Tips and Tricks That Help Me Read Books Faster

I don’t want to jinx things, but man, I am on a ROLL with my reading this year! Last year I only read 23 books in total, but we’re only halfway through the third month of 2019 and I’ve already read 28 books! I am super pleased with myself, and excited at what number I might reach by the end of December.

I’ve never had any problems with reading. In fact, I’ve always been quite a fast reader. The most books I’ve ever read in one year was 64, which was back in 2016, before this blog was a big part of my life, and before I discovered my passion for baking and crafts of various kinds. Since then, the amount of time I have put into reading has dwindled, but my love of reading has not!

I really do love reading, and always have. There’s nothing better than a good book, whether it’s one that warms your heart like a good Rainbow Rowell or Markus Zusak novel, or one that shocks you to your core and makes you wonder what on Earth you just read, like any of the psychological thrillers that have been taking over the world lately.

Whatever kind of books you’re into, one thing that everyone can agree on is that it can be difficult to actually make time to read, which is where this post comes in! I’ve been trying to find any spare moment I can to read, and have found that it’s actually a lot easier than I thought.

I mean, considering I work on this blog for hours each day, binge-watch far too many TV shows and work part-time and I have STILL read 28 books so far, it’s clearly not that difficult to find time to read, you’ve just got to look! In today’s post I am going to share the specific moments in my day-to-day life that I now fill with reading.

Even though some of them are fairly short stints, they all add up eventually and make that “to read” list of mine grow smaller each day, which is a truly amazing feeling. I hope some of these tips help you out, and happy reading!

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DIY Button Makeover ♡ Lips Appreciation Day

Just in case you’re brand new around these parts (if you are, hi! So glad to have you at The Small Adventurer!), here’s a little fact for you: I LOVE making things shaped like lips! Especially red lips! 😍

I just think they’re such a gorgeous, feminine symbol – plus, lipstick was always my favourite make-up product to collect! I have a lipstick in every colour, except for green.

Now, I may not have actually worn the yellow or blue lipsticks that I own, but they were still needed for my collection. Naturally.

RELATED: DIY Lips Drink Stirrers

Anyway, when I realised Lips Appreciation Day was making its way around again, I knew I had to get brainstorming on a fun post to make inspired by it.

Last year Daniel and I made lips-shaped jelly slice pieces (can we appreciate the photo glow up in just one year? Can’t wait to see how much better I get by this time NEXT year!) and they were delicious, but this time around I decided to do a DIY project instead!

This is a SUPER easy project that costs next to nothing, is easily removable and can be altered to go with almost any other novelty holiday that might arise throughout the year!

Now enough blabbering, let me tell you how I made these adorable lip-shaped button covers 😍

Homemade Bubblegum Gummy Bears

Is there any candy that is quite as iconic as a gummy bear? I personally don’t think so. They’re such adorable and delicious little treats 🙊

Ever since I made that resin gummy bear bracelet last month, I wanted to try my hand at making actual gummy bears, so I did!

It took a few tries until I got the taste and consistency that suited my own preference, but there’s plenty of room for wiggle room if need be.

For instance, these gummy bears are not as firm as store bought ones as I didn’t want the gelatine powder to overpower the flavour extract, so they more so resemble jelly (or jell-o, if you’re American!).

If you’d like yours to be more solid, you can always up the quantity of gelatine, I just recommend making these in advance if you’re going to use them for a special occasion to ensure that the finished product is exactly to you’re liking.

Also, in case anyone’s wondering, I did NOT use the same mould that I used for the resin bracelet because that would be dangerous as heck – instead, I bought one mould and cut it in half. I use one half for crafts, and the other for recipes! Now, let’s get onto how YOU can make some of these tiny cuties yourself 😋