College Dorm Advice Part 1

You've just moved into a college dorm. This is so exciting!
You probably want to get unpacked as quick and possible and revel in the feeling of having your own space, possibly for the first time.

But there are a few things that you should do first!

Check your dorm information to see what you can do to your room. 

Can you paint the walls? Can you burn candles in your dorm? Are you allowed to smoke or have pets? Can you put nails in the wall? Are regular fairy lights allowed or only LED fairy lights?
These are all important questions before you even start unpacking.
For example, my dorm allowed painting so I didn't start unpacking until I'd finished painting my room.

Check to see what furniture is available for free.

Check to see what furniture each room is supposed to have. If your room is supposed to have certain furniture, you can ask for your dorm manager to get you the missing furniture.
Then ask if there is any extra furniture. Email your dorm or house master for this information. Lots of dorms have extra furniture for rooms. Ask floor mates if they have furniture they don't want or don't have space for in their room. Before exchanging furniture with floor mates, make sure your dorm allows moving furniture!
You may want an extra wardrobe if you have a lot of clothes, so ask about that.
My key advice would be to check to make sure your desk has all the drawers and that they work well, without jamming or any other problems.  If anything in your room is broken, ask the dorm or house master if they can replace it for free.

Now you have all your furniture. YAY!


Find out where you can get a vacuum.
Personally, I own a vacuum.
A lot of dorms these days have vacuums that students can rent for an hour or so. My dorm has several vacuums that students can rent.
If you're super nice to cleaning staff or the dom manager, they may let you use some of these cleaning supplies. A friend in another dorm has a good supply of paper towels and disinfecting air spray due to a well placed friendship.

Fresh smells.

If you're allowed to use candles, go for it! They smell great and are super relaxing. Make note of where the fire alarms are and how much smoke your candle is giving off. No one likes fire alarms. Be sure to put the flame out when you're out of the room.

My dorm doesn't allow candles so I have found a few ways around that to keep my room smelling good.
Get an automatic air freshener or get a wall plug in freshener.
Get a room spray air freshener.
Make sure that these two scents are the same or at least work well together. Both of mine are lavender.


Clean everything!

This is the most important thing to do! I don't care if your dorm has a cleaning service or if you've lived in filth all your life. You have to clean everything in your room! Move furniture and vacuum. Take out the drawers of your desk to clean. Wipe down everything with bleach and/or clorox. This includes your mattress. Most dorms have the mattresses in plastic covers so they are super easy to clean. You will be amazed by how much dust and filth there is.
I had to go over a lot of things multiple times because things were so gross!
Cleaning your desk, bed and closet are super important since you will spend so much time in these places. You may laugh at "spending time" in your closet but how often are you wearing clothes?

That's what I thought!

If you can, now is the time to paint your room.
I'll do a separate post giving advice on painting rooms.

Organize your furniture.

With everything clean, you only have to find the proper place for your furniture.
Once again, you may be able to have the dorm or house master arrange help with this.
If not, ask your floor mates for help, offering to treat for lunch in exchange for the help. This is a great way to meet people without it seeming unnatural.

Take note of where the plugs are! If you have plugs behind furniture, use extension cords. If you have cable or ethernet plugs, check where they are and make sure you have a cord long enough to reach your tv or computer.

I'd suggest having your desk in front of a window, if your room has any windows. You'll be happy for the natural light when studying.
Another good idea is to have a dresser by your bed, especially those of us who wear glasses.


Make your bed comfortable.

Remember to clean the mattress. So many people have slept on it and maybe not all of them have been as regular with showers as you prefer to be.

Your bed is a place you will be spending a lot of time in. Make it how you like.

Remember most college dorm beds are Extra Long Twin!

I would strongly suggest getting a foam mattress pad. These come in all different price ranges. I got a mid range one, about $50. That one has served me quite well these two years. People always say how comfortable my bed is so I think it was very worth it.
Do get one with a washable cover! Also, if you have a foam mattress pad with a cloth cover, I'd suggest getting two fitted sheets so that will prevent the pad from sliding off of you bed.

Also get comfortable pillows and pillow covers. I'd suggest a few firm and soft pillows. If you are a pillow enthusiast like me, get a body pillow. Again, if you can get a body pillow with a washable cover that would be best.
Silk and soft cotton pillow covers work best for easy washing and comfy sleeping.

Another suggestion would be getting bed risers. They are super helpful for storage. Things stay out of sight but are still easily reachable.
Your bed frame may be adjustable- ask if it is and for help, if you need it. My bed is quite raised so that it stores a lot of things underneath in large plastic containers.

One of the best purchases I ever made was of this from Walmart online. It even has wheels! Which looks a lot like this from PBTeen, but Walmart is a lot cheaper.


