Moving into halls is a daunting, somewhat alien experience as you and a handful of boxes crammed with as much of your identity as possible move into a tiny copy-pasted room.
That room will be your home for the better part of a year and the one constant through all of your ups and downs.
So make it your own!
The room may start as a blank nothing but it definitely shouldn’t stay that way.
You should fill the room with all the things that make you who you are and that will make the room truly yours.
That process takes time but in the short term there are a few essentials that’ll start to make the room feel more like home.
Diffuser
I cannot express enough just how much of a difference a nice smelling room makes.
Replace the smell of cleaning chemicals, new bedding and decades of dead spiders with something light and refreshing.
Candles and incense aren’t permitted in halls so diffusers are the go-to option for their convenience and lack of flame.
You can get a decent liquid diffuser for less than £20 and then all you need are some essential oils and you’re golden.
Whenever you feel down or overwhelmed or just need a perking up, all you need to do is flick the switch and the diffuser will make it all a little better.
Throws and Blankets
When trying to make your room a bit cozier and comfier it doesn’t hurt to think literally sometimes and add some soft furnishings.
A good throw will make your basic bed significantly more comfortable and add a splash of different colour to the room.
The throw also doesn’t have to stay on your bed as wrapping yourself in it while at your desk can make coursework slightly less soul destroying.
Plus having a throw on hand is a lifesaver when the fire alarm inevitably goes off, constantly.
LED or Fairy Lights
There are few things I hate more in life than the abomination that is the big light so alternative lighting is a must.
Your room will come with a desk lamp but adding some more atmospheric lighting will do wonders for the feel of your room.
Both the cozy vibes of fairy lights and vibrance of LEDs can be found cheap online and will make a massive difference to the feeling of your room.
These essentials will get you started but the rest will be on you, put as much of yourself as possible into your room and you’ll be able to make it properly feel like home.
Featured image credit: Ellie William
Features Editor and Head of Podcasting.
Fourth-year Journalism and Politics student.
Primarily focus of Politics, Technology, Gaming and Pop-Culture
