There’s many things I do to ensure I’m taking care of myself. You must always make time for yourself- your needs, hobbies and care! I find that it’s always the little things that can make you feel better.♡

I’ve done a few sections on what I do to take care of myself, and I hope you can find something below that can help you, inspire you to practice or even add to your self care routine! ♡

ℳ𝓎 ℳℯ𝓃𝓉𝒶𝓁 𝒽ℯ𝒶𝓁𝓉𝒽 𝓇ℴ𝓊𝓉𝒾𝓃ℯ ♡

As a sufferer of mental health, I often find some days so hard to deal with. If I have a bad day, I always make sure I’m kind to myself. I love to soothe myself with music, light scented candles and lay in the bath. ♡

I also find that journaling is magnificent at helping you express your feelings. You can write down everything you’re going through and it will take some weight off your shoulders! Gratitude journaling is also great, as on a bad day you can read it back to yourself and assure yourself that you have many great things in your life to keep you going. ♡

Exercise is also another great way to help your mental health. It’s all about finding something that will make your day feel better. My favourite exercise is doing YouTube workouts- especially Blogilates! If you haven’t heard of Blogilates, check her out! She’s so motivated and helps you to focus on strength training. Yoga is also therapeutic. I do enjoy that! If you’ve got a sport or already exercise- keep it up because it’s worth it to make yourself feel good.♡

ℳ𝓎 𝓂ℴ𝓇𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓇ℴ𝓊𝓉𝒾𝓃ℯ ♡

My morning routine consists of many things, but it is fairly quick and easy to do. The first thing I do when I wake up, is to brush my hair. Where my hair is so long, it tangles up so quickly and with eight hours of not brushing my hair, it can get very tough to brush. Brushing my hair straight away is the most time consuming but it’s also one of the most important things to do in the morning. ♡

Once I’ve brushed my hair, I go into the bathroom and have a quick face wash. I only use water and a soft clean flannel. This only takes a few minutes but it’s great at making me feel awake and refreshed. After a little face wash, I pat my face dry with my flannel and use my moisturiser. ♡

I love moisturising my face and neck. It’s great at keeping my skin clean, hydrated and glowing. I use Nivea soft moisturiser. After I’ve done these steps, I then get myself ready for the day, by having breakfast, brushing my teeth, getting dressed and doing my makeup. ♡

I hope you have found my morning routine useful! Most of you probably have a routine, but if you don’t, I recommend you try to have one! ♡

ℳ𝓎 𝓃𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝓉𝒾𝓂ℯ 𝓇ℴ𝓊𝓉𝒾𝓃ℯ ♡

My night time routine is varied depending on my day. If I’m wearing makeup, what I’ll do is take my makeup off with simple wipes, as they get my makeup off really well without hurting my skin. Then I’ll use L’Oréal Paris micellar water (all micellar water is great though) to target bits of mascara closer to my eye and for other bits that I may have missed- it ensures all traces of makeup is removed. It’s also that extra bit of cleansing! I use my micellar water with a cotton pad which is soothing for the skin! After removing my makeup, I’ll use my moisturiser. ♡

If I’m not wearing any makeup in the day, I’ll repeat my morning routine. ♡

After my skin care is all done, I brush my hair and brush my teeth. Keeping yourself clean over night not only helps you feel better in the morning, but it’s good for your health. ♡

It’s all about finding the right products that work for you, but if you’re still looking for new ones to try, then the ones I’ve mentioned above may just work for you. Check my Instagram for these products- they will be on there. ♡

ℳ𝓎 𝓉ℴ𝓅 𝓉ℯ𝓃 𝓉𝒾𝓅𝓈 ♡

✩ Tip one- 𝒜𝓁𝓌𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓎 𝒽𝓎𝒹𝓇𝒶𝓉ℯ𝒹.
This is so important for so many reasons! I have a two litre water bottle with a tracker, which helps me to drink the full two litres daily. It sounds like a lot but with the tracker to help, it is much more achievable! ♡

Here are some positives of drinking 2 litres of water a day:

1) Clear and smooth skin.
2) Cleans toxins from your body, especially from your kidneys.
3) Leaves you feeling full so you eat less.
4) Helps you grow and maintain hair quality.

