Back-to-school student stationery.

I love September. Always have, always will. Blackberries, my birthday and back-to-school.

This time of year gives me the feeling of a fresh start, and I imagine hope that continues even when I no longer have a new school year to start. If I was feeling pretentious and French (should I say 'prefrenchious'? No, I shouldn't, should I?), I would use the French term, La Rentrée, but I'm not. Except I just did. Sorry. Moving on...

Summer is over and there's a chill in the air, and for years, that meant the annual trips to Clarks and WHSmith.

Oh, how I would argue with my mother over school shoes! Doesn't every teenage girl? Naturally, I always wanted flimsy ballet pumps, and she insisted I had sturdy shoes that would support my feet and last a year of daily wear and tear at school. We usually just about reached a compromise. But it was fraught, I tell ya.

Far less dramatic and far more enjoyable, however, were the end-of-summer stationery and school bag expeditions. Oh, the joy of a new pack of fine-liners, in every shade you could imagine, displayed in rainbow order!

It's rather excessive, but we used to get new school bags, pencil cases and pens every year. How unnecessary! But then I grew up and had to start paying for everything myself, and my student budget definitely won't stretch to new everything.

That said, a studious gal like myself really does need new folders and notebooks - ya gotta write somewhere! - and if you're going to get some, they might as well be pretty, am I right?

Like many an organised gal, I adore stationery. Pretty pads of post-it notes and packs of paperclips (ooh alliteration) make my heart beat a little faster. You may think I'm sad, but I know I'm not alone in my stationery loving.

One of my fave places to buy stationery is Paperchase - they have the cutest designs - and then of course there's Ryman's for your basics (both of which do a student discount yay!) But I've recently been kindly sent some fab pieces from Sainsbury's new student stationery range. Yes, Sainsbury's. I kid you not. And they're great!

The whole collection has a really young vibe, and most of it is what I would call pretty unisex - perfect for organised male students (um, if they exist, that is) who may be put off by girly prints and patterns.

My fave is probably this little notebook. Pink and turquoise are my favourite colours (can you tell?), and I love the simple design. I plan on carrying it round with me during my year abroad and noting down my thoughts when inspiration strikes.

But I also really like all these notebooks, with their vintage, festival, summery designs.

The top one's A4 (that'll be my 'take to school' notebook), and the bottom two are A5, so whatever your studying style, you've got your bases covered.

Sainsbury's new collection is full of super bright bits and bobs, including folders, paperclips, pens and pencils. If you're a matchy-matchy type of kid, go all out with this lot:

Or if you're feeling particularly keen to embrace your new-found freedom and rub your youth in your lecturers' faces, get on the range emblazoned with 'You can't be old and wise without being young and crazy.' #unay #freshers #craycray

Perf for storing magazines. Um, I mean lecture notes. Of course.

But I'm not going to lie to you, I think the most attractive thing about the Sainsbury's student stationary (sibilance!) has got to be the prices - starting from 99p and with notebooks at around £2-3, I reckon my fellow students are going to love being able to get nicely designed stationary at budget prices. 

More often than not, we have to resort to plain, boring designs in order to stay within the ole student budget. But as you stock up on Sainsbury's Basics pasta for the new uni year (and I know you will), why not venture out to the stationery aisle? You may be pleasantly surprised.