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I love going for dates, whether that's with Joe or a girly date with one of my friends. Sometimes it can be hard to decide what to do for it though, so as Valentine's Day is coming up, I have compiled an A-Z list of ideas. I am hoping this will help people and also help me when thinking of date ideas.

Obviously, some of these date ideas will be harder to do with the current COVID-19 restrictions, but this list can give you something to plan and look forward to when we can go out and be free again.

A - Aquarium

Anything to do with animals is a cute day out for a date. There is an aquarium near us in Bournemouth which we like to go to sometimes and it's always nice to visit - especially the penguins.

B - Beach Day

This is easier if you have a beach nearby. In summer it's nice to be able to sit on the beach, but you can still walk along the beach when it's a bit colder. It's one of my favourite things to do and it's really easy for us living in Bournemouth.

C - Cinema

The cinema is always a classic date idea. A little harder at the moment with Covid but still, a movie day is good for a chilled out date.

D - Drinks

Again, a classic date idea. Drinks is always a nice option and you can go for chilled drinks or slightly nicer drinks like cocktails. You an also have drinks in or out, its a pretty versatile options. If you're looking to have drinks in, check out my cocktail recipes post.

E - Escape Room

I've actually never been to an escape room but would like to try it. I think this could be a fun thing to do on a date or with friends.

F - Farm Shop

Hear me out for this one. By where I live at home there's a really cute farm shop where you can have lunch or breakfast and they have the best brie paninis. They have chickens walking around there too. It's more of a countryside thing but I'm sure they'll have lots dotted about the country.

G - Games Night

One way to make a regular night in a little bit different is to play games and have a games night. 

H - Hotel Stay 

This is one for the future when the world is back to normal, but it's one of my favourite things to do. I love going to new cities and exploring.

Related: 48 hours in Hastings

J - Jump Trampoline Park

Is this just a random one because I struggled to think of a J? Maybe. But when I've been to trampoline parks it's actually been really funny. A bit of  more active one.

K - Kayaking

This is something I've never tried but it looks so fun and I would love to try it, maybe when it's a little warmer outside.

L - Learning a new skill together

I feel like this is a COVID-19 friendly idea if you live with someone because there are plenty of new things you could learn at home.

M - Minigolf / Museum

I picked two for this one because I think minigolf and museums are just as fun as each other sometimes. It just depends what you fancy.

N - Night in 

Everyone loves a night in once in a while, at the moment it seems like nights in are the only things we can do so we may as well try to make them a bit more exciting. When I have a special night in, I like to celebrate with some drinks to make it a bit different to a normal night. Say it with Champers have a mini personalised prosecco that you could treat yourself, your partner or your friends to for Valentine's Day, or for any occasion.

P - Picnic in the park

I love a nice picnic when the weather is nice outside, it's just a little different than going out for a meal or eating in your house.

Q - Quiz night

Throwback to lockdown 1 when we were all doing zoom quizzes with our friends. I like this for when you can't see people in person though, it's a good way to keep in touch with people.

R - Restaurant

I am writing this mid-lockdown and I am CRAVING going out for food right now. I don't even need to explain why this is a good date idea.

S - Sightseeing

One of my favourite things to do is explore new places and take nice pictures. It's always good to do this with other people.

Related: Places you need to visit in Dorset

T - Takeaway

Perfect for when you just want to feast and not cook. BRB just scrolling through Deliveroo.

V - Virtual Experience

This is another COVID-19 friendly idea and there seem to be a lot more virtual events and experiences popping up.

W - Walk

Another obvious one but still a good one. You can get steps in while spending time with someone so it's perfect.

OK, I am skipping I, O, U X and Y because I can't think of anything for them, let's be real. Let me know if you can think of any ideas for any of these letters!

Z - Zoo

This is one of my all time favourite things to do, I think it's such a cool date idea!

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For February, I have 5 great blogs that you need to check out!

First of all, we have Amber from The Unpredicted Page. Amber is a fabulous lifestyle blogger who I have been following for a while and I really love her content as well as her blogging resources and freebies. From university, to all of the lifestyle content you will ever need, Amber has you covered.

• My New Year Goals for 2021
• What to do in Stratford-upon-Avon

Read some of Kayleigh's posts here

Check out these posts from The Thrifty Bride

Discover these posts from Faerie Lifestyle

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This is a guest post from Alisha at Inside the Voyage.

Hi everyone! I’m Alisha a travel and lifestyle blogger over at Inside The Voyage. I graduated with a BA Hons degree in English and Media in 2019, and have since been discovering myself and my passions.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.

What Now?

I am positive that every University student fears unemployment after graduation. Who wouldn’t? I most certainly did, and to an extent, nearly two years later I still do.  I graduated in May 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Media. Though I celebrated the end of my degree with overflowing prosecco glasses and listening to the constant ‘Well done, you did it!’ felicitations from family, and friends. I could not help but hear that deep-rooted fear within my gut that consistently questioned ‘What now?’.

 

I did not know what I wanted in a career, never mind actually apply for a job. So, rather than rack my head around career topics, I decided to take time away from educational studies and future career prospects. I needed to gain clarity for my future. I believed I was only causing myself anxiety, forcing myself to follow fellow graduates into new exciting careers. I hadn’t found my calling yet, and though it sickeningly worried me, I comfortably settled into the unknown.