I can’t stress enough how drinking two litres of water everyday can help you and your body. Believe me, it’s worth it! ♡

✩ Tip two- 𝒜𝓁𝓌𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝓉𝒶𝓀ℯ 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝓂𝒶𝓀ℯ𝓊𝓅 ℴ𝒻𝒻 𝒷ℯ𝒻ℴ𝓇ℯ 𝓎ℴ𝓊 𝑔ℴ 𝓉ℴ 𝓈𝓁ℯℯ𝓅.
You may be tired but always remove it. Keeping your skin clean overnight is really important for having healthy skin. Washing off your makeup has so many benefits! Here’s why you should never sleep with your makeup on:

1) Eye makeup can cause infections
2) Enlarged pores
3) Dirt and pollutants stay on your skin
4) Skin ageing

✩ Tip three- ℒ𝒾𝓈𝓉ℯ𝓃 𝓉ℴ 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝒹.
One of the best ways you can care for yourself is to respect what your mind wants. With my mental health, there’s days where I don’t want to talk to anyone. I listen to what my mind tells me and I do what I can to relax myself and start to feel better. Don’t ever feel guilty for putting your health first.♡

✩ Tip four- I am elaborating from tip three here. But, 𝒫𝓊𝓉 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝒾𝓃ℯ𝓈𝓈 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉.
I know that making other people in your life happy is important to you, but never ever put your happiness aside. You will be better at making other people happy, if you are happy. If you feel like you can’t do something, don’t do it until you feel it’s right to do so. Clear your head and take time out for yourself. Again, this is where journaling can help you to express yourself and keep your mental health in a good place. I often find myself listening to relaxing music to empty my worries out of my mind. I’ve even made myself a playlist full of soothing music! It really helps a lot! ♡

✩ Tip five- 𝒮𝓅ℯ𝒶𝓀 𝓊𝓅.
If I feel ready to do so, I’ll speak to my family and friends. My mum has always been supportive and she gives great advice. Speak to your favourite people! Even a drink and chat can help you express how you feel. Bottling in your sadness has so many negative impacts on your mental health, but also on your physical health. But always remember, the people who love you most, don’t want to see you so sad and hurt.♡

✩ Tip six- 𝒟ℴ 𝓈ℴ𝓂ℯ𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓀ℯ𝓈 𝓎ℴ𝓊 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝓎.
I find that doing something creative helps me focus and stay positive. I’m working on a scrapbook that reflects my favourite moments, for example, being at university, school achievements and personal momentous that make me realise how far I’ve come and that life is a journey worth exploring! If scrapbooking isn’t your thing, there’s always sewing, drawing, painting, singing, photography, just to name a few. Or failing that, sport is brilliant at keeping you happy. I used to play basketball a lot, and I’m slowly getting myself back into it. I haven’t played for a few years but I can’t wait to start again! I also used to do gymnastics, so I’m following this route too. Do a hobby that’s best suited for you and know that you are talented and amazing. ♡

✩ Tip seven- 𝒮𝓉ℴ𝓅 𝓈ℯ𝓁𝒻 𝒸𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒾𝓈𝒾𝓃𝑔.
One of the best things about self care is that it’s not just what you look like or how glamorous you are- it stems much deeper. Mental self care matters too. Criticising yourself will only make you feel worse. Remembering things that you have succeeded at, will help you realise just how much potential you really have. Everybody has a success. It’s easy to say to stop being critical of yourself but, putting in the effort to praise yourself during hard work and goal achievements will be the first step. If you keep that mindset, it will get easier to work with yourself and not against yourself. Once you work with yourself, you can do anything that you put your mind to. ♡

✩ Tip eight- ℬℯ𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒸ℴ𝓃𝒻𝒾𝒹ℯ𝓃𝓉 𝒾𝓃 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 ℴ𝓌𝓃 𝓈𝓀𝒾𝓃.
If you struggle with being confident about yourself then this is for you. But if you feel great about yourself then you won’t need to read this. There is always a way to make yourself feel comfortable with who you are on the inside and outside. Imperfections don’t mean you aren’t perfect. Remember that in this whole world, there is only one of you. If you really struggle to see what you like about yourself, ask others what they like about you and think about what they say. Other people tend to notice more positive qualities about ourselves than what we do. Write it down if you must! ♡

