How to make your student accommodation feel more homely

By Erin Malik, February 2025

Hey! My name is Erin and I’m a second year student, currently living in the university’s city centre accommodation Chancellor’s Wharf. One of my favourite parts of moving away for university was the chance to be able to decorate my room exactly how I wanted it, with a completely blank slate to start on. Moving into a student flat can be daunting and it can be quite a shock to see how plain the rooms can look at first, but your room can easily become a home away from home if you decorate it just right! Here are some easy and affordable ways to make your new room feel as homely as possible!

Student accommodation which has a single bed, storage, desk and chair.

Chancellor's Wharf student accommodation. Image shown is university photography.

Decorating your room

Noticeboard

It really is true that your notice board can make or break your room. There are so many ways that you can use it to bring a piece of home to your accommodation. I pin up pictures of my friends from home, bits and bobs I’ve gathered from my time at uni, my calendar, and so on. I broke a lei necklace in my first year freshers and pinned up all the individual flowers to break up the blank parts… nothing like a bit of DIY to set it all off!

DIY Decor

Speaking of DIY, a super cheap way to make your room individual is to do it in the most extreme way possible… by making your own decorations! From paper garlands to crocheted blankets to doodles for your wall, DIY decor can be a great activity to do with your flatmates to make your accommodation more welcoming. Not only can it be a great way to relax, you then gain a beautifully decorated room along with it!

Posters

It tends to go without saying, but posters can be the most helpful in moving away from the clinical feel of a blank wall to making your room more homely. Mixing up shapes and sizes can also make a great feature if you have a large space on one of your walls. You can get cheap posters in the poster sales on campus that happen a few times a term, or even pop to HMV in town. If you’re sticking posters up on your walls, make sure to use non-damaging strips or white-tack so the walls don’t get damaged!

Home comforts and items

Teddies / Figurines

Home comforts are the best way to make your room feel more homely. Most people coming away to university bring a plushie or two with them, so don’t think it’s embarrassing at all! They can also be a really great conversation starter when you’re getting to know your new flatmates. I’m personally a huge fan of Funko Pop figures and think they’re a great way to bring your personality to your room; some of them can be super cheap as well if you look in the right places.

Bedding / Cushions

Finally, a key part of making your BEDroom feel more cosy is by putting effort into decorating your actual bed and making it somewhere you look forward to coming back to at the end of a long day! One cushion or throw can go a long way to making your room feel more homely, especially in the cold winter months.

Final tips

Ultimately, it’s completely up to you how you choose to decorate your uni accommodation… and that’s the best part; you’re free to go completely crazy! Make sure to check out some shops such as ReStore on campus and Assembly Rooms Emporium in town for affordable decorations that are sure to make a huge difference.