Fashion, Life

Some aims for October

Sophie

Zara yellow jacket outfit

The past month has been really good. I thought it probably would be, because I always find I feel driven and excited in September, so I was pleased to find that it lived up to expectations. I wasn’t intending to dwell too long on it here – this post is supposed to be about October, after all – but now that I’m writing I do want to note a couple of the things I enjoyed:

    • I attended my first blogging event (a lovely evening at Debenhams Norwich, where we were shown some of the new beauty releases and very kindly sent away with some bits to try).
    • …I also attended my second blogging event, which was just yesterday! I hopped on a train to Leeds all by my little old self to go to the Bloggers Blog Awards; I was seriously nervous about this one, but it ended up being such a good day and went by so quickly. I loved meeting so many people I’ve spoken to online yet never met face to face before (special thank you to Amy for giving me a lift to the venue and being an all round gem!).
    • I went on holiday. I haven’t been on a holiday style holiday (jeez, how many times can I use the word holiday in one bullet point?!) for so long, but I’ll be doing a couple of posts on it so for now I’ll just say it was a lovely time!
    • September was my best month yet for UVs on Sophar So Good. The number itself is unimportant I guess and it’s so tiny it’s probably laughable, but in August my visitors actually fell below what they were in July, so I really wanted to get above July’s figure for September – and I did. Yay for small improvements!

Yellow autumnal outfitYellow Zara jacket outfit

I’m not too sad to wave goodbye to September though, because since landing back in the UK a few days ago I’ve been really itching to get cracking with the month ahead. It will be, I think, about taking pleasure in routine, finding balance, knuckling down, and, of course, enjoyment. Here are my plans for the month of October:

Sort my life out

Sorry to start with something so boring, but it’s an unfortunate reality of adulting; I’ve let a bit of personal admin pile up a bit since moving, being on holiday, etc, and I’m determined that this will be the month I get on top of it. I need to change banks, sort a parking permit, renew my car insurance, and all sorts of other dreadfully boring adult jobs. If anyone’s got any life admin hacks they’d care to share, chuck them my way because I suck at this kind of stuff…but I know I’ll feel so much better when it’s done!

Plan some trips

I’m plotting to squeeze 3 trips into the last few months of the year, and ideally I’d like to book them this month. I’ve already got a weekend in Hamburg booked for the start of November with my gal pal Maryrisa, and I’m hoping to get in one with another friend at the end of November and one with Rob too in December. Inexpensive city break recommendations anyone?

Yellow Zara JacketYellow faux suede autumn jacket

Make our flat somewhere we love being

I said in this post that I wanted to sort our new flat over the end of summer – and we did get everything we need, so the essentials are done and we can actually cook and wash and stuff. Now that it feels a whole lot more like home, I want to make it a lovely place to be over the winter months, somewhere that we’re excited to return to at the end of the day for more than just the fact it means not having to interact with the outside world (hard work). I’m looking to pick up a few throws, lamps, candles etc – you know the drill – as well as getting it all in order. At the moment I’m searching for a grey, white and yellow throw of some sort so hook a gal up if you see one!

Try some new recipes

I’ve gotten into a bit of a rut with cooking recently and feel like I’m eating the same thing a lot. It’s making me enjoy my vegan diet a lot less than I did a few months ago, so in October I want to find some new quick and easy midweek dinners to throw into our standard rotation – as well as perhaps some longer ones for weekends at home.

Yellow autumn outfitFaux Suede zara jacket

Pick up some good habits

I have a lot of bad habits. I snooze my alarm, I scroll Instagram in bed with barely-open eyes, I chuck things all over the floor when I get ready, and I never ever relax. They make me feel kind of crazy and flustered and very much not on top of things, so this month I’m looking to start doing little things in my day to day life – just things like not checking my phone just before bed, or actually picking my outfit the night before, or taking an hour to chill – with the aim of starting some habits that will make me feel more calm and in control. I’ll let you know how I get on!

Get back on top of my exercise routine

As I said in my post about gaining weight, I’ve been quite slack on the exercise front recently. The gym is one of my happy places, and I’ve been making it there far less than I am used to over the past couple of months. Most importantly though, I haven’t been pushing myself when I’m there, and it’s that, I think, that’s made the most difference. It means I haven’t had that wonderful moment when you’ve beaten your own previous best time or distance or weight and that’s something I really thrive on. This month I want to give it all I’ve got when I’m there and I honestly can’t wait.