✩ Tip nine- 𝒞𝓇ℯ𝒶𝓉ℯ 𝒶 𝓇ℴ𝓊𝓉𝒾𝓃ℯ 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓌ℴ𝓇𝓀𝓈 𝒻ℴ𝓇 𝓎ℴ𝓊. Routines are a great way to structure your days! There’s so many you can have too! They can vary from beauty (skin care, makeup and haircare) to studying and dieting for example. I have certain days where I will study and exercise. You must create one that keeps you motivated and fits in well with your lifestyle. If you have a goal to keep your skin more healthy, you could create a routine of cleansing, using a face mask and then moisturising to ensure your skin is being looked after. These routines don’t have to be long, complicated and tedious- you can create a small, but powerful routine to make yourself feel amazing. ♡

✩ Tip ten- 𝒟ℴ𝓃'𝓉 𝑔𝒾𝓋ℯ 𝓊𝓅 𝒽ℴ𝓅ℯ.
No matter what you want in life, go for your biggest dreams and do anything you can to achieve them! Push yourself to achieve your goals and remember that it’ll all be worth it. You got this! ♡

Remember, 𝒮ℯ𝓁𝒻 𝒸𝒶𝓇ℯ 𝒾𝓈 𝓃ℴ𝓉 𝓈ℯ𝓁𝒻𝒾𝓈𝒽. I really hope this section has helped you! ♡

𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒰𝓃𝒾𝓋ℯ𝓇𝓈𝒾𝓉𝓎 𝒜𝒹𝓋𝒾𝒸ℯ♡

When I first got my university placement, I made a list of everything I might need. I’ve always had this habit of being organised, and creating a list helped me to remember everything! I always arrived into university with everything I needed! Here is my list as an example to get you started ♡

✩ Plenty of multicoloured highlighters- this will help you colour co-ordinate your notes. I used to highlight key facts in one colour, definitions in another colour and references in another. I then used the other colours for any other information. This will help you find important notes easily in your notebook.♡

✩ I also made sure I had plenty of plain white paper (or choose a colour of your choice). This can be used for mind maps and rough notes. I swear by the use of plain paper! You can use it for so many things! I stuck down the finished mind map in my notebook for reference. This was also helpful with calculations. If you study a subject without calculations, you can use it as a board of ideas. This a branch of all of your ideas and you can add underneath your branch your plans for making your idea as successful as possible.♡

✩ Buy post it notes. This is key! Post it notes are great for little reminders. If I had an essay due, I would write the date on the note and stick it on my planner and make sure it’s on my study calendar. My planner and study calendar were kept completely separate, I will talk you through this shortly. Post it notes can be used for just about anything! I also used them to write down academic sources that may be useful for my essay.♡

✩ Buy a planner and study calendar. Your planner and study calendar are completely different. With your planner, you can write more detailed plans. Whereas your study calendar is a weekday and weekend schedule for your studies. On my study calendar, I had finance to study on one day, then Human Resources on another. On my study calendar I also wrote down days of exams, essays and presentations, so I would be prepared with revision prior to what I had on. So, with my planner, I would have a to do list, for example, on Monday (study day one) look at academic resources about job effectiveness in the workplace. This helped me stay organised with my studies. ♡

✩ Make sure you have folders. I had two folders, I used one for holding my plain paper as I kept my notebook separate from my plain paper. It’s essential to never put important print outs in your notebook. Keep it tidy by putting your papers in your folders. I had a bigger folder for holding my academic sources. I had sections for each module. Also in this same folder, my essay sheet would be at the front. My folder was very organised and the work was easy to find.♡

On a non study related list, I planned out what else I would benefit from. I would always get my bag ready for university the day before my lectures, and I would segregate my things in my bag. Here’s what I had in my bag and recommend taking with you to university ♡

✩ Calculator (if needed)
✩ Makeup bag with your essentials (for example tablets, earphones, glasses etc)
✩ Makeup and hair brush (my hair always needed brushing especially on rainy and windy days)
✩ Notebook
✩ Folder with spare paper
✩ Pencil case
✩ Planner
✩ Phone charger
✩ Post it notes
✩ Water bottle (it’s important to stay hydrated during your lessons)

(I would eat lunch at university)

I hope my tips help you be organised for starting university! Good luck ♡

𝒟𝓊𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒰𝓃𝒾𝓋ℯ𝓇𝓈𝒾𝓉𝓎 𝒜𝒹𝓋𝒾𝒸ℯ♡

University can be so stressful at times but it’s also fun when you have a get together with friends and have a drink! Study groups and teamwork always terrified me but in the end I found it so fun and you can learn loads while having a good time! So here’s my tips and advice to you while you study hard ♡

