective!

xxxx

BarryM hype!

Lip gloss 'Toffee' - Waterproof eye-liner 'Old Black' - Nail paint 'Cappuccino' - Lipstick '151 Sunset'

Hiya!

So far this month I've been through a fair few products, but the brand that has really stood out to me as my favourite is BarryM. I have quite a collection of their nail varnishes and two of their brushes, but I'd never before properly looked at their wider range of stuff. So here I'm just going to mention 4 things that I've been absolutely loving in September.

First of all, this lip gloss in the shade 'Toffee', a beautiful nude-y brown with subtle shimmer.

The packaging is simple, but not too tacky

It smells exactly like toffee (obviously) which I love

It isn't sticky at all but lovely and smooth to apply

The only thing is, it doesn't last that long on my lips, which is a shame

All in all, I love everything about this lip gloss, the smell, the texture, the packaging and  gorgeous sheen it gives my lips. The only let down is that it is quite sheer and doesn't make a whole lot of difference to my lips and because of this it seems to wear off quite quickly. But for £4.49 it is pretty good and I love wearing it.

Next up is the Waterproof Eyeliner in 'Old Black', the deepest, most pigmented eyeliner I have ever seen.

The packaging itself is not that bad, only the plastic it was packaged in annoyed me slightly. It was a real pain to take off and so the lid of the eyeliner ended up thrown away which is why I had replace it with an old one 

It came sharpened but the nib fell off as soon as I tried it out, so I had to sharpen it again..

Moans over though, it is the best black waterproof eyeliner I have ever tried. Ever.

This is so ridiculously pigmented and smooth and after it has set it doesn't move at all (It claims to stay for up to 8 hours!) The bottom half of the right picture is smudged straight after I swatched it and the top half is after I'd left it about 30 seconds. It's amazing and at £3.99, I don't think you can go wrong!

And penultimately we have the newly released nail paint 'Cappuccino', a lovely minky brown/purple colour. 

Comes in the famous BarryM nail paint packaging; sturdy and  well sized

However, they did spell 'Cappucino' wrong...

Applies okay, the first coat was a little streaky but another coat evened it out nicely

It has a bit of a muddy and lived-in quality to it, which I personally love!

This new nail paint has definitely been a success for me, and I hope others like it too! They have a huge range of colours, so I seriously suggest you check them out if you haven't already. By the way, it looks like it is a really good dupe for OPI's 'You Don't Know Jaques' but much more reasonably priced at £2.99.

And last but most certainly not least it is the lipstick in '151 Sunset', a beautiful coral perfect for late summer.

The packaging's not that bad - nice and simple, but quite plasticy.

The colour is so gorgeous. It's the perfect shade between orange, red  and hot-pink and can be worn as a statement lip or very sheerly as a stain.

It has a slightly weird, chalky smell to it, but that disappears as soon as it's applied. 

It applies quite smoothly, but I find that I need to moisturise my lips first in order to stop them getting dry. It lasts very well, although I would recommend taking it with you during the day.

I absolutely love this lipstick and it's bringing me back into the mood for wearing bold colours in the autumn. If you're slightly scared of wearing a statement lip, this is the perfect in-between colour for you - especially if you still have a bit of a tan from summer. This retails for just £4.49 so pretty good! They also have a huge range of colours, even um..black, so definitely check them out.

That's it for my BarryM rant!

Definitely have a look at the line if you ever get the change, all the products are pretty good quality for the prices they charge and they have a massive variety of stuff so it's most certainly worth a look.

I hope you found this useful:)

Bye guys!

xxx 

Home-made face mask: yay or nay?

Hey everyone!

Last night I was in serious need of some TLC - I was so tired, not at all looking forward to going back to school and breaking out. On a whim, I decided to make my own face mask.
Yes, I know, it sounds horrible and trashy but actually, using home-made stuff is really good for you!
But which one should I make?
With no avocado, or anything fancy like that, I reached for the massive tin of porridge oats that we have sitting at the back of the breakfast cupboard. Yup. Porridge. 
I put that in a bowl and mixed in some yoghurt and honey. Stirred it, yada yada, and voila! A real live home-made face mask! I was so proud of my work that has only cost 2 minutes of my time!
And what was it like...?

Laaaavely!

Yep, it looks pretty disgusting but in actual fact it was quite nice and cooling to apply and my skin felt amazingly soft and radiant afterwards; even my mum commented on it! However, it was really difficult to keep it from falling off my face which was quite a hassle and a bit of a sticky mess.

But all in all, I really enjoyed the whole experience of making and wearing my very own face mask and I seriously recommend it to you!
There are all sorts you can do, avocado, banana, even baking soda apparently helps with anti-ageing...
But that was it for today, au revoir!

xxx

Welcome to my little piece of the internet

Hello there!

This is the first blogpost I have ever written in my life, so please excuse me; I am a little new to this. I suppose the best way to start is by introducing myself. My name is Ciska (pronounced sis-ka), I'm 15, live in London and I love all things beauty. But I don't just want to be all about beauty because, let's face it, it is a materialistic hobby which may be harder to keep up. I want to write about everything, my thoughts on life, school, problems, fashion and everything else on top!

I thought a good way for you to get to know me would be by answering some questions about me, so here we go!

Describe yourself in 7 words (bleh, this is hard!)
Adventurous: I do love a good adrenaline rush and since I was little have adored doing things no-one else dares to do!
Semi-self-confident: I am confident in myself and when around others, but am also very aware of what others think...
Emotive: I can get emotional sometimes..
Impulsive: I often do things without thinking.
Creative: I love to make things different and do experiment
Funny: I'd like to think so anyway!
Loving: I love everything and everyone!

What keeps you awake at night?
Somehow, scary films or thoughts always seem to come back to me as soon as the lights are out... For example, I NEVER think about 'The Lovely Bones' or the Weeping Angels from 'Dr. Who' but when I get into bed and I hear creaking on the stairs...brrr.

If you could be anyone for one day, who would it be?
This is a difficult one! Um...if I was being materialistic, I would be Emma Watson. She's my favourite famous person and I'd just love to experience what her life is like! 
But otherwise, I'd love to be my mum when she was about my age! I'd find that so cool to see how similar or different we are.

What are you wearing right now?
Pyjamas! Up for a slob day today ;)

What scares you?
The thought of something bad happening to my family.

What is one thing you would change about yourself and why?
My lack of motivation for things like studying and other stuff that really matters because it really holds me back sometimes!

Right! I could only think of 6 so there you go. I will now send this blogpost into a black void where it may well get lost, but if you happen to stumble across it, do leave a comment :)

                                                                          ♥