Thanks!
Sure, always happy to help.
Yes, I had a tutor for the whole 10 months - 5x 1h every week plus exercises etc. so I was doing around 2.5h a day in total (literally every single day- if I missed a day, I would make up those hours on some other day).
I really admire people who can teach themselves to that level but I knew I wouldn't be able to do it plus have someone pushing me every day was really helpful.
Resources I used:
Cosmopolite books (with my tutor)
Grammaire progressive
Bescherelle (la conjugaison)
Coffee Break French podcast
InnerFrench podcast
French news, websites, movies, etc.
Conjuu app
Here's the important thing - I never reached 'true' B2+/C1 level (even though I passed TCF at B2+, B2+, C1, C2).
I was a solid B1/weak B2 level but the last 2 months I spent as much time as possible going through exam papers. Taking test/exams in any subject is a skill in its own right.
Writing and speaking parts often have similar or sometimes even the same questions - once you do enough of them, you can start creating templates, which will help you save time during the test.
As my teacher said - you're not supposed to use the language in a 'normal' way (unless you're VERY fluent, then it just comes naturally). It's a test and you're supposed to 'pimp it up' a bit
Have some more advanced words and grammar structures prepared, which you can use in almost any situation. Don't forget to use subjonctif a few times - it's required at B2+ level.
If you're already at a B1 level, do some mockup TEF or TCF tests and see how you score. Get a teacher (ideally someone who has previous experience in grading TEF/TCF) and ask them to grade you written and spoken answers.
Good luck!