✩ Don’t force yourself to over work. This is so important, if you’re working on something huge such as a presentation, essay, poster portfolio or exam, take your time and think about what you need to put into it. With a presentation, poster, portfolio or essay you can write a plan, of everything you need, you can plan out all your content so that you can get your marks where they’re due. Whereas in an exam, you don’t get that sort of time, but you can gain your marks by content, structure and examples. Take a break if you feel too stressed and remember that you can do this!♡

✩ If you get anxious with speaking in front of your class, like me, this can make you feel inadequate and scared to the point where you want to flee and not speak. University courses tend to include presentations, and in some circumstances, public speaking and it can really stress you out. I used to have panic attacks which were so bad that I had to resort to medication. My advice on this, is to breathe. It sounds so basic but trust me it works! Before my presentations and speaking aloud, I would breathe, relax my body to have a better posture and focus on the moment. What matters is your effort and getting your information across. While you’re doing the talking, it gets less scary. If you’re in a group, it’s not as half as terrifying! You’ll find that after you get through your first few presentations, or public speaking and you’ll find ways to get yourself through it and hopefully you won’t be as anxious!♡

✩ Take the time to practice self care. If you haven’t read my self care routine, it’s worth taking a look at. Studying can consume a lot of your time and be tedious. After a good study session, there’s so many things you can do to de-stress and relax, and here are some examples,

✩ Listen to a relaxing playlist- If you already have one, then great stuff! If you don’t, I highly recommend it! You can name your playlist, mine is called relaxation.
✩ Exercise- I put on some music and do my favourite exercise which is on my exercise bike and I do yoga and Pilates, these can be really helpful at making your mind rest.
✩ Do a hobby of your choice, you can mediate, sew, draw, paint, blog, scrapbook making or read a book. Whatever it is, make sure it relaxes you!
✩ Run yourself a bubble bath
✩ Call your friends or meet them
✩ Watch a movie

There’s so much more you can do to relax! Do what suits you and always put your mental and physical health first. If you don’t feel great, you won’t work at your best! ♡

I really hope my tips for your university journey has helped and that you feel reassured in doing your studies! Go get your dreams my angels! I wish you the best of luck! ♡

When it comes to Instagram, I like to have everything planned out! Pink is favourite colour and I always have to add it on every story or post! Here is a list of what I use, the benefits and the process♡

✩ Storyluxe- I use Storyluxe on almost every story. There are many templates that I love so much! I also use this to create some of my collages too! You can add borders and remove text from your frames. I save my most used frames for easier creating! Storyluxe is very easy to use and the subscription price isn’t too bad either! It’s worth it to make your stories look so good! As soon as you add a pretty background, it will save it and this saves a lot of time! The benefits go on! You can create beautiful layouts in seconds! I highly recommend it!♡

✩ Over (now known as GoDaddy studio) this is what I use for my fonts on my stories. I use Bellisia script the most! It’s so elegant and pretty! You can find all sorts of fonts that will suit your style! I take the finished Storyluxe image or video, open over and add my text. You can also add graphics on your images or videos- it’s so easy to use and it always looks amazing! You don’t always need to buy Pro, but it will depend on what font you fancy. Again, it takes seconds to get what you want, and I use it quite a lot, but lately I’ve been using Instagram fonts, which are nice but there’s limited styles. I do highly recommend over for gorgeous fonts!♡

✩ Canva- I really enjoy using Canva! There’s many other templates that you can use to create your stories. You can change the background and add text like storyluxe. I use canva for my square photos, as the template for it is so pretty! There’s many other templates I adore! There’s also many other fonts on canva and these fonts are just as gorgeous as over fonts. I create all of my wallpapers on canva. When it comes to templates other than square ones, I use blog pixie’s templates that have already been created, all you do is add a photo and then you can add text. It’s so easy! Canva also saves your designs and when apps do this, it makes creating much faster. I will point out that it’s less stressful when you know what template you’re using ahead of creating! I highly recommend canva too!♡

✩ Clipart- Now this is very important for making your stories look extra beautiful! Many people compliment me on my little pink bows and flowers, and clipart is the secret weapon I use for my stories! There is so many clipart sets by many talented people! I purchase my clipart on Etsy, and I always keep an eye out for new pink pretty art! Here are some of my absolute favourites!♡