Yellow faux suede Zara jacket

Start making Sophar So Good what I want it to be

I love having my space on the Internet, but I don’t really like it all that much – yet. I have plans in my head for a bit of a revamp…I don’t think it’ll be anything noticeable this month, as I expect it’ll be behind the scenes while I work out what I want (which will undoubtedly take a long time because I’m tremendously indecisive), but work on it I shall. I’d also like to write about a few new topics that I’m really passionate about but that I’ve barely touched on before – hopefully it will be well-received, but we shall see!

And those were my plans for the month of October – with the burst of motivation I always get in autumn, I’m really feeling all things hard work and self-improvement right now. There will also be downtime though, because I might be coming out all guns blazing but part of it is about finding calm and content. Hopefully it will be a goodun!

What are your plans for October? Is there anything in particular you want to work towards, achieve or enjoy this month?

Yellow jacket autumnYellow jacket autumn outfitEcru Zara bagYellow faux suede jacketFauc suede jacket outfitJacket – Zara | Top – New Look | Culottes – New Look | Boots – River Island | Bag – Mango

Photos: Rob Poor

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Published by Sophie

20 thoughts on “Some aims for October”

  2. Loved this post Sophie, well done on increasing your blog traffic! I also attended my first blogger event in September which is pretty cool. Have you been to Amsterdam or Budapest? Both cities are absolutely amazing but Amsterdam may be better for the colder months! x

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  3. I’m the same at the moment girl, since heading back for final year at uni. We’re trying to make our new flat as cosy as possible! and I’m sick of being lazy with cooking and eating the same old crap. Definitely need to try and jazz things up with a few new recipes. YAY to going to your first blogger events! I love this outfit too – that jacket is a dream!
    jen, velvet spring x

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  4. Nice goals. I am trying to become active, blog regularly and and I’m heading to university as it’s my first year. I love your bag and jacket.

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  7. Great post and list here!
    I feel too some serious life-admin needs – it’s all got left alone too long and there’s a few niggly bits that need sorting. Tomorrow I’m on it!
    If you’re after some good habits inspiration, maybe you should read Gretchen Rubin’s book – Better than Before – it’s AWESOME! I’m a bit of a superfan of hers anyway, but that book is really good!
    Holly xxx /// mrshollycrocker.com
    https://www.mrshollycrocker.com/blog/2017/9/30/12-things-ive-learnt-from-blogging-daily-all-through-september

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  11. Aw thanks for the lil shoutout, it was so nice to meet you! Hope you’ve recovered from your mammoth travel day! A definite yes to picking up some good habits, I’m determined to get my arse in gear a bit this month and figure out a bit of a better routine including more exercise and also some me-time that isn’t just scrolling on Instagram. I also want to book more trips although they’ll have to be UK ones – hope you manage to squeeze your three in!
    Amy xx
    http://www.callmeamy.co.uk

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  12. Ah so glad you had a lovely September Sophhhie 🙂 Your holiday looked absolutely beautiful! I am really hoping to squeeze in a few trips before the year is up too – eeep! I am trying to pick up a few new habits for October, mainly not rolling over and checking my phone first thing every morning. I want to slowly wake up, have my cup of tea, gobble my breakfast THEN check in with the online world. Also, to get my booty moving in the gym maybe three times a week… Maaaaybe. Immy x

    http://www.immymay.com

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  17. Wow congratulations on attending two blogging events – I cannot wait for the opportunity to attend one myself in the future. And you are looking absolutely gorgeous in the photos! Well done for setting these goals for yourself as they are all very realistic and writing them out can always be such a beneficial step. I can agree that switching up recipes and trying new ones is key to enjoying a vegan diet! And I am also looking at not necessarily attending the gym more often, but kinda mixing up my workouts, trying new things etc because I’ve found myself stuck in the exact same routine which can be boring and lead to stagnation in my process.
    I loved reading this and am sure you will have an incredible October! xox

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  18. Sounds like September was an awesome month! Loved all your holiday snaps and soo jealous of 3 more trips to come. I’m on a holiday break now until next year in an attempt to save a wee bit of money. You should defiitely consider Portugal for a break – it is super cheap and lovely! x

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  19. Hey that’s so great that you went to a blogger event I’m craving to go at one because it looks so cool and so nice to meet other blogger. Also your jacket on your pictures looks so beautiful.

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