Tools and books I actually recommend, not an affiliate dump
Vocabulary and spaced repetition
Anki is the one I’d point most C1 students toward. Free, open-source, and flexible enough to build cards that test collocations and dependent prepositions, not just bare definitions. Ugly interface, real learning curve, worth it for advanced vocabulary.
Memrise trades some of that flexibility for native-speaker video and a more polished feel, a reasonable pick if Anki’s blank slate puts you off.
Clozemaster drills vocabulary through fill-in-the-blank sentences, forcing contextual recall. Good as a supplement, not as your only tool.
More on why spaced repetition actually works: Master Your Cambridge C1 Advanced Vocabulary.
Course materials
I work with age-appropriate materials accredited by Oxford University Press and Cambridge English.
For exam preparation specifically, my recommended reading list is on Amazon.
Free resources from me
The free IELTS Speaking Checklist, six things that quietly cap a Band 6, and how to fix each one.
The blog, where I write about the actual mechanics of fluency, exam prep, and the occasional detour into the history of English itself.