Door Decorating 101

When you arrive at your student halls the room is a blank canvas. Some people choose to leave it this way and others, like me, like to cover every square inch of available wall space. My room is filled with pictures of friends, school, holidays, bunting, my favorite movies and a few of my favorite actors (I have to say, it’s rather nice having a picture of Sam Clafflin on my wall to wake up to every morning). For me, if my room isn’t decorated, I don’t feel at home.

My favorite thing to decorate is my bedroom door. It’s the last thing I see before I leave for class and the first thing I come home to at the end of the day. Every year I have chosen a different theme, reflective of my life at that point in time.

It began with this design for Christmas 2017 back in my first year at Aberdeen Uni. Decorating my door was a much needed stress relief at the time from essays and revising, a form of positive procrastination. I took a trip to Paperchase and Hobbycraft to gather some supplies and tried to recreate a design I spotted on Pinterest.

I was devastated when I came back to the flat one day and the whole thing had fallen down. The paper had ripped and there was no point in trying to repair the damage. I was shopping in Tiger one day when I spotted a candle wreath that was the perfect size to fit our door letters. I paired this with a stocking hung on the handle. I didn’t want to spend a lot of time decorating again so this was a nice, simple fix. I must have been good that semester because one-night Santa left some sweets in it!

Come February 2018 I was bored of my blank door inside. It wasn’t inspirational and it needed something to cover it up. I decided I wanted to fill this space with inspirational quotes. A quick Google image search later and I had a good few to cover the door. I loved this door design. Every morning I would read all the quotes as I brushed my teeth and I instantly had a more positive outlook on the day ahead.

For my second year I moved into different student halls. This time our doors were a dark, dark brown and I knew immediately I wanted to cover it with colour. This time I opted for posters of all my favorite musicals. I was involved in many of these through my time at school and this lead me to become a music student. Every day I was reminded of all the good times I had performing them and why I chose this degree.

For Christmas 2018 I went with a simple blue and silver tinsel theme. I was able to reuse my stocking from the year before and ran to Primark for the tinsel. I didn’t really have a plan and just went with the flow. I really liked the design but the loose bits of tinsel got everywhere. I think I was still finding pieces when I moved out! Definitely keep this in mind if you are looking to decorate too.

 This year I wanted my door to give me a nice reminder of home. I picked up some postcards before I left to tape to my door. For me one of the signs that I’m finally home after the long journey back is seeing the Kelpies again (10 points to whoever can guess my hometown). Having this to come back to after a long day at uni makes me instantly feel at home again.

On the inside I decided to go with an Elton John theme. I’ve always been a big fan of his, however, falling in love with Rocketman over the summer has reintroduced me to his music. I am also a keen composer and draw a lot of inspiration from his music. I think this has been my best design so far, despite the fact the printer put a line through all the prints.

I want to decorate my door too but I don’t know what to do!

Pick a theme that you enjoy. This could be anything from your favorite band to your favorite movie or even your dog. Once you’ve got a theme, start making a list of supplies you’ll need. Set a rough budget so you don’t spend £££ just on your door. You could also make a mood board to gather all your images and ideas.

What are some basic things I need?

Scotch tape is great because it’s low tack and doesn’t leave a mark – some regular tape does. Paper is another thing to have handy. Whether you create your own artwork or print things off, it’s going to come in useful.

Where can I go for supplies?

Hobbycraft – Hobbycraft is a great place to pick up a whole range of supplies. They even have a 10% student discount if you have a Unidays account.

Paperchase – Although it’s a little more expensive, they sometimes have some good deals. They also usually have some quirky things you can incorporate into your design. They also have a 20% discount through the Unidays app.

Flying Tiger Copenhagen – I could spend all day in this shop!  On the whole, prices are cheap and they have a wide range of things you can use.

WHSmith – I always grab my pens and pencils here. They have a fab range of art supplies.

The Works – This place is great for cheap paints and pads of paper.

Primark – Primark is great for seasonal decorations. Just don’t get too distracted looking at the clothes whilst you are there!

Morrisons/Asda/Lidl etc. – Look out for some supplies whilst you are doing your weekly food shop. Supermarkets often don’t have the biggest range, but they are usually cheap and you will be in the shop anyway.

Uni/Halls Printers – All my pictures were printed using the university printers. It cost around £2.70 to print about 27 pages with colour.

Have fun decorating!