College Binder Organization

Last week I wrote about backpack essentials so, to go with the "Back to School" theme, I wanted to share with you how I organize my binders at school.

I've tried all different ways to take notes during college. What I've finally settled with is using binders to keep track of all my handouts/papers and to do practice problems in. For taking notes, I use my computer and put the notes in separate folders according to subject.

Just because you have to carry a binder around doesn't mean it can't be cute! Also, by organizing a little bit, you can make your binders functional to fit your needs. Here are some of my binder tips:

Binder Tips by preppypremed on Polyvore

A little more explanation:

1. I have a binder for my M/W/F and T/Th classes. That way I'm (hopefully) only carrying around one binder per day. Maybe at night when I go the library I'll have to bring both with me, but two binders is pretty light considering I used to make a binder for each subject.

2. I use binder dividers such as these to divide the binders into a sections for each class. In each section I put a folder and filter paper.

3. I make a LOT of notecards to study for quizzes and tests, so I need a way to store them. I use a pencil pouch inside the binders to store notecards. Otherwise I lose so many notecards inside of my backpack.

4. Finally, I personalize the front of my binders by printing out pics from the internet or making a picture collage. This year, I followed The Pink and Green Prep's tutorial to make the following binders:

What do you all think? Do you have any tips for school organization?

Fall 2012 Outfits, Pt. 2

I promised a second part to this series, and here it is! Using some of the staples I talked about in this previous post, I created some fall outfits for the earlier days of the season, such as September and early October.

Fall 2012 Outfits, pt. 2 by preppypremed featuring forever 21 jewelry

Information about the shirts and jewelry can be found here, whereas the shoes, pants, and jackets can all be found in this post.

A few quick words:

• I think Oxford shirts are perfect for the beginning of fall. When it gets a little chilly, just put on a blazer or trench coat for a polished look.

• I like these lighter colors for the beginning of fall, where I'm still mourning the loss of summer (sorry, didn't mean that to be as dramatic as it sounds!). Use a white, summery shirt (such as the lace tee pictured here) and turn it into a fall look with jeans, flats, and a cardigan or blazer.

• You can also wear your floral necklaces well into the season. Just pair them with some fall essentials and you're good to go!

• Though I pictured the same pair of jeans here, straight jeans would go well with the loafers and a darker pair could be substituted for many of these outfits to give them a more formal look.

What are all of your fall essentials? Are you ready for fall yet? (Because I am!)

Best Moments of the 2012 London Olympics

Well, the official Olympic torch will be extinguished and we'll be looking ahead to Rio in 2016. What did you all think of the Olympics this time around?

Besides the tape delay, NBC's so/so coverage and the Badminton teams throwing the matches (who does that in an Olympic game?), it actually was a pretty memorable Olympics. Here are some of my favorite moments:

Via

--Opening Ceremony

James Bond AND Mr. Bean? Okay, so it wasn't the same as Beijing's drum/fireworks happy opening ceremony, but it showed the rest of the world what England is truly about.

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--Michael Phelps Ends His Career Smoothly

Gotta say, I was a little worried when Phelps lost that first match to Lochte. But in the end he came through and earned 4 gold medals and 2 silvers, making him the most decorated Olympian of all time. I just want to know what he does with all those medals. Does he have a special display case for them, or does he just throw them in a box in the back of his closet?

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--"Fab Five" U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team

This team is the first women's gymnastics team to bring gold to the U.S. since 1996! Not only was the team as a whole strong, but multiple individual golds were won as well: Gabby Douglas won the all-around, McKayla Maroney won silver for the vault, and Alexanda Raisman won two separate medals as well.

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--"McKayla Is Not Impressed Meme"

I don't blame her at all for making that face. After coming all the way and being so close to winning gold, I'd be a little POed too.

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--Ryan Lochte's Media Goofs

Not only did his mom say in an interview that he goes out on one-night-stands, but he also admitted that he pees all the time in the pool. Guy can't win.

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--Royalty at the Games

I'm a huge fan of Kate Middleton's style, so it was so much fun to see her in the stands at multiple events, along with Prince Harry and Prince Edward as well. I'm actually doing a style post based on what she wore to the Olympic games--look for it soon!

