The Broke Student's Guide to Cheap Decor

By Kaitlin Hurtado on November 18, 2017

Moving out for college and having your own living space is one of the more appealing aspects of the college experience, as you gain that much more independence. Having your own living space also allows you to decorate your space to your heart’s content, but sadly, students are often limited to how much they can decorate when a student’s budget is usually small to begin with.

Regardless of the status of your budget, you can still decorate your living space to make it feel more like home without breaking the bank.

Image via pexels.com

Make a photo/memento wall

The budget needed for this project can vary, depending on how much you already have to put on the wall. If you already collect various mementos — movie and concert tickets, posters, polaroids — this project will be fairly cheap. If not, collect pictures you would want on your wall of your friends and family and print them out. Depending on the type of quality you want the photos to be, you can use a regular ink printer or go to your local CVS or photo-printing shop to get your photos printed. Places like CVS often have deals that can be found online, giving you a certain amount of prints free if you buy a certain amount or a discount on the total amount.

Go to your local thrift stores to find other wall art — they can be found as prints already in a frame, rolled-up movie posters in a bin, or you can even find postcards from around the world in bulk.

Once you have your materials, arrange them however you want. You can fill up the whole wall as you please, or use the pictures and mementos to make a shape on your wall (a heart, your initials, etc.)

If you can’t damage the walls by using pushpins to hang your photos because of your lease, buy a few rolls of decorative washi tape to use that won’t damage your walls. They can double as a design by adding a touch of color/personality depending on your design.

Add some green

Many joke that if you can’t have a pet in college, you could at least have a plant. Taking care of a plant definitely isn’t the same as having a furry friend, but it does liven up your space and can also contribute to the air quality of your space at the same time. Many houseplants are easy to take care of as long as you water them every once in a while and keep them in a space where they get enough sun (specific care instructions can easily be found online).

You can decorate even more by putting the plants in decorative pots. If you can’t find pots to fit your budget, you can always buy plain pots from a garden center and paint them as you wish to fit with your room’s aesthetic. If you are planting succulents or other small plants, you can plant them in mugs from your collection or others that you can find at thrift stores as long as you make sure the plants will have proper drainage.

If you are completely convinced that you have a black thumb, you can always buy a fake plant to have it as decor without the risk of killing it.

Use lighting for its function and design

When people think of decorative lighting, they often think of string lights. String lights are an easy way to add a touch of decor while still having function as they are an easy way to decorate while still giving your room a nice, ambient glow unlike the harsh lighting of your typical lamp. String lights are the staple decor piece for many college students, as they are fairly cheap — even more so during the holidays as they are used for holiday decor as well.

String lights also come in a variety of colors and designs so you can get a different color or different shapes as you see fit without breaking your budget.

Always scour the clearance section of stores

If you’re on a budget, you may just go shopping for what you really need instead of roaming the store to check every aisle out. However, roaming the store may be in your favor as you can stumble across many clearance sections that are often hidden at the end or back of aisles. You can find plenty of decor pieces in these clearance sections.

These clearance sections have a wide variety of items you can use as decor. Mugs to use as a pencil or makeup brush holder. Decorative pillows for your bed. Rugs for both indoor and outdoor decor. Candles to add both color and scent to your room. Frames to display your personal pictures. The possibilities are endless and you won’t feel as bad making the purchase because of the discounts.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format