- Hauteglamdesign
- Lilysdesk
- VillaArtStudio
- LaViePrints
- MarmoladaS
- PhantasiaDesign
- CoffeeDoodles
- FrouFrouCraft
- PrettyLittleLinesArt

✩ There are some other designing apps you can download such as Unfold, PicMonkey, Seen and Pixlr. I prefer to stick with Storyluxe but it’s entirely up to you!♡

𝒪𝓉𝒽ℯ𝓇 𝒻ℯ𝒶𝓉𝓊𝓇ℯ𝓈 ♡

✩ GIFs- I don’t use gifs much but they can make your stories pretty too. It’s very easy to add! All you do is type what sort of gif you’re looking for in the square box by the text box- but it’s always better to search by the creator. I usually type in ‘Hgd’ (Hauteglamdesign) and ‘Martina’. ♡

✩ Background colour for story shares- if you share posts to your stories, like I do, you may want to know this trick! When I have the post ready to share, I go to my colour pen, found under draw. You will then see a little pen inside a white circle. Click on it, scan a colour, then hold the pen down to change the background colour!♡

✩ Changing question box colour- Go to add a story and click on create on the left of your screen. Slide across to ‘Questions’. On the bottom left of your screen, you will see a square which holds your content on your camera roll. You then choose a picture as your background. Once you’ve chosen and clicked the background, you click onto your question box. You will then see the pen in the circle. Click it and scan the colour you want and ask your question! Tah-Da!♡

I hope my tips and tricks have helped you on your Instagram story journey, and now that you know my secrets- I hope you will be proud of your own Instagram style! ♡

I imagine most of you reading this right now have seen my Instagram bedroom highlight. If you have, you’ll know that my room is very pink, cosy and pretty. My walls are painted lavender at the moment, but I am working on changing them to light pink!♡

To get your bedroom the way you want, depends on the style you want and the layout of the room. Always have a clear picture in mind of how you want your bedroom to look like.♡

You could start with your walls. Pick your colour carefully! I used dulux paint, it’s great quality that leaves a brilliant finish and the colours are beautiful! In terms of wallpaper, there are many channels you could go down for girly wallpaper.
Here’s some places where you could find pretty wallpaper…..

✩ The range
✩ B & Q
✩ Amazon
✩ Dunelm
✩ Rocky Mountain Decals
✩ Woodchip & Magnolia
✩ Wallpaper Direct

These are only some suggestions but finding wallpaper places can be pretty easy. However, choosing a wallpaper that will make your bedroom stand out and match your theme can be tedious. ♡

Wall decorations are a must in my bedroom! I buy most of my decorations on Amazon, or the range, B&M and other local shops. They don’t all need to be the same colour, but you may get a better end result if you choose colours and shades that match with the colour of your walls. With my current lavender walls, I’ve gone for light pink, pale lilac and white decorations, This combination of colours has worked out insanely well! What’s even better, is when my walls are pink, these decorations won’t need to changed!♡

The furniture in my room is white. White goes very well with many colours and they look even better when they’re glamourised! On my chest of drawers I have a diamond knob and I’ve decorated them with pink satin bows- they’re Italian and are available on Amazon. I also add them on my pink picture frames and on my white shelves!♡

You can add so many accessories to make your bedroom so cosy and pink! I’ve added plenty of accessories like pink dream catchers, pink rose lights, scented candles, pretty pink bedding with pink pillows, pink rugs, and cosy pink fluffy blankets!♡

On my dressing table, there’s plenty of organised makeup and perfumes and this is always in fashion! Around my mirror I have pink lights around it but you can buy a LED mirror. Either way, lighting in your room is important for putting on makeup or taking a selfie! I mean, you can add so many different things to your bedroom! ♡

I really hope my tips have helped you to style your sanctuary the way you want! ♡

Life can be incredibly stressful! But, finding something to help you deal with stress, can help you to regain the focus you need and to make yourself feel better! It’s never worth being so stressed out that you feel so terrible and demotivated!♡

Before I talk about de-stressing, I have made a list above, for you all. It’s the 6 ways to feel better list which I thought could be quite useful for you all to look at! ♡

Here’s a list of five things I do that help me to relieve stress and to hopefully help you feel less stressed too!♡

