Category: survival strategies

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How To Find An Amazing (Arts) Accountant

A few years ago, I went to my accountant with a costing question. He took a 5-second glance at my carefully-prepared folder of data, and utterly ignored my question. I was grumbling about this to a harp student’s parent, when she said ‘Well, I used to be an accountant … how about I take a look?’ She took away my file, pored over it, spotted a serious mistake he’d overlooked, and got me a refund of over €700. My take-away? It’s vital to 

find an accountant who really cares about you.

In my experience, the self-employed artist is a financial paradox: they have to submit accounts, but there’s generally very little in them. ! All a typical self-employed artist really needs from an accountant is…

  • one initial meeting with explanation of business models, record-keeping, allowable expenses, preparing accounts
  • initial registration with ROS and a demo of how to file a tax return
  • answering a question via email once or twice a year.

So how does one find the perfect arts accountant? Well, in theory your accountant will have knowledge in, and experience of, the arts. However, in my experience, this is only secondary to them caring deeply about your welfare. The lady who helped me with my accounts question was a stay-at-home parent who used to do budgeting for a fuel company. She didn’t have a clue about artists’ exemption, and wasn’t au fait with lodging personal tax returns. However, she is a really lovely person, plus hyper-brainy. So with a couple of phonecalls to Revenue, a bit of Googling, lots of tea, and a bit of craic, we figured it out together.

If you’re both on the same page, you can figure out the finer points of an artist’s tax return with a few calls and the ability to read.

It’s also really important to be clear on an accountant’s fees, and what’s included in their service. In my experience, there’s a massive disparity in accountancy fees. From what I can see,

some accountants are like handbags. Their price is based on prestige, rather than the actual product.

For example, the exact same accountancy service – auditing – can cost €800 or €2000, based on the status of the firm. Filing a tax return can cost €240 or €0, depending on the accountant. This makes it even more important to research your accountancy options!

So if I could go back in time and get an accountant for the first time, I would… 

  1. Ask MULTIPLE, seniorself-employed people in my artform to recommend an accountant
  2. Interview multiple accountants, doing my best to evaluate who has integrity, getting information on how they structure and charge for their services, and asking about their experience working with artists. 

So if you’re at that stage, you may appreciate these brainstorming questions … 

  1. Is there any senior self-employed artists in your artform you have a good relationship with, whom you could ask for recommendations?
  2. Is there any self-employed artists outside your artform you could ask for recommendations? E.g. do you know any playwrights, authors, poets, composers, classical musicians, pop musicians, trad musicians, rock musicians, visual artists, sculptors, actors, directors, or theatre technicians you could contact? 
  3. Do you know any self-employed people, whose opinion you respect, who could recommend someone?
  4. Best of all… do you know of anyone in your artform who double-jobs as an accountant? E.g. a theatre maker who did accountancy in college, an uilleann piper who’s an accountancy teacher?

I would ring up 3 people from that list and ask for their recommendations. (If I couldn’t think of any self-employed referees, I would simply Google ‘accountant arts <my local area>’).

I would ring up my shortlist of recommended (or Googled) accountants, and informally interview them on the phone / during a free initial consultation. 

I would then choose an accountant based on these factors, in this order …

  • their integrity – this is crucial.
  • how much of a good communicator they are – if you don’t understand what’s going on with your money, you are dangerously vulnerable. It is vital that they communicate clearly and promptly about your finances.
  • their availability – it’s no use having a genius accountant if you’re not a priority for them. 
  • their location – I like to meet my accountant in person for an initial consultation, and thereafter once every year / two years. 
  • their cost – all other things being equal…
  • how much I like them – bring on the craic!
  • their experience in the arts – this is a cherry on the comptrolling cake! 

So that’s my two bitcoins. I hope you learn from my experience, and that these ideas help you find a brilliant book-keeper!!

xÚ

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Decision-making: advice from a priest, a Google exec, and Tony Robbins

One thing I really struggle with is making decisions. For years I’ve read books and articles, listened to podcasts, and asked wise people (including a karate black belt and a priest) for advice on how to make good decisions. Lately I decided (! 🙂 ) to synthesize all the pertinent ideas I’ve found into one system.

1. Avoid and minimise

Decision-making is what shapes our lives, but it also takes time and energy. So how about conserving your decision-making mojo for the big ones? Be like Barack Obama, who only wears 2 colours of suit, and if you can avoid a decision, do.

2. Limit the time allowed

Well, if I’m trying to decide whether to do an hour-long gig, it’s totally ridiculous to spend more than an hour on this decision-making process. I could have done the gig while deliberating.! I agree wholeheartedly with former Google exec, David Girouard: WHEN a decision is made is much more important than WHAT decision is made. So before making a decision, I ask myself…

  • How much time is this decision worth? I agree with David Girouard’s advice: “There are decisions that deserve days of debate and analysis, but the vast majority aren’t worth more than 10 minutes.” And a decision should definitely take less time than the duration of the longest outcome, e.g. in the above case, less than one hour.
  • I also ask myself: what’s the deadline?

