Renting your own place is the best-case scenario for a student. Dorm rooms are tiny and the furniture is often gross. But often, one cannot afford to rent an ideal apartment that would tick all the boxes. This is why decorating a space and refurbishing furniture is such a hot topic among students.
Today, we’ll give you some ideas on how to decorate your apartment in a renter-friendly way. Let’s dive in!
Working Station
Now that the pandemic has paralyzed many industries pushing people to stay at home for most of the time, making your place feel like a home is essential. And because most of us work and study from home, it’s very important to have a comfortable place for that.
Even if your studies boil down to ‘googling write my essay for me,’ it’s still better to do that in a designated place. If your place did not have a working area, it’s one of the first things to arrange. Look for used furniture in flea markets, thrift stores, or online. Don’t discard the idea of getting a table that looks terrible and giving it a second life.
Often, people will sell unwanted items for extremely low prices. You can get some sanding paper, remove the old varnish and dye and paint a piece of furniture over with a new color. A fresh coat of paint can make a huge difference. You just have to be prepared to put in some effort.
Kitchen
If we’re talking about a small place that doesn’t have any spare bedrooms and lounge zones, you are most likely to spend most of the time in the kitchen. This is why it’s so important to make it look pleasing. Talk to your landlord about making changes beforehand. If the apartment is old and decrepit, upgrading it will be the most natural thing to do and they probably wouldn’t mind.
Make sure you discuss the details with the place owner anyways as some items might have sentimental value to them. Once that is set, you can turn to paint again. Painting kitchen cabinets a natural color like grey, white or brown will give the entire room a fresh look. If the cabinets are so old they are falling apart, consider replacing the doors altogether.
If that’s out of your budget, you might consider leaving the cabinets open. That would require some additional maintenance to look neat, but all your dishes will be extremely accessible. Adding some storage bins will allow you to hide the things you want hidden, like cleaning supplies. As for the dish storage, you can add a hanging rack for pots and pans. They have a hole in the handle for a reason!
Lighting Fixtures
Lighting makes all the difference. If you think you’ve upgraded everything you possibly could but the place looks tired nevertheless, look at your lamps. Lightbulbs having a more natural color can make your new apartment look more like home, at a low price. If you are willing to invest a bit more, change the lamps themselves or invest in alternative light sources.
If you decide to change the ceiling lamps, keep the old ones so you can put them back up when you move out. This way, none of your money has to go to waste. Bringing the lights to an eye-level will make the lighting feel more natural and cozy.
So, it’s really not that essential to change the ceiling lamps if you have a few light sources on the floor. IKEA has some extremely cheap options that would look bomb in any corner.
Light fixtures can also make an amazing addition to your home. Apart from the obvious functional value, a led-light strip can turn into an eye-catching design piece that would also cost you next to nothing.
Fixing a light strip above the kitchen working area will give you enough light to prepare your food at any time of the day. And to make a standalone light, you can place some double-sided tape on the wall and stick your LED strip to it. Make sure to test the tape first, though. You don’t want to have to repaint the walls when you move out.
Bathroom
If you’re planning to live in a place for a while, you’ll need to make the bathroom look neat and crisp. Replacing cabinet handles will make a huge difference and give the room a uniform look. Get a matching towel hook to tie the room together.
If you’re into more radical changes, you could also replace the faucet as chances are, the one you had before is old and might be leaking, which could pose a problem if you travel somewhere.
To cover the chipped floor and walls, throw a rug or bathmat on the floor. If that doesn’t seem like a radical enough solution, talk to the landlord and maybe you’ll be able to find a compromise. For example, change the floor or tiles with the lease money.
Adding some details can make a huge difference. Change the shower curtain to a single-toned one. You could also make it an accent piece if you want to cove the wall behind it. Add plants that love humidity. It could be anything from the list below:
- Monstera
- Spider plant
- Parlor palm
- Nerve plant
Removing labels from the bottles that you have hanging out on the counter will make the room look neater. This solution is not appropriate for households for kids, though. But if you live alone, this will definitely help you reduce visual clutter. Collect your cleaning supplies and other household items into white or semi-opaque storage boxes. That will also help with decluttering and organizing the room.
Wrapping Up
Getting a cheaper place comes with a cost, too. But often, you’ll only have to invest in a few items that you would be able to take with you when you move out. Keep that in mind when designing your dream apartment.
Look at all the crucial zones in your place, make sure there’s a clear division between them and go one by one improving them. Adding small details here and there will make a huge difference eventually!