𝒟ℯ-𝓈𝓉𝓇ℯ𝓈𝓈𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓂ℯ𝓉𝒽ℴ𝒹𝓈♡

✩ ℬ𝓇ℯ𝒶𝓉𝒽ℯ. Sometimes we can all feel like we are the point of crying with anger or feeling like we are ready to give up. If I find myself in a distressing, uncomfortable situation, with those emotions I will practice breathing. Believe it or not but practicing the inhale, exhale technique does a lot of good! Break down your stresses and battle one thing at a time! ♡

✩ 𝒯𝒶𝓀ℯ 𝒶 𝒷𝓇ℯ𝒶𝓀. Have any sort of break you feel like you need, whether you text or call a friend, have a coffee or a cup of tea or go to a spa- do what you feel like would help you to control the stress. When I take a break from stressful situations, I text my friends and think of something that keeps me going. A lovely memory can change your negative energy, into positive energy- do try it, you may just be surprised! Another thing I do, is take a break from social media (this isn’t for everyone, but I’ll explain the benefit as to why I do it). When I take a break from social media, I get to put my extra time into a lovely sketch or painting, this means I have as much time as I want to focus on something I love, I also make a few reels and write in my journal. The concentration of doing these activities takes my stresses right away! When I feel better I come back to social media and I feel refreshed! Then I feel like I’m in a better place mentally to then deal with the stress!♡

✩ 𝒫𝓇𝒶𝓎. If you’re religious, this is a great way to de-stress. I pray to god every night and reflect on my day. I find it helps me to relax at night and get off to sleep peacefully and relatively quick. I sometimes watch tv or listen to music after I pray. When I do this, I’m so relaxed. You never know though, this could work for you! ♡

✩ ℋ𝒶𝓋ℯ 𝒶 𝓈ℯ𝓁𝒻 𝒸𝒶𝓇ℯ 𝓈ℯ𝓈𝓈𝒾ℴ𝓃. Now this, is something that relieves stress quickly! Whether you put on a face mask, paint your nails, have a bubble bath or listen to relaxing music with a drink, this is guaranteed to help you relax! Just remember that stresses can be managed better when you feel powerful, beautiful and ready to battle it! Never let your stresses get the better of you! ♡

✩ ℰ𝓍ℯ𝓇𝒸𝒾𝓈ℯ 𝒾𝓉 ℴ𝓊𝓉. Whether you run off your stress, cycle or punch it out, let yourself take the time to rid the stress out through physical activity! I do my Blogilates exercises and afterwards, my arms feel like I’ve lifted a million weights- it feels so amazing! ♡

So, there’s some things you can do to help your stresses become less stressful. There’s many other things that I haven’t mentioned, like reading a book, binge watching movies or your favourite programmes or doing your hobby (which is another helpful one) you must find something that will relax you! Remember this, 𝒮𝓉𝓇ℯ𝓈𝓈𝒻𝓊𝓁 𝓈𝒾𝓉𝓊𝒶𝓉𝒾ℴ𝓃𝓈 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅ℯ𝓃, 𝒸𝒶𝓁𝓂 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇𝓈ℯ𝓁𝒻 𝒷ℯ𝒻ℴ𝓇ℯ 𝓉𝒽ℯ 𝓈𝓉ℴ𝓇𝓂 ℯ𝓃𝒹𝓈. These situations do pass and during the horrible moments of stress, focus on yourself- not the stress! I do hope that this has helped you! ♡

Being an artist is really fun and I love to put in a lot of detail and effort into my work- and I bet you’re the same! Although, it can get tiring very quickly. If you find you need some help with your work and it’s process-don’t worry, I hope to help! So, let’s get talking about my tips and hacks! ♡

𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓇𝓉 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓉𝒽ℯ 𝒹ℯ𝓈𝒾𝑔𝓃 ♡

When I get an idea of my design, I always draw it out lightly. I draw it not too light, and not too dark. This way I can see if I’m happy with my design and I can easily see if anything needs adjusting, removing or adding to my drawing. It’s easier to do this if the lines aren’t so dark. Dark lines after rubbing out leave marks and that can confuse you- I know it certainly confuses me! I do my drawing with a light pencil, so that if I remove a line or part of my drawing it won’t leave any of those annoying lines! ♡