3. Make minor decisions in 1 minute or less…

If I have to make a minor decision quickly, I use my friend Father Ciarán’s trick: I imagine myself vividly doing option (a), then option (b), and simply choose what feels best.

4. Make major decisions using OOC/EMR

If it’s a complex decision I use Tony Robbins’ OOC/EMR system, which I find supremely helpful. Here’s an article on Tony’s site where it’s outlined: https://www.tonyrobbins.com/ask-tony/making-tough-decisions/ My summarised, slightly amended version follows…

Step 1: GET A PEN AND PAPER.

You’re going to write out all your workings on good ‘ole-fashioned paper. As Tony cleverly observes, if you try to keep it all in your head you’ll just end up looping over the same facts and conclusions. Boy do I identify with that…

Step 2: DESIRED OUTCOME?

Write your desired outcome on top of the page. If there’s a few, write them all down.

Step 3: WHY?

Write the reason(s) you want this / these outcomes. Tony Robbins says knowing the ‘why’ means you’re more likely to execute the ultimate decision. I agree, but I also find knowing the ‘why’ is a good reality check to see if this outcome is really what you want. E.g. Desired outcome: do a triathlon. Why? because I want to improve my swimming. Mental review: well, Úna, you could just go to swimming lessons… or do the swimming section of a triathlon relay team… or … you get the idea. It’s a great tool for clarifying what you really want out of the situation. Once you’ve confirmed your desired outcome is what you really want, and you know why, it’s time to brainstorm your…

Step 4: OPTIONS

Write out each potential course of action for achieving your desired outcome, no matter how nutty.

Step 5: CONSEQUENCES

Write out the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ of each option.

Step 6: EVALUATE

Evaluate the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ of each option. I answer the following questions for each pro and con:

Will this fulfil my desired outcome(s)? (y/n)

How likely is it to fulfil my desired outcome(s)? (0-10)

What’s the probability this will occur? (0-100%)

What’s the emotional consequence of this option?

When evaluating I may need a bit more information; if possible, a real-life sample is invaluable. E.g. when deciding ‘When doing artistic research on chords, should I also make a harp tutorial on the nice chords I discover?’ I played around with one chord (5 seconds), and then made a mock tutorial of that process with my phone (37 seconds). Knowing the difference in the duration of the tasks, and my focus while doing the tasks, was invaluable in helping me make the best decision.

Step 7: MITIGATE

Review the ‘cons’ and brainstorm ways to reduce or eliminate them. E.g. I was asked to do a last-minute gig when my harp was at the harp-maker’s being restrung. I would be performing on a loaned harp, so it wouldn’t be my usual performance standard, and I was worried an influential guest would form a low opinion of my playing. I rang the event organiser to check if The BigWig would be present, and … was told they wouldn’t be there. Con eliminated! Did the gig to the delight of all concerned!

Step 8: RESOLVE

This, for me, is one of the great gifts of the OOC/EMR. In the words of Tony: “This is your best option – and because you’ve looked at so many other possibilities, you know that to be true. Resolve that, no matter what happens, this option will give you a win.” So the final step is to decide, and then to be confident in your decision. Then, of course, you EXECUTE. He makes the great point that it’s better to make a decision, and subsequently change approach if necessary, than to remain in ‘paralysis by analysis’.

…. So that’s it!! I have finally decided upon The Úna-Guide to Decision-Making! 🙂 Below is a chart I designed to help myself out the next time I use OOC/EMR. Click here to download and use, and I hope it brings you as much clarity and motivation as it did me. Go n-éirí leat with your decision-making, and may your decisions bring growth, and joy!!

Úna

OOCEMRDownload
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How to survive a harmonic analysis assignment – if you’re not a classical musician

I’m from a traditional music background. For my undergraduate music degree it was required that I do a western art music analysis course – PANIC!!! These are a few things that helped me hack that skill-set, and pass!