Decorative pillow people will tell you to get throw pillows and all that stuff.
Just make sure that you don't have too many things on your bed that it becomes a pain to make or sit on. Just because you were too lazy to make your bed before that 10 am class doesn't mean you won't have friends over to your room later in the day.

Moral of the story: Keep it simple enough that you can always have your bed ready for a friend to sit on!

Part two will explain the full process of unpacking and organizing now that you have a good grasp on your room.

Preview

Cuter Electronics: Cell Phone Straps

With my phone case, I actually don't use cell phone cases. But I used to so much during high school. I got really into them. Do you remember in Lucky Star when they talk about the girls getting strong arms because of their cell phones?
That was me!

I had so many. I loved getting my favorite characters from animes at cons. I'd switch them out based on what I was watching!

I gave the charms all away once I got the iPhone since the iPhone doesn't have a loop for charms, which was actually a big complaint I had when I first got the phone.

The one charm that I did keep I put on my camera. It's nice to have Miku keep me company when I'm filming.



This is the most similar thing that I could quickly find.

If you want to get cell phone charms, try these shops.


Tiger and white kitten charm DIY
$17

For those of you that are into crafts and needle craft, this is a cute kit for you to make your own kitten charms.


Kawaii Shop
$5- $25

I love this shop and use it often for stationary and pencil cases. The cell phone charms are under "For Mobiles." My favorites are product codes: AY-83X01(shown above), AY-45401, AY-72801, and MK-2681X


I think that MK has to be my favorite since it's also a screen cleaner! When cute and use meet one another I get so happy.

Fluff ball with bells
$8

This charm is so cute! It looks super cute. The shop has good feedback, even if there are only 6 reviews.

Lovely flower charm
$6, $10

These two charms are so cute. They come from the same shop which has a great sense of cute and sweetness. I don't know how I would choose. This must be the reason why I ended up with so many charms before.

NYC weekend getaway

No update this week because I spent the weekend in New York City.
Will tell you all about it :D

preview for next blog post

A picture of the illustration in progress.
What will the post be about, I wonder.

.Talk (Introduction)

What to know something strange?

I used to be ashamed of my period.

My mom was super open about it and talked to me quite early about pad, tampons, and how to deal with my period. But my grand mother had never talked to my mom about periods. It was a very different time when my grandmother was young; she conveyed a certain sense of ladylike privacy about menstruation  So there was only so much for my mother to say to me; she could only speak to me from her own experience. Despite my mother's best efforts, I didn't know that I shouldn't have a painful period. I wasn't afraid or anything, but I didn't know what I do now. My school had a basic class of puberty/sex ed starting in seventh grade, but I remember being so embarrassed by the terrible crinkling of pad and tampons in the bathroom, the way boys would grab girl's purse bags to make fun of their period products, and even the eternal fear and embarrassment of walking down the hall with stained jeans. Media adds to this pain: I remember reading the "Embarrassing Story" section of Seventeen magazine and having my horror about periods confirmed by the inclusion of certain stories.


There should be no embarrassment about having a period. If you are a woman who is has reached puberty, you should be having your period. It's natural and normal. 

There was a moment where I had a realization: I was sick and tired of trying to open my pads in silence. Everyone in the lady's room has had to or will have to open a pad or tampon. It's not surprising anyone- there are special trash cans in the bathroom specifically for them! I decided that there was no reason to be ashamed any more. Why was I waiting in a stall for everyone to leave in order change my pads? Why was I so worried about something all these ladies were going through once a month?

I've done a lot of reading and talking about menstruation, with friends and other women. Occasionally even the conversation with a guy friend. It's helped me to accept a natural process my body goes through. And I've realized that for many people there's a lot of ignorance about periods, sometimes even shame.

I want to share the information from talking and experience with you- I want you to have a better and easier time dealing with your period than I did.

You have nothing to be ashamed of!

So I'm going to be doing a small series called .Talk for Period Talk. Pretty clever huh? If you have questions on periods or other lady issues, you are more than welcome to comment and I'll do my best to make a post responding to your question or refer you to someone who can answer better than I can.

Asuaka Figurines

I'm actually a big fan of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Like a really big fan. So big of a fan I paint my nails based on Asuka.
My favorite character has to be Asuka since I relate to her a lot. We have very similar stories and deal with our difficulties in the same way. I want to be as courageous as she is one day; to be able to put up a strong front even in times of greatest pain is a goal of mine that Asuka gives me inspiration for.

I already own two figurines of her but still I want more. It's a bit ironic considering her aversion to puppets.
One was a Christmas gift from my foster family. It is of this calendar illustration.

The other was my first purchase of a figurine. I got it at Otakon and was super proud of it.

