Anna Gould
When moving into uni halls or a student house, your new room can often feel quite bland and characterless with the same standard beige furniture and plain pin board. Often with identical layouts across your flatmates’ bedrooms, it can be hard to picture how to make your room distinctively ‘you’.
This guide to making your room your own will give you some tips on how to easily make your room cosier and make uni feel like your home away from home. It will also give you recommendations of some of the best places in Nottingham to shop for home decor and other bedroom essentials!
Tip: Before buying any home decor, it’s important to check the guidance on what is and isn’t accepted by your halls or landlord. Most halls don’t allow candles or plug-in fairy lights due to fire risks, so bear that in mind when decorating your room.
1. Lighting
Depending on what vibe or aesthetic you’re after, lighting such as fairy lights, LEDs or even a sunset lamp instantly make a room feel less dull.
In my second year uni room, my walls are covered in curtain fairy lights, an easy way to fill up empty wall space and make your room feel so much more cosy.
Alternatively, LEDs come with so many different colour settings which can give you lots of variety in the aesthetic of your room!
Tip: Make sure to also invest in some command strips or hooks to hang up your lights with to ensure no issues when it comes to removing them. You can find them in most shops such as Wilko and TK Maxx in the city centre.
2. Photos
My first-year room in halls was covered in photos of my friends and family, which really helped me to feel more at home in Nottingham. Having familiar faces in your space to remind you of home will help settling in so much easier. Also, throughout the year make sure to add to these photos with all the new memories you make at uni.
I printed all my photos through the Free Prints app, which I’d thoroughly recommend trying if you haven’t before. Every month you can pick 45 photos to print for free on the app and only have to pay for delivery, so it’s great value for money!
3. Plants
Whether you are someone who can successfully look after a real succulent or someone who just likes the look of fake ones, plants can really bring your uni room to life.
There are some amazing plant shops around Nottingham including the little plant guys in Beeston who have a wide selection of different plants and pots – the owner is really friendly and even has a dog in the shop!
Alternatively, Primark Home and the home section in Urban Outfitters in the city centre have some really cute little fake plants, if you struggle to keep real plants alive.
Plants can really bring your uni room to life
4. Storage
Lots of storage is essential when it comes to organising all your bits and bobs and so you can make more of the space you get given – under-the-bed storage and over the door hooks are your best friends for all your hoodies and coats.
Make sure you invest in some baskets or boxes to organise your things as they can make your room look much less cluttered (even though there may still be some organised mess). Cheap and sturdy storage is available in so many places across Nottingham – Homesense in Castle Marina are especially good for storage essentials.
5. Cushions and bedding
Due to the size of most uni bedrooms, your actual bed often takes up the bulk of your space, and so it’s important that you like the colour and pattern of your bedding. Extra blankets and cushions can also add a homely feel to your room and will be especially useful in the colder months.
If you can, I’d recommend opting for a reversible set of bedding with different patterns on each side to give yourself even more variety in your bedroom aesthetic. My bedding and cushions are from Dunelm – the one down by Castle Marina is right next to the Meadows Way West tram stop and has a great selection.
Anna Gould
Feature image courtesy of Holly Stratton via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
In-article images courtesy of Anna Gould. Permission to use granted to Impact. No changes were made to these images.
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