  • Go to all the lectures. You’re starting on the back foot, so you can’t afford to miss any.
  • Read the assignment very carefully. Ask the lecturer for a sample answer if they don’t give one.
  • You’ll probably be asked to analyse a piece from the canon of western art music, e.g. a string quartet by Shostakovich, or a Bach chorale. If your lecturer hasn’t recommended a particular recording, go to Youtube / Spotify / the library and find a recording from an authoritative source, that you enjoy listening to. Listen to the presribed music on repeat in the background.
  • Read all of the assigned readings / literature available on the assigned work. (Make note of the title, author and publisher of everything you’ve read for your bibliography.) Highlight any text that seems relevant to your assignment, and keep it all in one Word doc. You can refer to this later if you need to write a commentary / essay.
… If the notes on your score are tiny and low-contrast, you’ll save yourself a lot of grief by creating your own score in Finale / Sibelius.
  • If you struggle with sight-reading, you may find it helpful to create your own score. But don’t worry – I don’t propose that you transcribe every individual note into your computer! A lot of the canon of western art music is public domain, and has already been transcribed by enthusiasts. So…
  1. Go to www.musescore.com , and search for your assigned work (If you don’t find the piece on www.musescore.com , search the internet at large for <title of your piece> and <.xml> or <.mxl> )
  2. When you find a version, spot-check a few chords in the new version against the original score, to ensure it’s accurate (I haven’t come across an inaccurate transcription yet)
  3. On MuseScore, click ‘Download’, select ‘MusicXML’, download the .xml file
  4. Open your music notation software, and import the MusicXML file (In Finale: go to File menu, click ‘Import’, click ‘MusicXML…’, select the relevant file in your downloads folder, click ‘open’)

… and ta-DA … you should now have your own score in front of you, which you can edit to help you learn!

  • You’ll need to look up bars, and then reference bars, as quickly and clearly as possible. I suggest that before you start your assignment, you put a measure number on every single bar. If you’re old-skool then handwrite it on your printed score. If you’re a techie, use your music notation software to add it (In Finale 25, click to ‘Measure’, select all, click on ‘Measure’ menu, then click ‘Show Measure Numbers’.)
  • If you’re analysing a piece with viola clef and reading this slows you down… how about using tech to change the viola staff to the bass clef? (In Finale 25, select the ‘Clef’ tool, double-click bar 1 of the viola staff, the ‘change clef’ window will pop up, select bass clef, then click ‘OK’)
  • More than likely, the learning objective of your assignment is the skill of chord diagnosis, and the concepts of harmonic analysis. Because I wasn’t a fast sight-reader during my undergrad, diagnosing each chord was painfully slow, and I had less time to work on understanding broader harmonic concepts. So I encourage students to work at their music literacy, but seperately to their analysis assignments. How about putting your piece into AlphaNotes font, which has the letter name of the note in its notehead? (In Finale, select all, then click on the Plugins menu, select ‘Note, Beam and Rest Editing’ and select ‘AlphaNotes’). Your chord diagnosis will now be exponentially faster.
Úna’s sneaky hacks: notes in AlphaNotes font, and viola staff in bass clef
(sssh, don’t tell anyone 🙂 )
  • There are loads of different schools of musical analysis; Schenkerian, etc. . However, they nearly all require analysing chords, cadences and tonality.
  • If you’re diagnosing a chord, but are uncertain about your results, try checking your diagnosis against the free online tool, the Chord Identifier. Input up to 6 notes, and this amazing gadget gives you a list of what chords these notes could comprise. In my experience the Chord Identifier gives many results, but is not exhaustive; I use it as a brainstorming tool, rather than an ultimate authority.
Chord Identifier inputting system
  • If you’re diagnosing a chord, and are unsure what it is, then I say – totally ignore the notes. Get the recording, close your eyes and LISTEN. At the relevant point, ask yourself… what note is most prominent? What feels like ‘doh’? Does it sound major / minor / diminished / augmented? Where does it want to go? These questions may bring you some clarity.
  • This is a decent index of various cadences, with audio examples. Again, if uncertain about the nature of a cadence, you could close your eyes while listening and asking yourself a few questions: How does it feel? What feels like home? Where does the melody want to go?
  • Is the melody modulating or not? Answer: if a melody has a chromatic note, THEN a cadence (even an unfinished cadence!), the melody has modulated. But … if a melody has a chromatic note, and no cadence following, it’s an inflection.

Agus sin é!! I hope these tips save you some grief, and help you actually enjoy the beautiful music of Bach / Shostakovich / Beethoven!

Úna

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Úna’s Optimal Grant-Writing Timeline

(or, ‘THE MASSIVELY, FABULOUSLY, WONDERFULLY, MAXIMALLY OPTIMISED GRANT-WRITING MASTERPLAN’)

Last night I found myself awake at 4am, cooking 56 meals, for no other reason than that I was avoiding writing a grant. Today I nearly had heart failure trying to get my grant finished, and may have set a Guinness world record for ‘The Latest Online Grant Application Ever Successfully Submitted’. I have finally decided that I would like to try a gentler system, and have come up with this aspirational grant-writing timeline for future endeavours. (And with that, I’m off to bed after eating a lovely pre-prepared dinner … cooking-as-procrastination has some upsides, at least 😉 )

Cautionary note: Prepare yourselves for a foreign concept. This timeline aims to submit the day before the advertised submission deadline. WOAH!!

 12 days before submission: Register for online system if necessary (takes 5 working days for Irish Arts Council). Invite referees to send letters; ask proofreaders if they’ll look at draft 1 of your doc in a week’s time.