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--Usain Bolt

This guy is a beast...first guy to sweep both sprints in consecutive Olympics! This video says it all about him (and I love Bob Costas' commentary in the background!)

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--Reading Gold during the Olympics

I heard about the book Gold by Chris Cleave earlier this summer and knew I had to read it. It's a fictional account of two best friends who compete in cycling for Britain and are training for the London 2012 Olympics. The USA doesn't put much of an emphasis on cycling, so it was so cool to read and learn more about it--it sounds like such an amazing sport!

--Crazy Gymnast Parents

I saw this from Meagan at Megs7827 first, and it made my day.This might actually be my favorite part of the Olympics. These parents are crazy. I was never in sports, but if it was, I'm pretty sure my parents would've been like this as well.

What was everyone's favorite part of the Olympics?

My Family of Four-Eyes

This year marked a milestone in my family's life: 2012 is the first year where all four of us have to wear glasses!

My mom's been wearing glasses since she was around 7. She's changed frames throughout the years, but I love the ones she's wearing now.

Here's me wearing my glasses. Usually I wear contacts, but I love wearing my glasses on lazy days. My eyes have been "bad" since I was in 6th grade, when I first noticed that I couldn't see what the teachers were writing on the blackboard. Isn't that how everyone realizes they need glasses?

My dad was a little upset when he learned that he has to wear eyeglasses last winter. As a pilot, it's important that he keep up with his eyesight...just so, you know, the plane doesn't crash or anything...

And we come to my sister! (and my dad...being strange.) She just got her first eyeglasses prescription in July and will use them for her large lecture classes when she starts college in the fall.

So...what I am I getting at with this post? With all four of us wearing glasses, we need to find a better (and more inexpensive) place to buy our frames from--specifically, a place to buy glasses online.

GlassesUSA.com is a website that sells men's and women's glasses for guaranteed lowest prices. The website is so easy to use. You can search glasses based on their style: aviator style, wayfarer style, round frames, oval frames, and so on. Their section of vintage/retro frames is incredible! Already I've found a few frames to lust over.




The coolest part of this company! They have this Virtual Mirror app where you can take a photo of yourself with your webcam, then try on a bunch of glasses to see how they'll look on you. I don't know about you, but I hate trying on glasses at the optometrist...the worker there is always making suggestions and hovering over you. So I'm definitely loving this virtual mirror!

(forgive the messy hair and lack-of-makeup...it's one of those days!)

GlassesUSA is offering 10% off any order of prescription glasses for my readers with the code Blog10! Also, they are having a storewide offer where you can take 15% off your entire order + get free shipping on orders over $50.

Any of you wear glasses? Use the Virtual Mirror yourself and share pictures in the comments...I'd love to see what you all look like in glasses!

--Becky

*Post sponsored by GlassesUSA; all opinions are my own

Warning to Dog Owners: Check Pets for Signs of Glaucoma

ETA: Sorry if it's taking me a while to get back to all your comments! It's final exams week...you all know how that goes.

I had to write something about what my family is going through. You see, our 10-year-old puppy, Maggie, is sick!

She was diagnosed with glaucoma on Monday. Glaucoma an eye disease dogs are susceptible to that eventually leads to blindness. It's when the fluid in the eyes is produced at such a high rate that it raises the pressure in the eyeballs and damages the optic nerves. 

Primary glaucoma is inherited and especially prevalent in some breeds. Secondary glaucoma on the other hand is caused from another eye disease, such as a tumor. We still don't know what type of glaucoma Maggie has. 

The onset of the disease has been rapid. Maggie started blinking her left eye constantly a couple weeks ago, but just last week no longer could hold it open. We took her in to see the vet and they told her it would be 6 months until she's completely blind in that eye. We can't really do anything besides giving her four different types of eyedrops (yes, four) and painkillers to relieve the discomfort. The other eye probably has a year until it's blind as well.

(My sister's friend captioned this photo, haha!)

