Student digs: seven tips for styling out your university accommodation

Cassette Tape Desk Organiser, �23.25, Yellow Octopus (Image: Archant)

Desk Tidy

Unfortunately once the fun of fresher’s week wears off you’re probably going to have to sit down and write the odd essay. Making sure your desk is clutter free is one way to try and trick your brain into being in a productive mood: enter this fun desk tidy. Although most of this years intake are probably too young to remember the cassette tape before it came shorthand for retro cool, this pen pot will bring a little bit of old school flair to your desk and keep all your pens, highlighters and pins neat. It even doubles as a handy tape dispenser, useful for adding those finishing touches to a DIY fancy dress outfit. Don’t worry about looking pretentious, without fail there is always one person in every halls who will turn up with a record player or, for the truly committed to new age fun with a vintage feel, a typewriter.

Peg Board

Annoyingly lots of halls have rules about sticking things up on the walls. Keep your deposit intact without compromising on displaying your personality with the snazzy peg board (top). It’s fully customisable so you can regularly refresh what you hang from it. Don’t just coat it with flyers, print out a couple of pictures of friends and family from back home to put on it, along with any notes to self and any mementos you collect along the way.Notebooks

Tropical Printed Notebook, �6.95, Rigby & Mac (Image: Archant)

Although you’ll be writing your essays and probably most of your lecture notes on your laptop, nothing beats the analogue feel of putting pen or pencil to paper to really get your creative juices flowing. Picking out new stationery is always part of the back to school fun even when you’re moving on to university. Trust us; it’s a lot less joyful when you’re picking your pens out of the office stationery cupboard.Ward off graduate life for as long as possible with these rather lovely paper notebooks with trendy tropical patterns, perfect for slipping into your bag to take to the library (when you finally find out where that is in third term once exams start to loom).

Pencils

Engraved Pencils, �4, Etsy (Image: Archant)

In order to prevent your pencils going walkabout when you lend them out invest in some monogrammed stationery. This set costs only £4 and each one has a sweet motivational message engraved on it, to keep your spirits up during that 2am essay deadline crisis.

Lamp

Z Lamp in Pink, £29, Furnish (Image: Archant)

Always bring your own lamp, nobody wants to be under the glare of halogen lights whilst trying to cram in some late night studying alone or with your, ahem, study buddy. This nifty little number is just that little bit different to the ubiquitous angle poise and the fun colour ways will brighten up your room in more ways than one.

Rug

Lines Rug by House Doctor DK, �29, ArtNo67 Concept Store (Image: Archant)

Unfortunately it is a fact universally acknowledged that your carpet in halls will be less than lovely. Try not to think about the many previous inhabitants who will have undoubtedly spilled booze or worse over the horrendously patterned carpet. Bringing your own rug is a way to simultaneously jazz up your room and allows you to pad around bare foot without cringing. You don’t want anything too expensive or precious, pre-drinks will happen in your room at some point and someone will spill their bargain basement vodka and cranberry everywhere during a bizarre drinking game. This rug with a tasteful ikat design is a bargain at under £30 and come summer you can take it outside to revise on in the sunshine.

Cushion

Cushion geometric houses design in black, �55, Furnish.co.uk (Image: Archant)

Adding a couple of cushions to your bed will instantly transform your room from digs to des res, plus it could encourage you to make your bed. Yes, part of the joy of fleeing the nest for the freedom of uni is not having anyone nag you to clean up after yourself or do your washing before you’re down to reversing your last pair of underwear but trust us, you’ll feel a lot more grown up if your room isn’t a nest of tangled bed linen and week old pizza boxes. Plus cushions make for a cosy reading nook or help transform your bed into a sofa for a much needed night in with Netflix and your new besties from halls.

Poster

The Periodic System of Elements Poster, �35.77, DRY Things (Image: Archant)

If you are allowed to put stuff on the wall then a couple of interesting or quirky posters wouldn’t go amiss. Steer clear of the usual clichés - anything with Bob Marley or that ubiquitous Chat Noir poster is a definite no-no. This minimalist version of the periodic table is good for any STEM students out there, and would look even nicer if you can stretch to getting a simple black frame. Even if you can’t hang it you can always lean it against the wall from a shelf or chest of drawers for a truly sophisticated look.

Plant

Miniature succulent plants in garden (Image: kynny)

You’re not a student until you’ve tried (and, let’s face it, probably failed miserably) to keep a plant alive. Luckily succulents are both hard to kill and very of the moment. Try to find a spot with indirect sunlight and remember to water it occasionally. In fact, that’s a good motto to apply to yourself when you’re hepped up on coffee or desperately hungover. It doesn’t need to be an arbitrary eight glasses a day, but if you leave a glass by your bed at night future you will thank you in the morning. Oh and try to eat the occasional vegetable. You’ll thank us eventually.