11 days before submission: Analyse grant guidelines; get more info on objectives of the award by ringing awarding body (e.g Arts Council / hosting venue); brainstorm possible project activities.

10 days before submission: Choose project activity. Invite collaborators & ask for letter of support, costs & fees, CV, bio.

9 days before submission: Do draft schedule for project. Assemble all costings for project. Do draft 1 of budget

8 days before submission: Write CV

7 days before submission: Write ‘Statement of Artistic Practice’

6 days before submission: Assemble samples of creative work

5 days before submission: Do draft 2 of budget (… this time in Excel)

4 days before submission: Download and fill in first half of Application Form (for Irish AC, as far as ‘Details of proposal’)

3 days before submission: Finish Application Form, proofread, send for proofreading by others

2 days before submission: Assemble all letters of support, collaborators’ CVs and bios, references, any additional docs.

Day before submission: get proofreaders’ feedback and make final edits to Application Form

Day of submission: upload all files; double-check all files are uploaded; hit ‘submit’.

Day of submission deadline: relaaax! Maybe do some cooking!! 🙂

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Grant-Writing Tips

Aaaah, grant-writing… possibly the bane of my life. I will do ANYTHING to avoid it. But last night, as I was up at 4am batch-cooking 56 meals, I finally thought to myself ‘Úna, there has got to be a better way.’ And with that in mind, I have put together an aspirational schedule, and these tips for myself, for the next time I’m applying for a grant-a-roo.

Top tip: it’s so basic, but hit ‘save’ frequently. Including while working online.

–  With every significant change in your document, click ‘Save As’ and amend the filename with a number, e.g. BursaryDraft1.doc ,  BursaryDraft2.doc, BursaryDraft3.doc . Now if for some reason your document gets corrupted, all is not lost. 

– Timeline? I’ve learnt the hard way that I can’t organise mandatory documentation for a grant without an absolute minimum of 3 days’ notice. I need to start assembling this material a minimum of 3 days before the submission deadline, and ideally 12 days. (I can pull allnighters, but I can’t make other people answer my emails!)

– If it’s an online application system…  put all your supporting documents in one location, clearly labeled. This will save you hours in the eventual uploading process. At the very beginning of writing your grant:

  1. Create a folder on your computer. Call it ‘Bursary X’.
  2. Create a subfolder. Call it ‘Supporting Materials’.
  3. Save every document you intend to upload to ‘Supporting Materials’.

– When contacting each referee and asking them for a letter of reference, tell them what grant you’re applying for, and what your focus is, but actually ask them to leave the title of the grant OUT of the application. That way you can recycle this letter for future use (and avoid bugging them again – a win-win!)

– Before you start, think ‘who do I know who could proofread my application?’ Aim for 2 people to proofread the first draft of your application form. Criteria for these people, in order of preference:

  1. They won won the grant you are applying for in the past
  2. They won a different grant, awarded by the same body, but the grants are in the same domain (e.g. for me, music)
  3. They won a different grant in a different domain (e..g. for me, literature, theatre)
  4. They are experienced grant writers
  5. They are very good writers

(You may also want to think of 2 people to help you choose your best work for the supporting materials. These people don’t have to be academic, but must have expertise in your domain. For example, I asked 2 friends of mine who are excellent music critics, but not very ‘wordy’, to help me select the best of my audio recordings for inclusion in a grant I applied for last summer.)

Contact the people you’d like to proofread your application / listen to your material, tell them you’d like to send them your application in 5/6 days for submission in 7 days, and ask them if they’ll proofread it for you. People appreciate a heads-up. And some chocolate after 🙂

– I find that collecting quotes, letters of support and CVs from potential collaborators, is one of the most time-consuming tasks… perhaps because (a) it’s high stakes (it’s a mandatory requirement of an Irish AC application, so if you don’t include them in your application it won’t get assessed) and (b) it’s a tedious task so most normal humans put it off. Consider giving your invited collaborators a draft letter of support to edit themselves, just to get them started.

– Úna’s grant uploading checklist:

  1. Application form
  2. Examples of work
  3. CV
  4. Letters of support
  5. Collaborators’ CVs
  6. Collaborators’ bios
  7. Letters of in-kind support
  8. Letters of reference (a doc with bios of referees may be necessary)
  9. Any additional docs, like an additional budget / schedule

– A few days after the whole shebang is submitted, I recommend making a list of all your referees, collaborators, proofreaders, anyone who helped you, and send them thank-you cards / emails. They took time out of their busy lives for you!!

… are you psychologically prepared?? If so, take a look at …

THE MASSIVELY, FABULOUSLY, WONDERFULLY, MAXIMALLY OPTIMISED GRANT-WRITING MASTERPLAN

*Huge thank you to sound engineer and music-maker Shay Leon for this excellent suggestion!

