Destination College: A Blog Hop

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Week three of Destination College: A Blog Hop is here! I can’t believe it’s already been that long! When this blog hop started, college seemed so far away, but as I write this I can’t help but think about how I’m moving in this Friday and classes start next week! I’ve loved reading all the posts you ladies have been linking up, and they’re so helpful for a freshman like me. Keep them coming!

A few of my favorite posts from last week:

Link Up Your College Life Blog Posts!

Welcome to Destination: College – A Blog Hop! Join Caro from The Caro Diaries, Jessica from Seeking Individuality and Gina from Gina Alyse as we talk about everything college this month! Link up your college posts (past or present) and find different perspectives about college life through this blog hop. Join us every Monday throughout August to see what tips, advice and real life stories bloggers have to share! 
The linkup will stay up the whole week until the next one goes live the next Monday, so you can link up with us everyday! 

The Rules:

1. Follow your hosts below: 
Caro @ The Caro Diaries | Gina @ Gina Alyse |  Jessica @ Seeking Individuality
2. Link up your posts about college life! 
3. Click over to at least two other blogs and leave a comment to share the love and learn more about their college experiences!
4. Use the hashtag, #CollegeBlogHop to share the linkup below or grab a button below to use on your blog!

Click to Tweet: “Join us in #CollegeBlogHop to share tips, advice + real life about college! #CollegeTips goo.gl/RNzBKF”
  Click to Tweet:  “College Bloggers: Link up with #CollegeBlogHop to share everything college w/ @GinaAlyse @thecarodiaries @S_Individuality goo.gl/C938Zl”


Filed Under: old, Uncategorized Tagged With: blog hop, college, college blog hop, link up

How To Make A Back To Top Button For Your Blog

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Note: This is currently a Blogger only tutorial, but I plan on making a WordPress version soon!

After getting a ton of great feedback for my last Blogger tutorial, I decided it was time for another one! I was planning on making a tutorial for adding social media icons to your navigation bar, but this week has been crazy busy for me and I haven’t found the time to put that one together. Instead, I found a super simple way to make a back to top button that I couldn’t wait to share with y’all! 

I just installed this button on my blog a few days ago, and I love it! You can use any image you want, which is perfect for anyone who wants to make sure this button matches their design! I also love how it fades in and out; it’s the little things that get me! Oh, and it doesn’t involve your template code whatsoever, so there’s no need to worry about messing your design up if you’re clueless about coding. As long as you know some basics about Blogger, you’ll be good to go!

Design Your Button

I made my button using PicMonkey, but you can use whatever photo editing method you want! This website is my favorite for editing/creating graphics because it’s free and has just about everything someone with my skill level could need! Maybe someday I’ll make it to the Photoshop level, but right now I’ll settle with pre-made graphics.

For my button, I just took one of the pre-made arrow graphics and added some text below it. You can get as fancy as you want, or keep it simple like I did!

Once you’ve designed your button, head over to a website like Photobucket and grab the URL for your image. You’ll need this when you’re inputting your code!

Create Your Widget

Go into the Layout section of Blogger and create a new HTML/JavaScript widget in the footer area of your blog. This is where all of your code will be going!

Add The Code

This is where the magic comes in! After searching for what seemed like forever to find the perfect code, I found this at My Blogger Tricks. They have a bunch of other great tutorials, but this is one of their updated versions with all the extra smooth scrolling and fading effects. Paste this code into the widget you just made, and add the URL for the image you created where it says “IMAGE LINK”.

Save your widget and you’re done! Go check out your blog to see your new button and test it out!

UPDATE: I will no longer be following comments on this post, so if you’re having any trouble, feel free to contact me!

College Shopping List

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With college being a new thing for me this year, I was pretty clueless when I stepped into Target to do my dorm shopping. A mattress cover? Drawer liners? Since when do I need this stuff?? Over the past two weeks, I’ve been to three different Targets a total of nine times, because every time I get home, I realize I forgot something else! Basically, college shopping can be stressful.

I’ve finally gotten everything organized though, and to help out any other college students getting ready to live the dorm life, I made a master list of everything you could possibly need. Seriously, I went way overboard with this dorm thing. I’m not even sure how I’ll fit everything in it. There are probably a lot of things on here that you already have sitting around your home, so make a list of those things first to avoid double buying!

Dorm supplies are a must when shopping for college! Do you have everything for this semester?

Don’t forget to pin so you can check things off later!

Around The Dorm

Laundry bag
Laundry bin
Drawer liners
Mini fan
Bedside caddy
Over the door mirror
Rug
Futon/comfy chair
Mini ottomans with storage
TV
Trash/recycling bin and bags

Bedding

Comforter
Sheets
Sleeping pillow
Decorative pillows
Pillow protector
Mattress protector
Comfy blanket
Mattress pad Be sure to check with your housing office for bed sizes, because your dorm may require Twin XL sheets!

Bathroom

Shower caddy
Face towels
Hand towels
Bath towels
Shower shoes
Bath robe
Toothbrush/Toothpaste
Mouth wash
Floss
Face cleanser/moisturizer
Shower gel/shampoo/conditioner
Shaving cream/razors
Hair products
Hair brush/comb
Straightening/curling iron
Blow dryer
Lotion

Closet

Tubular hangers
Scarf hanger
Shoe organizer
Hanging jewelry organizer

Desk

Mouse/mouse pad
Pencil cups
Calendar
Lamp
Bulletin board
Push pins

Electronics

Phone and charger
Laptop and charger
Printer, paper, and ink
Camera
Headphones
Power strip
Surge protector
USB
DVD’s
Network cable
Alarm clock
Portable Hard Drive

Kitchen

Silverware
Cutting board
Plates
Bowl
Cups
Coffee mug
To-go coffee mug
Microwaveable Tupperware
Microwaveable steamer
Microwaveable Ramen cooker
Microwaveable soup bowl
Basically everything microwaveable
Coffee maker
Microwave
Mini Fridge
Kitchen towels
Dish detergent
Food (I’ll leave that one to you)

Personal

First aid box
Allergy medicine
Cold medicine
Pain medicine
Upset stomach medicine
Itch-relief cream
Band-aids
Thermometer
Eyedrops
Deoderant
Make-up
Feminine products
Vitamins
Cotton balls
Tissues

School Supplies

Binders
Spirals
Folders
Stapler
Pens
Pencils
Highlighters
Tape
3-hole puncher
Extra notebook paper
Planner
Post-It notes
Paper clips
Scissors
Note cards
White-out
Calculator

…Everything Else

Disinfecting wipes
Brita filter
Umbrella
Laundry detergent
Dryer sheets
Stain remover
Lint roller
Lock (if your dorm comes with a lockable drawer, otherwise I suggest purchasing a safe!)
Storage bins
Handheld broom
Reusable water bottle
Backpack
Tool kit
Hanging hooks
Weekend bag
Paper organizer

You can check out my favorite items and products from my own dorm in the widget below!


Be sure to check out the specs of your dorm room before buying, some dorms are very small and can only fit the furniture provided, while others will allow for things like a futon and extra chairs. I’ve had a lot of success searching YouTube for dorm tour videos from my campus, so check there if you want a better idea of what your room will look like!

Follow me on Pinterest for college tips and more, or check out my new Instagram and get to know me!