5 Ideas for Holiday Decorating in Student Apartments
Just because you have limited space in your student apartment doesn’t mean you need to forgo holiday decorations entirely. In fact, some seasonal decorating is just what your home away from home needs. The good news is there are plenty of ways to decorate, no matter how much (or little) space you have.
1. Keep Things Simple
Large homes can go over the top with the decorations, and nothing looks out of place. However, too many decorations in a small apartment feels overwhelming. For this reason, it’s best to limit yourself to just a few small items and a centerpiece, such as something that has special meaning to you.
2. Use Functional Items
Another way to prevent your apartment from feeling overcrowded with decorations is to choose items that you’re also able to use. For instance, you could switch to a seasonal tablecloth, placemats, hand towels, or a coffee mug.
3. Choose Bright and Shiny Colours
On the flip side, the risk of having only a few decorations is that they may fade into the background. You can overcome this by selecting decorations in colours that stand out. The typical holiday colour palette is made up of greens and reds, but metallics are also ideal. Both gold and silver work, but it’s best to pick just one.
4. Find Places Around the Apartment to Decorate
You may need to think outside the box to find places to display your holiday decorations. Choices include a bookshelf, the middle of the kitchen table, the coffee table, and your desk (provided it’s not already too cluttered). You could also put your regular ornaments into a storage bin to free up space and then replace them with holiday-themed objects.
5. Find an Alternative to a Traditional Tree
Christmas trees tend to be bulky, meaning they take up far too much space in a small living room. Plus, you have the problem of how to dispose of the tree later. An artificial tree is a great alternative, as it comes in all sorts of sizes — not to mention colours and designs, meaning you can pick one that matches your style and use it year after year.
However, if you can’t bear to go through the holiday season without a real tree, a solution could be to buy a potted one. A Norfolk Island pine is a particularly good choice. If you keep it alive over the years, it will grow gradually, giving you a slightly bigger tree each year. Just bear in mind that, as it will increase by about half a metre a year, you may like to start this year with quite a small one.
Of course, you can’t even think about decorating until you’ve found an apartment. If you’re searching for rooms to rent in Ottawa, there’s The Revalie. Whether you choose a bachelor apartment for yourself or decide to share a suite with other students, you’ll have much more space than you’d receive with a typical student apartment. Take a virtual tour to see where you could be living.