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Úna’s Travel Tips

For years, I would race out of the house to the airport, wearing damp jeans – because I had left it so late to pack I had to wear clothes I had grabbed out of the washing machine, still wet!!! After a decade of travelling, I’ve finally figured out a few things that make the process more efficient. Hope these help you…

PREPARING

Long-term:

I always travel with two cards from two different ATM networks, e.g. a Visa AND a Mastercard, or a Link AND a Cirrus. Either I have 2 cards from 2 different ATM networks, or I have a card from one ATM network, and my travel buddy has a card from another ATM network. On a trip with a pal years ago, my friend’s card didn’t work, and if we hadn’t had cards from two different ATM networks we would have had a serious problemo.

6 weeks before departure:

  • Last year when planning a long-haul trip, I suddenly realized I might have to get vaccines. 3 weeks before my departure, I went to the doctor, to find the lead-in time for all my jabs was … 5 weeks. I was able to get most of them, but had to travel without one of the recommended jabs. I do NOT recommend this. In future, I will give myself at least a 6-week lead-in time for vaccination. Please learn from my mistake, and check your vaccination requirements at least 6 weeks before departure!!

7 working days before departure:

  • We all have a secret fear. Mine is I arriving in a country and my ATM card not working, or it taking me a few days to find an ATM where my card works. Therefore, particularly if I’m going far away, I think it’s a good idea to bring a bit of local currency with me. My local bank doesn’t carry currency from any developing country, so I have to order currency at least 5 working days before I depart.
  • It’s a good idea to confirm the dress code for the gig a week before departure in case I need to get a particular garment.

3 days before departure:

  • The obvious: laundry!
  • …and I try to use up as much of my perishable food as possible. This few days is usually marked by unusual food combinations… Brussels sprouts and sweetcorn, anyone?!

1 working day before departure:

  • It’s old-skool, but some airlines require a printout of the online check-in. So the last day before travel, I check that I have ink in my printer, and if not, I buy some. If I’m really organized, I go to McCambridge’s in Shop St., and buy Barry’s Tea and some gorgeous hard Irish cheese as a gift for my hosts. (Ask McCambridge’s to vacuum-pack the cheese and it travels beautifully). If I’m under pressure for time, I buy Barry’s Tea or a hard Irish cheese at the airport.
  • I was in Asia in 2017; I didn’t tell the bank about my trip, and upon me using my card in an ATM so far away, the bank froze my card as an anti-fraud measure. It was SUPREMELY stressful being in a foreign country with no access to cash. So I recommend ringing your bank and telling them you’ll be going abroad, particularly if it’s to a different continent.
  • If I’m anxious about theft, I make a photocopy of my passport, medical insurance docs, credit cards and put that page in a different location to my wallet.
  • Buy any items I’m short of, e.g. protein bars ( …any excuse!  ) .

PACKING

A science in itself, here are my thoughts on How, and What, to Pack for a Trip , and The Perfect Travel Outfit .

LEAVING THE HOUSE

Before leaving, I aspire to …

  • Empty my kitchen bins
  • Put all perishable food from my fridge into the freezer
  • Turn of all sockets EXCEPT for freezer
  • Set up an autoresponder on my emails
  • Put a msg on my voicemail

This prevents me arriving home to an exceedingly bad smell. !

FOR LIAISING AT ARRIVALS / MAXIMISING PRODUCTIVITY

I’ve made a habit of putting my plug converter and device rechargers in my handbag, not main luggage, so I can recharge my devices as necessary, even if my luggage is checked. (This is especially necessary now that some airlines have a policy of checking carry-on luggage at the gate.) This was a particularly good idea that one time I was landing in Beirut and had no idea who was picking me up…!

YOUR AIRPORT TRANSFER

There are 3 bus companies that service the route between Galway city and Dublin airport (in no particular order: Bus Éireann, Citylink, Gobus) When I’m bussing to/from Galway to Dublin airport for a flight, I deliberately buy only a single ticket. That means that when I fly back and arrive in Dublin airport, exhausted and needing to get home ASAP, I can hop on the next bus departing, rather than waiting for a bus run by the company I made the outbound journey on. It’s totally worth the extra €10 to get home to your bed when jetlagged and exhausted.

GETTING THROUGH SECURITY FAST

I consciously wear light, preferably slip-on, shoes to airport so I get through security asap. I once wore punk boots to the airport… what a TERRIBLE idea. Never again.

I deliberately don’t wear hair accessories going through airports. As they’re frequently made of metal, I have to take them off and put them in a tray going through security, and it’s one more thing to worry about plus I left a particularly nice flower in a security tray in Philly last year. Philly, you deflowered me. !

AVOIDING DVT

On most flights, I…

  • stretch my legs while sitting in my seat
  • get up and walk to the toilet / around the cabin at least once

Just once in my life I neglected to do this, and my legs swelled up – SO SCARY! If your legs swell up, it’s probably not serious, this is what I did and the swelling went down in a few hours.

