We’ve all been there – you’ve just moved into your fresh new student house and you’re looking forward to the year ahead with all your mates. You frantically unpack all of your stuff in your new room, but somehow it still looks a bit plain. Your student budget doesn’t quite offer enough wiggle room to get your place looking anything like the pristine and well-decorated homes you see on Instagram and Pinterest – but that doesn’t mean its unachievable! Here are my top four décor ideas for your student accommodation to get your room looking Insta-worthy without breaking the bank.
- Collage/Postcard Picture Frames
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Picture frames can be found super cheap in charity shops or discount stores, and a little creativity can go a long way with using some simple wall art to brighten up for your university accommodation.
To make mine stand out, I found a picture of a man holding a giant marrow on the front of a magazine. I then cut the photo of him out and laid it against a paper sweet shop bag and put it into a frame. This made a colourful collage for my kitchen wall. It doesn’t have to be a marrow man though; you could frame anyone or anything! From food, flowers, to your fave celebrity – it can be whatever you find that strikes your fancy! You could even draw some funky patterns for the background or use wrapping paper, or even other magazine pages – let your inner artist run wild!
Another affordable option is framing postcards of your favourite artworks or places. Usually, these can be bought cheaply at art galleries and tourist shops. You could also print out some photos of your family and friends to add a more personal touch.
- Plants
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Plants and Cacti look beautiful on windowsills and bookshelves, and adding plants to your room may even boost your creativity! Spider plants are a good choice for beginner plant moms at they are particularly easy to care for. You simply water them when they start to look weak or droopy, and they’ll perk right up. They come in lots of different varieties and once well established, they go on to produce ‘babies’ that you can separate and either give away to friends or decorate your whole house with!
Using Cacti is also a low effort option! They tend to like a lot of sunshine, so a bright windowsill is best. They require very little water, so be careful not to overwater them -let the soil dry out between watering, especially during winter months. Tiny Cacti are also super cute and very affordable. I’ve often found them for as little as £1 at supermarkets and local plant shops.
- Corkboards
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Corkboards are a great way to decorate your study space, with the bonus of being very affordable! A corkboard can add a personal touch to your room, as you can pin-up photos, ticket stubs, postcards, notes and interesting articles. Anything that reminds you of the good times, and the good people in your life. You can also easily change the position of things on the board or add different bits so that you never get bored of it – corkboards are timeless!
They can also help you stay organised, as you can pin up reminders about deadlines of revision notes. This makes it all the more satisfying once you finish that essay and can rip down the reminder that’s been glaring at you for a week.
- Decorative Lamps
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This idea is probably the most expensive option, as decorative lamps can be on the pricier side. However, they serve the dual purpose of decorating a room while providing some much-needed light for those late-night study sessions. Because of this, a nicer lamp could be a worthwhile investment.
Many pretty pieces can be found second hand on places such as eBay or locally on Facebook Marketplace. Looking in charity, and second-hand shops makes for an ethical option as well as being more affordable than buying one brand new. I found mine at a flea market for a good price because one of the bulbs was faulty, but after managing to fix it up it’s as though it was bought brand new.