I'm very excited for the upcoming Sega prize figurine of Asuka. She looks perfect, especially the sculpting on the hair. It really looks like it's floating. Not to mention how great a pose that is for showing off her affected confidence.

I enjoyed the prize versions of Panty and Stocking. I'm looking forward to putting the figure on reserve. It looks gorgeous and ought to have a decent price. Wish me luck in the battle to reserve one! I'm going to do my best to work and save up for it!

I'll post about the second figurine my foster parents gave me. It seems to be becoming a tradition.

Asuka Inspired Nails

I did some Asuka themed nails. Check out the figurines of her that I have on this post!

I'm sorry that I'm not very good with nail art. Someone with more skill, please, do this with more skill!

Still, I think that this design looks super cute.

I used three colors based on her plug suit: Red, Green, and Gold.

The red is by Elf.
Green is Sally Henson Insta-Dry.
Gold is so old I don't even know what it is. It's very old and kind of towards the end of it's life so I think I'm going to get a new gold color soon.



First, I did a two coats in the red color, to get a strong base.

Then, I used scotch tape to section a diagonal along my nail.  I also went to desk, so there's a different background in my picture...
A suggestion for using tape on cheap nail polish: rub the tape along your jeans or any fabric to remove some of the stickiness. The less sticky tape will still stop overlap of paint but won't pull off the coat underneath.
I painted with gold and quickly removed the tape.

I carefully taped out a V for the green section on the collar of Asuka's plug suit. Painted with green and quickly removed the tape.

I also did a design on the ring finger with the same method and colors but different design.
Finished up with a top coat. Look at the final product! I think that this would be a great look for fall.

asuka video

Preview for the next post

Cuter Electronics: Cell Phone Case

View the Video

Site one
Price: $60

My phone:

Other designs:

My absolute favorite! I got mine a long time ago and so the style is no longer offered. I am in absolute love with this little leather phone case and it's held up so well. I was hesitant about the price, especially since the black case that came with my phone broke within a week. I was super worried that this expensive case would break but have found it well worth the price. It's kept my phone case in my purse and through more than a few accidental drops. It always brings a smile to my face when I take out my phone to know that my phone is safe and beautiful. The best thing about this is that even when the flip case is closed you can still use headphones or the microphones. Not to mention all the compliments that I get on it, even in class, on the T, and at parties.

Her shop is full of wonderful designs. Please check them out! It will bring a little opulence to even the act of checking your email on the go.

You can track your package which is great since these products are shipping from so far away. She packs things very well, no concerns about anything getting broken while shipping. Great feedback and I'd recc her to everyone!

Site two
Price: $39

This site features gorgeous leather work. They have so many great leather pieces.
I'm not personally a fan of phone sleeves since I'm always worried about the phone falling out but think that these are very cute. Plus they say that iPhones are a super tight fit.


Site three
Price: $15 - $25

My favorite decora shop. They even have holiday ones! Lots of positive feed back too, so you know that you can trust the shop. Plus she includes some extra sparkles in case anything falls off due to use. I think my favorite is the green Chanel case.


Site four
Price: $16- $35

If you still need more decora, this is another good site. The have crazy cute Sailor Moon decora cases. What's even more cool about this shop is that 10% of all order's cost goes to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. Isn't that great? You can look cute and know that you're doing a good deed.


Site five
Price: $4

I think that this fake camera case is super cute! It does ship from Hong Kong which will take a long time to get to you. But the quality is quite nice and the case is lined to protect your phone, even as you slide it in. Based on the reviews, this will get you a lot of compliments!

Site six
Price: $16- $40

These cases are so extreme- look at this giant Little Mermaid case! Or this My Little Pony case!
I don't know if I could handle this much sparkle but they do have more subtle cases. The studded ones look so cool and rebellious. My favorite has to be the lacy ones. I think I might get this style for the summer, hmmmm.
Another shop that ships from Hong Kong, but once again has lots of positive feedback.



Do you remember when the bunny ear cases were super popular? Or those plastic character ones? Like Stitch or Minnie Mouse?

I wonder what the new phone case trends will be for 2013....

Preview for my next post

Vlog

Good Morning!

Started my wake up routine with a cup of water and a plan for the day. For breakfast, I had some bread with Nutella with some tea wake up fully.

I recorded a vlog last night and am currently editing it. I had the brilliant idea of using the camera that our dorm uses for i3 videos since it's an HD camera. Super happy to be able to bring some high quality video without having to lay out the cash for a new camera. The new vlog's about cute electronic accessories. I should post the video on the 8th along with a related blog post. Please look forward to it!


Progress shots of the related illustration that I did!

New Year! New Look!

Sorry that the quality is so low; I think I need to buy a new camera.
Can you believe that I've been shooting videos on the same camera all this time?

New Year! New Look!