Super sports therapist, Adrian Cradock, gave me a great tip to avoid / help back pain: bring a tennis ball, place it between your back and the seat, and rub the ball into your back as you travel. Also, to avoid DVT you can place the tennis ball under your thighs when sitting. To save space, I use my hand-therapy ball, the Handmaster, instead of a tennis ball.

TO FACILITATE SLEEPING

  • Buy a J-pillow… A travel pillow recommended by Alexander Technique teacher (and excellent musician) Teresa Turner, it’s one of the best things I ever bought. Latch it to your handbag and never go on a long journey without it.
  • I try to sleep as much as possible on flights. I generally sleep better with a bit of shade / darkness on my eyes. For years I travelled with a funkily-designed eyeshade, feeling very hip, until it was time to actually wear it, when the whole illusion of being ‘cool’ crumbled… the eyeshade would end up on my nose, in my mouth, on my forehead, EVERYWHERE but actually on my eyes. These days I bring a light raincoat with a hood, and pull the hood over my face to block out light when trying to sleep.
  • When in the air, I try to drink more than my normal amount of water. I find that unless I do this, I wake up from dehydration. Yeuch.

WHILE ABROAD

I try to eat some natural yoghurt when I’m abroad; it lines my gut with local bacteria that help me digest local food.

So that’s it… Úna’s Últimate travelling system, conveniently condensed into a one-page checklist, which you can download here.

Hopefully these tips will help you to be healthy, relaxed, comfortable, time-efficient and rested during your travels… and at the very least, ensure that you don’t return to a smelly house! 🙂 In Irish, we say ‘Go n-éirí an bóthar leat… ‘ May the road rise to meet you. GOOD LUCK on your journey. Let me know if you find any of this helpful, and if you have any tips for me!!

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat,

Úna

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How, and What, to Pack for a Trip

One of the things I am totally nerdy about is … packing. Yup, weird, I know. So here’s my two cents on how to save two cents, do the deed as quickly as possible, and keep your mind clear on the road!  🙂

Before even starting to pack, I recommend confirming your checked luggage allowance. A development in long-haul airfares this year is that some airfares are exceedingly cheap, but don’t include checked luggage. So, it’s sooo simple, but…  I recommend confirming your checked luggage allowance before you pack.

Choose your weapon: are you going to check a bag or not? If at all possible, I recommend bringing a carry-on case (both in terms of security and size), because…

– it’s better for your body (less to haul around)

– it’s likely to be cheaper (you never know when you’ll come across an unexpected luggage charge when travelling, plus if renting a car you’ll be able to rent a smaller car)

– it’s friendlier (if you have a smaller case you’ll have more carspace and can give a lift to someone!)

This saved me €50 lately… I was flying transatlantic, thought I had the option of bringing a large case, decided to bring my carry-on for ease, and it turned out my flight didn’t include a checked luggage. So I merrily used my carry-on and saved myself an extra charge. Wahoo! A cherry on the lightly-packed cake!

When it comes to the actual deed of packing, I find there are just too many things to remember. So, nerd that I am, I have written a packing checklist, and every time I have to go somewhere, I print off this list and check items off it as I pack. Good news: I am making this checklist available for you to download here. Items are listed in order of importance; items in italics are optional depending on the destination, weather, and itinerary.

(One musician pal packs in a more intuitive way… he leaves his suitcase open in the kitchen for the week before departure, and as he thinks of things he needs to pack, he throws them in the case.)

So when it comes to The Deed, here are a few of my considerations.

HOW MUCH TO PACK?

I figure out how many mornings I’ll be away… that equals how many knickers to bring.

I generally pack one daytime outfit for every two days away.

If I’m going for 8 nights or less, I don’t plan on doing laundry.

If I’m going for 14 nights, I either

a) pack 7 outfits or

b) pack 4 outfits and do laundry on the trip.

Whether I do (a) or (b) depends on my luggage allowance, itinerary, and access to laundry.

If I’m away for longer than 2 weeks, I pack for 8 nights and do laundry on the trip.

WHAT TO PACK?

Firstly, I check the weather at the destination, and decide what to wear for the journey itself. I find deciding what to wear for a trip from rainy Ireland to a warm destination to be a science in itself, so I wrote a separate blogpost on this … read it here. I put those clothes for my travel-day by my bed, so I can get dressed quickly the morning of my departure.

I wear dresses as much as possible when travelling, because

  • they’re more space-efficient to pack than, for example, a trousers plus top
  • I can wear a light dress with a long-sleeved top beneath / cardigan on top / with fleecy tights, and hey presto – I’m warm! I find long-sleeved tops, cardigans and tights to be far more space-efficient than, say, a bulky jumper, so I then get a lot more ‘bang for my buck’ from my packing.

