Moving out and finally gaining more freedom and independence is a big part of becoming a college student, that is, if you actually move out. Â
As a commuter, my college life hasn’t been as traditional as those around me. I spent my freshman and sophomore years at a community college ten minutes down the road from the house I’ve been living in since I was seven. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret going to a community college, however, it kept me from living the college life I had envisioned, including living on my own. When I got into ODU I thought I was finally about to live that infamous college life.Â
That was all ruined by Covid-19 in a matter of weeks. Suddenly, I was a student at a university for the first time, but instead of attending ODU, I attended OBU, Online Bedroom University. I spent two whole semesters sitting at my desk, in my room, with my cat, never leaving. I never really liked school, and those two semesters almost made me drop out.Â
Flash forward to now, where I am finally on campus and only have one semester left. I finally get to prepare myself to finally move out. Not that I hate my house (or my wonderful mom and cat), but when I’ve spent the last four years watching my friends go from dorms to student apartments to an actual adult apartment, and now, I WANT IN!
Let’s start with the foundation of starting any space, the furnishings.
IKEA: THE MOTHERSHIP OF GOOD DEALS
Sometimes, IKEA gets hate because of how hard their stuff is to build. Yes, some of their furniture could take actual blood, sweat, tears and not to forget the hours it will take to put everything together, but the end result is worth it. Not only are IKEA furniture and decorations priced much lower than their competition, their items are sleek, customizable and will last for forever. Â
IKEA’s website is extremely user friendly. The “design” tab where you can plan out how you want a room to look will suggest the perfect decorations and furniture to match your ideas. Not sure what you want to do? No worries! They also have a ton of inspiration tabs so you can find that perfect theme.Â
WAYFAIR: YOU’VE GOT WHAT I NEED (and that’s why I love you):
You might’ve seen the cheesy commercials for Wayfair more times than you can count. You know, the ones with the trendy jingle that make everything sound and look too good to be true? Although they have incredibly painful to watch commercials, Wayfair does actually have a great supply of home furnishings and dĂ©cor, at even better prices than expected, too. Â
What I like about Wayfair is the variety that is offered for most of their items. Unlike Ikea where furniture may only come in the basic white, gray, and boring neutral colors, Wayfair offers many items that come in many different and more exciting colors. This is perfect for those who want to coordinate more of their belongings to help establish some sort of theme for their home.
THRIFT STORES: USED COULD BE BETTER:
The last resource I want to mention for finding furnishings is looking for items that have been previously owned, and are looking for a new beginning. Thrift stores and online personal selling sites are the way to go if you want to find those “you’ll only find this once” type of things. Even if you won’t be able to find out the history of pieces in thrift stores, you will be able to see how things are built and exactly what condition they’re in. Whatever you do, try to avoid buying something from someone who is not an authorized seller without seeing it in person. There are so many cases of people lying about the conditioning of something, selling it and then keeping the money and ghosting the people who bought from them. Â
Now that you have your foundational items, it’s time to stylize and personalize!!!Â
TAKE AN INTERIOR DESIGN STYLE QUIZ
If you type in “interior design style quiz”, you will quickly discover that there are hundreds, if not thousands. Most of them are quick, free and give you visuals so you can see your visions come to life. Many of these quizzes follow the same concept of picking rooms that are appealing or specific furnishings and decorations that catch your eye.Â
PINTEREST:Â
Pinterest is the number-one place to go to get the best inspiration for literally ANYTHING, and interior design is no exception. Â
You can search for “purple wallpaper”, “green vases”, “orange rug” or even knock offs of your favorite artist’s work to find things for purchase through secondhand vendors, but it definitely doesn’t stop there. Check out what Pinterest is highly known for, it’s DIY’s. Find out how to make a new piece of furniture look vintage or how to make something vintage look new. Want to make a stencil so you can paint a cool design onto your wall? Not a problem! Pinterest has an endless amount of possibilities for you to embrace your creative, or buying, side. Just try to keep an eye on the time, you may get sucked in too deep if you’re not careful…Â
PANTONE: HEAVEN FOR ALL THINGS COLOR
The last site I want to discuss is Pantone, which has all your color needs in one place. My favorite feature on Pantone is their color of the year, which happens to be October Mist, a shaded sage color, for 2022. It is common for people who like the color of the year to incorporate it into their life each time a new year comes around. You can also choose a color that you like and can learn about the complimentary colors, the different shades for that color, and how to use it in your everyday life. Who doesn’t want to live with cohesive colors in their life?Â
I can’t wait to start the process of creating my own space, and if you’re also in that boat with me, I hope this article gave you some great ideas and inspiration. I know that it can be overwhelming and unfamiliar, but just remember to have fun and express yourself. The options are endless and it’s a journey that never really ends.Â
Happy Designing!Â