Saving the planet and our money: How to sustainably decorate your university room

One of the most exciting parts of university life is turning your room into something that feels truly your own. Whether you bring along your favourite teddies, cherished photos, or a collection of houseplants, creating the perfect personal space is essential for feeling at home, even in a damp, mould-infested bedroom!

Now that we’re approaching reading week, it’s the perfect time to ensure you’ve finished unpacking and settled into a space that reflects you. As you think about redecorating or giving your house or room a refresh, here are some tips to help you do it in a more sustainable and affordable way.  

Charity Shops  

Charity shops are a fantastic way to decorate your room. Not only are they budget-friendly, but they also offer some one-of-a-kind items you won’t find anywhere else. Be that a Paddy McGuinness plate, Diana and Charles biscuit tins or a signed picture of Olly Murs, you can be sure none of your friends shopping in Ikea will have these rare gems.  

Textiles

Another goldmine is the textiles section. Take any large blanket, quilt or duvet and use it to cover any cigarette burns or unconfirmed stains on your decaying sofa which your landlord claims was new this year! The more they look like they’ve been in a retirement home the better! Not only are they fashionable, but also functional and will have great value in those colder winter months.  

Vinyl and CDs

Rummage through the records! If you love music, vinyl and CD’s can be great to decorate your room and reflect your impeccable taste. But if you don’t love music, don’t worry! Pick the vinyl with the coolest cover, learn everything about it, and now you’ve got a new niche personality quirk! Just don’t draw attention to the fact you don’t even own a vinyl or CD player, that’s a minor detail.  

Books and Magazines

On top of vinyl, look through the books and magazine section too. I’m not asking you to judge a book by its cover, but it definitely helps if it’s pretty! Find a cool photography or art book (the more pictures the better), cut out any photos you like, and you’ve got yourself some new posters! I know it may seem sacrilege to rip pictures out of a book, but anything to avoid another dreaded order on FreePrints or Redbubble! If you want to take this one step further, buy yourself a canvas and start collaging the pictures together to make your room even more edgy and unique!  

Facebook Market Place 

If you prefer to do your browsing online, Facebook Marketplace is perfect for you. With a selection of just about everything under the sun, I’m sure you’ll be able to find whatever your heart and flat desires. Set your location, filter your options and start searching for some pre-loved gems from middle-aged mums and dads. Facebook Marketplace is particularly ideal if you have a housemate or friend with a car, a sizeable boot and a sense of adventure. If you don’t have a car don’t worry, nothing says flat bonding like carrying a sofa through Redland or carrying a table and chair set on the number 4 bus! Some pro-tips to handle the stubborn sellers of Facebook: always barter and never accept their first offer. Finally, remember the famous business principle ‘Cash is king’. I believe this about Facebook Marketplace and the importance of always bringing cash because sellers will scarcely accept card payments.  

Walk Around Bristol  

University students flock to free items on the street like moths to a flame. There’s no better thrill than scoring something for free and proudly showing it off your finds to flat mates, even if it could use a good wash first! On that note, regarding everything in this article, make sure to give them a thorough wash because you don’t know where they’ve been: a dirty cupboard, out in the rain, or worse, an all-boys house. Some of my personal best finds include a perfect condition shelving unit, a faux fur oak stool and, thanks to the Lansdown pub, a free Samsung drinks fridge. Pro-tip: walk around less studenty areas to decrease competition and try your luck walking past some big fancy houses, you never know what they might be getting rid of.  

DIY  

The best way to ensure you have the most unique decorations is simply to make them yourself. DIY’s also double up as the perfect hungover flat weekend activity.  

A cult classic DIY project, if you could even call it that, is candle sticks in wine bottles. When choosing your next wine bottle for pre-drinks, your first question should not be ‘What percentage is it?’ but instead ‘How good would it look with a candle stick shoved in the top?’. Beer drinkers do not fret, there is space for you too in this DIY. Instead of buying candle sticks, buy some meltable candle wax and wicks, take some cans from the stack of beers in your room and turn them into aesthetic candles. Nothing says homey room decor like a Stella Artois candle!  

Another DIY that can help cover any mould patches or cracking wallpaper is homemade ribbon bunting, the brighter the better and more distracting! From birthdays, Christmas, or that random junk drawer you probably have at home, save your ribbon and tie it on some twine to really brighten up those peeling walls.  

DIYs are all about perspective, and once you shift your focus nearly everything has potential to be a decoration (within reason). 

So, get on Facebook Marketplace and low ball some dads! Go down to Hobbycraft for some art and crafts projects! And rummage through Bristol’s best charity shops to make sure your decorations are as unique and sustainable as possible!  

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• Potty for Pottymouth: The pottery workshop guaranteed to get your creative juices flowing 
• Organisation in and chaos out: Five ways to get into a productive routine post Freshers’ 
• Pascha is back at the University of Bristol after making the final in the Great British Sewing Bee