My system for planning my outfits is…

  1. I decide on the core garment – usually a dress (sometimes shorts, a skirt, or trousers, but for coherence in this article we’ll just say a dress)
  2. I decide on the shoes I’m going to wear with it
  3. I add in a long-sleeved top, cardigan, tights, hair accessory, and scarf that match so I can put on layers depending on the temperature.

I try to make all the shoes and accessories match at least 2 dresses; e.g. I’ll bring 2 blue dresses, then pack black pumps, a blue long-sleeved top, navy cardigan, navy tights, blue hair accessory and white scarf… all of which match bothblue dresses.

When travelling I generally avoid outfits with jewellery and belts.

I usually swim in a swimsuit, but when travelling I pack a bikini because it’s more space-efficient.

If going to a cold place, I try to bring a fleece rather than a massive woolly jumper or a hoodie; fleece is more space-efficient. I’ll pack boots, and wear them rather than pack them.

If I’m not sure what awaits me on the trip, I try to pack smart casual, with one ‘glam’ outfit.

Little toiletry note: Ace fiddler Soazig Hamelin gave me the idea of packing a shampoo bar, rather than liquid shampoo, to simplify my journey through security.

HOW TO PACK?

My globetrotting pal Ali recommends folding all clothes in an ‘army roll’ for the following reasons:

  1. It’s far more space-efficient than normal folding
  2. You can see at a glance what your wardrobe options are, so it saves time when dressing
  3. The fact that your luggage is tidy helps keeps your mind clear. This may sound illogical to some, but it makes perfect sense to me! I find it difficult to think clearly if my house or devices are unorganized and chaotic. Ergo I understand how keeping my luggage in order when travelling would help me maintain mental clarity.

You can learn how to do an ‘army roll’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuD-ZZydsVg

Agus sin é! Hopefully these tips will save you some time and / or grief. For a couple of tips on how to make the journey as easy as possible, read here. Let me know if you have any tips! And watch this space – I mean, I haven’t even got started on my real passion, which is … luggage! 😉

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat, may the road rise to meet you!

Úna

 

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The Perfect Travel Outfit

Returning from a trip lately, I realised that I had not nearly passed out from the heat; I had slept like a baby on a freezing overnight flight; and I had not been arrested for indecent exposure. SUCCESS!! I had finally, after years of epic fails, nailed the thorny issue of what to wear when travelling from rainy Ireland to hotter climes. This question is further complicated if, like me, you fly slightly unconventional routes (be it to get to gigs in remote areas, or save the pennies), and are a bit clueless about clothes. 

There, I’ve said it. I am the furthest thing you can imagine from a fashionista. I tend to spend my days in pyjamas, or tracksuits. My despairing mother, sister and pals Muireann and Bogna tell me what to wear for gigs, and I only get dressed up for work or to please my (gorgeous, kind) mother. So if you’re a style queen, WOW – take a bow, I really respect your art!! – but leave now, because this article will not be useful to you. But if you’re a clueless colleen like me, these selfies taken in my kitchen may give you some ideas. 

My go-to outfit involves 4 layers, which I put on or take off as required.

Layer 1 is for arrival in hot climate: a short skirt, string top, comfy pumps.

Sample outfit for hot climate

On top of this, grabbed out of the handbag as necessary, goes Layer 2, for a warm airport / Irish summer’s day: a full-length top (thermal if it’s a bit nippy) and thick tights. (Penney’s sell amazing tights with fleece lining!)

Sample outfit for moderate temperature

On top of this, I put Layer 3, perhaps for a cool airport / Irish autumn day, which consists of… a long cardigan

Sample outfit for cool airport

And finally, for Irish outside temperatures or sleeping on transport, I throw on layer 4: a light scarf and a light raincoat.

Una_Ni_Fhlannagain
Sample outfit for rainy climate

If this works for you, or if you have any other ideas, please let me know!!  It would bring me great joy to know that someone has gotten more sleep on a bus because of me 🙂 If you want to design your own custom travel outfit, here’s a few questions I use for my jump-off point:

  • What’s the temperature at the destination? Imagine what would feel comfortable to be wearing upon arrival.
  • What will you need to wear to be warm and dry outside in Ireland, going between cars and buses?
  • If you’re getting a bus transfer to the airport, what will the temperature be like on the bus? (Irish buses are quite moderate, I find.)
  • Will you want to sleep on the bus? (If so, I wear something I can throw over myself as if it’s a blanket … every little sleep-cue helps …  🙂 )
  • What will the temperature be like in the departure airport?
  • What will the temperature be like on the plane? (I find overnight planes can get a bit chilly!)
  • How long is the flight? Do you want to sleep? (If so, see above 🙂 )
  • What will the temperature be like in the airports / areas you’re transferring in? (To me, the level of air-conditioning in American airports is actually a bit nippy. On the other hand, a small airport in a remote area of Asia might not have a/c, and be quite warm.)

