Making a space feel like your own is so important. Especially when moving away from home for, most likely, the first time. That's why when I moved to university I made my room feel as homely as possible by adding lots of my own accessories, soft furnishings and photos (Comment if you want to know where anything specific is from). When at university it is very easy to become home sick, as much as you tell yourself that you wont, and a great way to combat this is to make your space feel more like your own, a sanctuary. It will become extremely obvious when moving into university, or even when watching vlogs online before getting there, that everyone's room looks more or less the same to begin with and when you see the room transformations of the all-American sorority girl vloggers, who seem to have all the money and time in the world to spend on making their room look like it came straight out of a magazine, it can seem intimidating. But there are a few ways you can change your room to make it your own without spending thousands of pounds on it.
Below you can see what my room looked like before it was decorated, it was nice enough in a basic way and had what I needed. But there was no personality and it looked very boxy and plain. Most rooms available through university accommodation will look somewhat like this. A bed, most likely uncomfortable so bring a mattress topper, shelves, a pinboard, a desk, a chest of drawers and a window, sunlight not included.
The following photographs are of my room after it was decorated. There are a few simple things that I did that you can implement in your own rooms to make them feel more homely as well. I will go into those things in the pictures below.
1. Use decor items and art to add personality into your room, it can be anything from a dream catcher to a Moana postcard as long as it represents you. You will probably have more space than you think to fit things like this in your room, especially wall space and there's nothing worse than being stuck studying inside a room with four blank walls. Decorating your room can not only make it look a lot better but it can also improve your attitude towards university, and help you to feel less homesick, especially when you surround yourself with things that are familiar.
2. Things like a rug and throws are great to make your room feel softer and get rid of the harsh lines that mostly make up your university room. I also added a scarf over my desk chair to make it feel a bit more unique. My friends complimented my room when they came round and it was a great conversation starter. You'll be surprised how many conversations can stem from 'Wow I love your rug!'.
You might also notice my laundry bag in the corner, I recommend getting one with handles or wheels because there's no guarantee you'll be near the laundry room and who knows how long you'll wait before washing your clothes.
3. Throw pillows are a must. This is not an opinion this is a fact. Throw pillows make the whole room seem more inviting and also make your bed look like a daybed/ couch meaning it will look more welcoming when friends come round. Especially if, like me, you don't have a common room. I also put up a poster on this wall and in hindsight would have put more up to balance the two sides a bit more. You could have posters of your favourite movies, works of art, book covers etc it all makes your room feel more like yours and less like the thousands of others in halls of residences across your university.
4. Keep your room clean. To some of you this may be obvious and to others it may seem laughable but I promise that keeping your room neat and tidy will improve your work ethic, make you happier and more productive. From time to time your room may get a bit messy, and that's fine, just keep on top of it as much as you can. There won't be anyone there to keep tabs on your room anymore, you're the adult, as daunting as that may be to some of you. At the minimum make your bed everyday, it's been spoken about many times before, here for example.
5. Photos. Photos. Photos. Now I know I spoke before about homesickness and this can work two ways, the photos will either remind you of home and make you homesick or they will give you familiar faces and comfort. So use your own discretion but as you can see here I displayed them on my pinboard.
I hope these tips were useful and help you make your university room look exactly how you want it to and I hope you have a great time at university 😊
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