If you are using wood or a canvas, or any other type of material, always make sure you do your design a little bit darker than what you would do on paper. The paint you use will cover darker lines so don’t panic too much! Oil paint is the best at covering! I used both wood and a canvas during my A level Art & Design course, but do bare in mind that the paint will take much longer to dry! ♡

𝒞𝒽ℴℴ𝓈ℯ 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝓉ℯ𝒸𝒽𝓃𝒾𝓆𝓊ℯ ♡

Once my design is ready and I’m happy with it, I’ll then choose what technique I’ll apply to it. I always visualise what technique will look best on and suit the design the most. If you do this too, you’ll get an idea of what the design will look like when it’s finished- the process will take time but it’s worth the hard work for your finished result! ♡

𝒜𝓅𝓅𝓁𝓎 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝓉ℯ𝒸𝒽𝓃𝒾𝓆𝓊ℯ ♡

Always take your time doing this. Start with the bigger areas first, you’ll find that when the bigger areas are done, the rest of the work won’t take as long. Leave your detailed bits right until the very end. You could start with your background (if you have one) and work on the main image afterwards. No matter what you do, paint, shade or colour in, remember that you must be patient with the process. Don’t rush it! ♡

𝒜𝒹𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒶𝓁 𝒹ℯ𝓉𝒶𝒾𝓁𝓈 ♡

When your work is ready and dry, and you feel like you’re ready to add the final details, start with the easiest detail. You may find that this will get you ready to focus on the harder details more easily (you don’t have to follow this, but I find starting with bigger details then doing smaller details of my work was easier). No matter how you do your work, these processes may help you to achieve your end result- at least I hope it will! ♡

I’m now going to add some important tips that you may find useful. Many of these tips I’ve learnt myself, but some I have learnt from studying Art & Design. Have a little read of these tips! ♡

✩ Tip one- If you’re using plain paper to do a sketch but you want to paint it- don’t use oil or watercolour paint on it. These paints are for different materials. Acrylic paint would be your best option on plain paper, but don’t do it too heavy.♡

✩ Tip two- If you’re using a canvas, start with acrylic paint. This works as a great undercoat for your painting. Once your acrylic paint is dry, you can then use oil paint. Oil paint is my personal favourite! It works incredibly well on a canvas!♡

✩ Tip three- If you want to use oil paint but not a canvas, use oil paint paper. This paper has the exact same texture as a canvas and it’ll look just as great! You can use this paper to frame your work too. As it is the same as a canvas, it will need to dry overnight but don’t use too much oil paint on it.♡

✩ Tip four- If you want to use watercolour paint, always use watercolour paper. The watercolour paper is brilliant at holding extra water for blending and the end result looks amazing! Another positive about this paper is that it will dry quickly, but your oil paper will take a lot longer to dry compared to watercolour paper. You can also frame your work with this paper too.♡

✩ Tip five- This many sound simple but it’s a very important tip. Wash your paint brushes after every use. You want your paint brushes to do the job right, and they will if they are clean. If you’ve used watercolour paint or acrylic paint, you can wash them with warm water and washing up liquid. This will get rid of the paint left on your brushes. If you’ve used oil paint, you MUST NOT wash them with water. The best way to wash your brushes from oil paint is by using white spirit. You can get white spirit from various shops or you can buy it online. You must leave your brushes overnight to dry but it may take a little longer. ♡

✩ Tip six- Use your paint brushes correctly. Again this sounds simple but it’s very important. Use your bigger brushes for larger areas and your smaller brushes for details and smaller areas. When it comes to corners, however, I use a smaller brush around the corner so I don’t go out of the line and then use the bigger brush to fill in the bigger area- you might find this useful especially if you have a round corner.♡

✩ Tip seven- Now I haven’t mentioned charcoal or pastels yet, so here we go! Both of these will transfer so you must be careful where you use them. If I use them I will use a charcoal fixate to stop them transferring, you can buy the fixate online. By the way, charcoal is messy but it is very effective. I love using charcoal! ♡

✩ Tip eight- If your finished piece is a coloured painting done with acrylic or watercolour paint, you can add coloured or watercolour pencils for extra definition and detail of your work. ♡

✩ Tip nine- If you are sticking with shading your sketch, you can use a cotton bud to blend in your light, medium and dark tones. This will make your shading less time consuming and more effective. This is my favourite art tip! ♡

I really hope you have found these tips and hacks useful! And now that you know my methods, you may just create some of your best art!! I hope I’ve helped you!♡