And here’s a couple of final things to throw into the mix …

I wear glasses and contact lenses. It’s not advised to sleep with my lenses in, so I generally wear my glasses on journeys where I need to try and sleep, and keep a pair of ‘dailies’ lenses in my handbag to insert if needed.

I find that if I wear my hair in a top-knot I sleep better, and my hair doesn’t get quite as shtuck to my head as otherwise.

I find the J-Pillow to be a great travel pillow. I use the Healthy Back Bag as a handbag, and a carry-on with stow-away backpack straps like this.

So that’s it! There’s no substitute for experience, but hopefully these pictures / questions will trigger some interesting thoughts for you, and you’ll enjoy your journey that little bit more because of your extra sleep or comfort level in transit. If you’re also wondering about what else to pack, or what else you should be doing to prepare for your trip, read here for general travel tips or here for how and what to pack!

Wherever you’re going, go n-éirí an bóthar leat – may the road rise to meet you.

Úna

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How To Fly To Seattle Cheaply (AKA Úna LOVES Momondo)

Just recently I had to travel to the west coast of the US at short notice. Me being me, I made an Excel file to codify my flight searches. I share my findings here in the hope that they’re useful to others…

First – what’s the cheapest origin and destination between Ireland and the northwest coast of the US? I can fly with equal ease from Dublin or Shannon; it didn’t really matter to me if I flew into Seattle or Portland.

Some friends had recommended Skyscanner as an online travel search tool (thank you, Mary and Lindsay), so I used that to compare the price of flying from Dublin or Shannon, to Seattle or Portland. Turns out

the cheapest combination from Ireland to the northwest coast of the US was Shannon to Portland at €873

(the cheapest flight from Dublin to Seattle was €1249. There was no route from Shannon to Seattle at the time.). Hence,

Lesson 1: It pays to explore alternative, smaller airports.

I was about to buy my ticket when I had a chat with my pal Bogna, a diving globetrotter. She was surprised I’d used Skyscanner – in her experience, Vayama was better value for long-haul. I searched for Shannon-Portland flights on Vayama, and bingo – I got a shorter flight (17 hours, rather than 21 hours) for €819. It was great to shave 5 hours off my travel time and save €54 while doing so. So Vayama was slightly cheaper for a transatlantic flight on this occasion … but upon a quick comparison today, Skyscanner fares beat Vayama on an intra-European flight (albeit by a tiny margin of €1.58). So, in my limited experience,

Lesson 2: Travel agents vary in competitiveness according to the region you’re travelling to.

A few weeks later, I had to go back to the west coast, but this time I had more time to research flights, and a few weeks’ notice before the departure date. I wanted to visit some friends on the route back, and as such, it was going to be a multi-city trip.

My travel buddy and I researched flying with the following airlines: American Airlines – Delta – United – Aer Lingus

… the following online travel agents: Vayama – Expedia – Orbitz – Kiwi

… and the following meta-search sites (a site that searches multiple online travel agents): Momondo – Skyscanner – Kayak

Through direct price comparison, we figured out the cheapest route for us on this trip would be Dublin to Seattle, Seattle to Ithaca, and Newark to Dublin. Aer Lingus was reasonable but understandably doesn’t offer domestic US flights. If we chose to fly Aer Lingus and then flew domestically (Seattle to Ithaca) with a different airline, the overall cost wasn’t competitive.

Lesson 3: Overall cost of a US transatlantic multi-city trip was cheaper when bought with one provider, rather than with multiple providers.

As such only online travel agents and American-based air companies were an option for us on this trip.

So let’s get to the good stuff. Drum-roll, please… here are the fares offered by the various companies for the multi-city trip, in order of their cheapest flight price:

PROVIDERCOST
MOMONDO€705
VAYAMA€781
SKYSCANNER€843
UNITED€853
ORBITZ€860
EXPEDIA€885
KIWI€886
KAYAK€924
AMERICAN AIRLINES€1354
DELTA€1627

Ergo,

Lesson 4: Momondo is BRILLIANT.

It took me 7 hours to design an itinerary and research prices for my 3rd flight. But with a price-difference of €2053 between the lowest and highest quotes, it was worth it…

my research was worth €293/hour.

Lesson 5: Do your research.

Conclusion: I have since found this excellent index of third-party booking sites, and next time I fly, would love to compare each one. But right now, my experience advocates…

a) If flying domestically within the the US, first get a quote from SouthWest Airlines.

b) If flying anywhere else in Europe or US, then get a quote from these meta-search sites / online travel agents, in this order:

1. Momondo
2. Vayama
3. Skyscanner
(if flying to/within the US, check United)
4. Orbitz
5. Expedia

So here’s hoping this is useful to you, next time you research flights! I feel extremely lucky to live in a world where, 39 hours after hearing a loved one was seriously ill, I could cross the world to visit them. Let’s pass on that goodness…!

Le grá,

Úna