I'm writing this to warn all dog owners: always check your dogs' eyes for signs of discomfort or pain! Maggie's probably had this disease for a while, and if we caught it early on we could've stopped it. Dogs can get this disease at any age, not just when they're old.

Here are some symptoms we initially noticed up to a year ago but didn't think anything of them:

--pawing at the eye

--excessive groaning

--fatigue/lethargy

--rapid blinking of one eye

--terror of being left alone outside

--excessive drainage of eyes

If you see any of these signs, get your dog to the vet right away! The eyes themselves were actually pretty unchanged, though they did seem to get a little red before we took Maggie into the vet. 

Maggie's going to be fine--she's just undergoing a change we have to get used to. It's really upsetting that she's becoming blind, but she could've had something much worse. 

--Becky

Oh, How Pinteresting: Dorm Room Edition

For the third straight year, I get to live in a dorm room during the school year. The good thing about becoming an upperclassman is that the dorm rooms suddenly get a lot bigger. Does that mean I'm going to get more organized and decorate my little corner of the dorm room more? Probably not. But I can dream, right?

Source: google.com via Becky on Pinterest

This is my college bedding (yeah, things just got weird, my dear followers...you now know where I sleep.) So if I had a million dollars and more time on my hands, here is how I'd decorate my dorm...

Source: huset-shop.com via Becky on Pinterest

I'd spray paint a cheap doormat hot pink, just like in this picture.

Source: apreppyeducation.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

I'd paint my old animal toys pink, black and white, then put them on top of jars like they do here. They'd hold all the odds and ends on my desk.

Source: gifts.barnesandnoble.com via Becky on Pinterest

I'd have this awesome Daschund bookend set...

Source: mydeco.com via Becky on Pinterest

...and this lamp.

Source: dormroomartsandcrafts.tumblr.com via Becky on Pinterest

I'd make something super organized like this, only wrap it in Lilly Pulitzer fabric.

Source: thecollegeprepster.com via Becky on Pinterest

All my chargers would stay on my desk via this little DIY contraption.

Source: mintlovesocialclub.com via Becky on Pinterest

This would be hanging on my wall...

Source: leslielovesmakeup.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

And this as well.

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But above all, I can't forget the rubber chicken. It's a long story. But I can't live in a dorm room without it. It's kind of a tradition by now.

There you have it, my perfect, organized dorm room! 
--Becky

Fall 2012 Outfits, Pt. 1

Since I previously posted about some cute fall tops I want to buy, I thought that I needed to incorporate those shirts into full outfits. Like I said before, I like to buy a few staple items (like a trench coast, for example) and use them for multiple outfits. Here we go!

Fall 2012 Outfits, pt 1 by preppypremed featuring a cable knit sweater

For information about the tops and necklaces, check out this previous post.

These are some outfits more suitable for the later days of fall, such as the middle of October to Thanksgiving.

Jackets


--H&M trench coat from 2 years ago:they come out with a new trench coat every year, and I find that they're usually inexpensive and are of a good quality

--Blazer: I'm eyeing this one from H&M. I like how it's fitted but still has that "boyfriend blazer" look about it

Shoes


--Ballet flats: as I've mentioned in a previous post, I'm heading to Gap for their cute ballet flats this year. I already own two pairs of black flats, which I bought either at DSW or Payless.

--Loafers: these are a pair of shoes I bought a long time ago but never wore! Now that they're back in style, I'd recommend Bass footwear if you want a high-quality pair.


--Boots: brown boots are perfect for early fall, but once we get into November and December black boots are all the rage. Since I'm on a college budget, I'm buying all my boots from DSW. They have some great deals.

Jeans


--Skinny jeans: Since high school I've been buying all my jeans from Levi's at Kohls. It seems like Kohls almost gives away the money with all the coupons they keep handing out! With the loafers, perhaps a pair of straight-legged jeans would be more suitable.

--Colored denim: Though I bought the blue pants (leftmost outfit) at H&M last spring, Gap has some colored jeans that are the same color but a little bit more structured. You can check them out here.

Part 2, featuring outfits for the beginning of fall (yes, I know, I didn't do this in order...) is coming soon!