University halls are notoriously…modest. Most halls of residence give you a pretty basic living set up in the first year, consisting of a bed, a wardrobe or drawers, space for a desk, and if you’re lucky an en-suite bathroom.
This gives students a limited amount of room for belongings, which, depending on how generous their parents are can be quite numerous.
Whilst you could just grin and bear the spatial restrictions imposed upon you, there are a few space-saving hacks that can help ensure your accommodation is comfortable enough for you to live and study happily.
Hire out some storage space
It’s a simple solution, but effective. If you have too many possessions for one space, instead of climbing around them, hire out some local storage space and move the unnecessary items into there. This will serve as a nice temporary solution, and once you revisit your family during reading week, you can pack these items and take them back home.
Storage can be bought cheaply and over varying amounts of time, so you can ensure that you only pay for the time period which is absolutely necessary, and you don’t shell out vital funds for an empty space.
Make use of your walls
Whilst most students will decorate their walls with all sorts of art and pictures, you can also utilise this space in a functional fashion by using things like magnetic boards or hanging shoe organisers.
Magnetic boards are great for things such as stationery, and by attaching magnetic strips to other small items can be used to neatly store smaller possessions that could otherwise get lost. Shoe organisers on the other hand are a little sturdier and more sizeable, so can be used to store just about anything!
By making the most of this space you will find that the amount of floor space you save will be increased substantially!
Utilise that under the bed space
With your bed probably taking up a sizeable portion of your room, it would be remiss not to use the space underneath to store things such as suitcases, bags or other chunky items which you probably won’t need for a few months. When you’re working with a small area it’s essential you optimise every square foot to its full potential and under the bed is a space many people forget about.
Keep the place tidy
Sometimes an area can seem smaller purely because of the state that it is in. A messy wardrobe, a busy desk and wires strewn across the floor can make a space seem claustrophobic, and by simply tidying the place up a bit you will find that your actual space is probably a lot more than first anticipated.
Student life can be busy and hectic, but taking the time to keep your room organised will not only make the place look bigger but make you a lot more comfortable during your time there too!