Travelling

I then decided to travel, I love the world and want to see as much of it as possible. I booked onto a two-month tour around South East Asia, though my mum was worried out of her mind due to my travelling solo, I was ecstatic. I finally had one goal set to reach that I needed money. Soon after moving back home, I landed a part-time job in a local bar and began working as many shifts as possible to save for my next adventure. A career was not even a thought in my mind, because in the present I had much more exciting plans. I finally believed that I had structured my life into forming a pathway that I should be on.

 

April 2020: Travel around South East Asia

September 2020: Start an MA Course (at this point, I was still undecided on what I wanted to do)

Being a Graduate in the pandemic

Unfortunately, this devastating pandemic hit and my plans, like many others, were indefinitely put on hold. I was now back at square one. Not sure where my life was going, or even what I wanted to do. Luckily, I managed to run from the graduate blues, hiding behind my excitement to travel. However, forced into a lockdown that feared question soon arose, ‘What now?’.

 

I now had all the time in the world to figure out what I wanted out of life. And my gosh, I experimented with plenty of things during 2020. I first started a “marketing” job, and what a mistake that was. It was not what was advertised, but I earned next to nothing, and quit on the first day.

 

Next, I started an MLM scheme, purely out of boredom at this point. That lasted a week or so before I put time into researching what an MLM scheme actually was and realised, again, I was barely making any money. Don’t get me wrong, some people do earn a lot working for an MLM scheme, but I found it a pretty exhausting way to make money.

Starting my own business

My next adventure and my most favoured was starting my small wax melt business Inside The Fragrance. Starting this venture has kept occupied and busy when I felt lost and demotivated. This is one hundred per cent a small side business for me, and in no means is it my future career, but it is absolutely perfect for the time being.

 

Now, like many others, I’m currently on furlough from my bar job. Thus, this free time has allowed me to focus on my side business and my future career. I have spent months looking at various job prospects and MA courses. Ultimately, this slightly freaked me out as I wondered virtually from one course to another, desperately seeking somewhere I could call home.

 

Finally, after nearly two years since my graduation, I gained some clarity on the path I am about to embark on. From one graduate to another, please don’t stress if you graduate University without a job. It is, and I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH; it is not the end of the world. If you’re like me, it will merely take you slightly longer to reach realisation, but once you get there, you will feel like you’re on the path you’re meant to be on.

 

My advice to you:

 

1.     Don’t panic apply for jobs. When we’re panicking, we often make rash decisions and uninformed decisions.

2.     Figure out what you enjoy, identify your skills, and discover the right career path for you.

3.      Don’t be discouraged if your job application is rejected. That one job was not meant for you, and there are always more opportunities.

4.   Use your free time to build on your CV. Attend online classes to enhance or learn to skills.

5.      Find your passion! It might be easier said than done, but once you realise your passions, you will feel much more confident in applying to that MA course OR job.

 

Follow me on social media:

Instagram: Instagram.com/alishabrisco

Twitter: Twitter.com/alishabrisco

Blog: www.insidethevoyage.co.uk

Related read: Top Tips for Starting University 

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As a blogger, I am always trying to find new ways to be creative. Although, sometimes it can be quite difficult to stay creative or to get the motivation to be creative, especially with the ongoing pandemic. Most of the time when I am not feeling creative but know I have to get something done, I need to find inspiration.

You may want to create graphics for blogging and social media or you could just want to start a new creative hobby while there’s less to go and do at the moment. You may have a small business want to create logos and business cards to promote what you do. If any of these sounds like you then I have some tips for you.

Image from Anthony Shkraba on Pexels.

Tips on getting creative when you are in a creative slump

Take regular breaks when you need to

Unfortunately, a lot of the time you can’t force creativity. The best thing for me is leaving something and coming back to it. If I need to create something and get a bit stuck on it, it will usually help me to leave it for a bit and give myself rest. Then when I come back to it, I can come back to it refreshed with a different mindset. I do this with blog posts a lot of the time too, sometimes I can write them so easily and other times it takes a while for me to construct them.

Use design prompts

When you are in a creative slump but have a deadline coming up, you may need to seek inspiration and look for design prompts. Design Bundles have so many prompts available to purchase for low prices. They offer products such as graphics, templates and illustrations to help you with your designs.

These bundles could be helpful if you are starting a new creative hobby too and are not sure where to start. They even have SVG files such as a baseball SVG and skull SVG which could be great for kids. Using bundles like these can not only give you inspiration, but can save so much time when creating too.

Image from Anthony Shkraba on Pexels.

Get inspiration from similar outlets

You should never copy anyone else, but there’s no harm done in looking to other outlets that have produced something similar to what you’d like to do and using them for inspiration. For example, when I am stuck for blog posts, I know a lot of bloggers have posts about ideas for blogging so I will look to them for some guidance.

Similarly, if you’d like to start a candle making business, it would be helpful to see what other candle making businesses are doing and what works well. If all else fails, just use Google to look for what you’d like to create and see what’s already out there.

What are your favourite ways to get creative? Let me know if you use any of these tips. I love being creative and always feel better once I have done a creative hobby or made something. You can get so caught up in work life or university life if you’re like me so it’s great to have a creative outlet too!

Related: 100 Blog Post Ideas for Every Niche

Wool of the King