Moving away from home to university for the first time, while incredibly exciting, can also feel extremely daunting. With the identical furnishings, curtains, and carpets from one room to the next in most university accommodation, it is hard to imagine how you will ever make your new room feel like home. But this can actually be one of the most fun and rewarding parts of starting university! You don’t have to break the budget either, charity shops have some great stuff, or if you’re feeling crafty you can even make things yourself. Here are a few tips on how to put your stamp on your university bedroom and make it feel like home.

Pinterest is a great way to get inspiration for how you want to decorate your new room. If you have a theme in mind simply type it in and you will be met with a vast selection of goods and styles to help you fit it. If you’re on a budget there are tons of clever tips and tricks on how to make the most of what you’ve already got, plus DIY guides on how to make anything from picture frames to bunting for your room.

Plants are a cheap and easy way to brighten up any university room. And as an added bonus, there are also many health benefits to having them around. The only problem is, that university halls are sometimes not the best place for plants to thrive (plus who can remember to actually water them everyday). So look for plants that are low maintenance and don’t require a lot of attention. Some common ones are cacti, aloe vera, spider plants, English ivy and jade plants. A trip to your local gardening centre to pick some up can be a fun excursion with your new flatmates, or you can find most of these types of plants in Ikea.

Lighting in halls can leave a lot to be desired. While some halls will provide you with a bedside lamp others won’t, and the often harsh white overhead lights are not ideal for creating a cosy and homely environment. Lamps, fairy-lights, standing lamps, a new lampshade; the possibilities are endless for remedying this. Just make sure to bring an extension cable with you so that you can plug them all in, or buy battery powered fairy-lights to make your life even easier.

Lighting in halls can leave a lot to be desired. While some halls will provide you with a bedside lamp others won’t, and the often harsh white overhead lights are not ideal for creating a cosy and homely environment. Lamps, fairy-lights, standing lamps, a new lampshade; the possibilities are endless for remedying this. Just make sure to bring an extension cable with you so that you can plug them all in, or buy battery powered fairy-lights to make your life even easier.

A couple of cushions, a small, cheap but colourful rug and some nice bed sheets will instantly make your room look more colourful and homely. Etsy is a great place to look for cheap, handmade goods (especially pillow cases) that can instantly snaz up any dull looking room, and charity shops usually have old cushions that you can recover.

The distinct (and not always pleasant) smells of your musty university accommodation will become a fond memory once you have left, but until then the smell of your flatmates curry from a week ago that still lingers in the hallways is not ideal. While most halls have rules against having candles and incense sticks in your room because they pose a fire hazard, there are other ways to make your room smell more fragrant. Reed diffusers are a great and aesthetic way to do this and can be bought in most big supermarkets. Essential oils are also a nice way to achieve this.