Inside Selly’s student cribs

Moving out of halls means lots of things, but one of them is the chance to finally get rid of your standard halls bedroom, and finally make your room your own.

These second years have absolutely nailed it. Welcome to Selly Oak’s finest cribs.

Katie, Business, Heeley Road

Katie’s room is an unusual shape, and the challenge was making sure she got the most out of all the space.

She told The Tab: “It’s a place to come to just relax and I’m glad I’ve made it my own, I like having my own space. My favourite part is the bed, as it has lots of cushions and throws, and I’ve just made sure it’s really cosy.

“My advice for those moving into a house is definitely to add lots of personal touches – tonnes of photos and posters. Fairy lights and candles are also key, but seriously make sure you don’t set your room on fire.

“For me also, the main light is a big no. The lamps have a nicer ambience and make me feel more cosy and at home. Main lights can be a bit garish – so stick to cute lamps.”

Emily, English, Tiverton Road

She said: “I just filled it with all the things that make me happy. I’ve got pictures of all my friends and little things that remind me of good past times, like gig tickets and and stupid drawings. I have filled it with little bits and bobs that make me smile whenever I look at them.

“My favourite part is my bookshelf. It’s a big shelf so I’ve also dedicated two of them to my toy lions (I have 26 up there, but I’d like to point out I’ve never bought a single one myself), and I also have my candles and fairy lights around it which makes it all homely and cosy. It’s the first thing I see when I wake up so I want it to look inviting”.

“Halls can be pretty bleak because you get charged for sticking a single photo on a wall and the rooms tend to be much smaller. Having your own room, go crazy and print off loads of photos, buy loads of candles and fairy lights and pretty bed quilts.”

Clarice, English and Creative Writing, Dawlish Road

“When we were choosing rooms, I was pretty much like meh, I’ll take anything. I’m actually really happy with my cute little attic room now. My nan made me a gorgeous pastel purple and green throw, so I just tried to match everything to that. It has a sky light and I feel the light colours makes the whole room feel bigger and more spacious. I would definitely reccomend asking your nan, or anyone in your family into that sort of thing. It saves spending lots on a big patterned bed throw.”

George, Italian and English, Tiverton Road

“There wasn’t any particular theme in decorating my room. I’m just that person in the friendship group who takes ALL of the photos… #theselfiequeen. There are just a mishmash of selfies, Instagram pictures and photos taken from ‘home’ home – they cheer me up every now and then if I’m feeling ever alone.

“My favourite part of my room is definitely my Instagram wall – it doubles up as an arty collage as well as a just a load of photos stuck to a wall.”

“The main problems I’ve faced have been the amount of times a photo has fallen down, leading to me getting angry and crumpling it up – as well as the amount of money you have to spend on the right bloody blu tack.

“Be wary of the amount of family photos being stuck up on your walls. It’s kind of awkward to think how many other people have seen your family’s smiling faces when they come back to your room after a night at Fab.”

Gavin, Maths, Raddlebarn Road

Gavin offered some sound advice for those looking to make their rooms more homely: “When I decorated my room I tried to recreate my room at home, so put up posters of my interests and hobbies. You should make your room your own because it helps you relax and feel at home, which is important for those who get home sick.

“My favourite part has got to be the memory foam mattress topper, it’s just so comfy.” 

Jonjon, Maths, Dawlish Road

“It’s a good room because it’s huge and I can fit all my stuff in here without it being cramped. In Selly you’ll find that most of the rooms on the ground floor are the biggest.

“I rigged up my sound surround for my tv screen to make it feel more homely. A good poster can change the room massively. Me and my housemates just put up posters everywhere to make the rooms less bare. I pretty much transferred everything over from my halls, but this time I have more space.”

Callum, Medic, Tiverton Road

Callum’s room is one of the biggest room’s The Tab has come across in Selly. Boasting an almost walk-in wardrobe and a bloody fireplace, the room is spacious to say the least.

Cal said: “My favourite thing about it is I can have a reasonable seven a side football match in it, and there is still plenty of floor space to collapse onto if I miss the bed after a night out. It tends to become the social hub of the house because it’s the biggest room.”

“No matter how hard you try it’ll never look as nice as a girl’s room, so just make it comfy for you – and also definitely get a mini fridge to keep the bevvys nice and chilled. Add something manly like an Anchorman poster to show everyone how manly you are too.”

Liam, Maths, Dawlish Road

“I tried to go for something quirky and colourful. I don’t really stick to a colour theme or anything, I just like to make the room my own and fill it full of stuff I think is a bit different.

“My favourite part of the room are my pictures from my trip to Uganda this summer. Everything’s pretty random, but I kinda like it that way.”

Emma, History and Archeaology, Tiverton Road

“I never decorated my flat last year because I couldn’t be arsed, but living in a house I felt like I had to to make it feel all homely and mine. There isn’t really a theme, I just started buying things and slowly realised they were all purple things and I liked it.

“The multi-coloured fairy lights are probably my favourite thing. They make my room look like a spaceship.”