“Wah! Your room so aesthetic! Look like Tumblr one leh!”
Does this phrase sound familiar – either uttered by someone who stepped into your freshly spruced up room on campus? Or, perhaps it’s been echoed by you while stepping into a neighbour’s “aesthetic” room. Enter the power of room décor!
Room décor is a recent trend that has emerged due to the rising popularity of sites such as Tumblr, Pinterest and Weheartit – lifestyle websites that are all like Disneyland for serial hobbyists sourcing for their latest handicraft/decoration idea, especially for their own rooms! This trend is particularly relevant for all of us who live on campus, for our tiny rooms are not just for sleeping or studying in – but also act as refuge for after a long day of class; a safe space; a home away from home. Contrary to popular belief, decorating your rooms is not just the physical act of hanging stuff up, adding new furniture, or simply cleaning the place – although those are important too! Decorating can help you express your creativity and your personality outwardly, and can be very therapeutic.
Today, Residential Life presents some of the most Tumblr-ish rooms in the land of residential colleges (that we managed to find, and in our not-so-humble opinion), along with the décor items and trinkets they have used to spruce up their living spaces! Hopefully it’ll give you some inspiration for decorating your own!
1. Bring on the fairy lights
Ah yes, this décor item screams nothing but basic to many of us, who view it as an overdone trend that everyone seemed to have rode on already… But don’t underestimate the power of the way you hang these fairy lights. The way you drape these lights can make a huge difference to the aesthetics and ambience of your room – bringing you from nay to yay!
Get creative with your fairy lights – explore different ways to pin them!
Photo courtesy of Hongkai, Resident, Tembusu College
Hanging up fairy lights in front of your study desk can help to liven up a boring mugging session, but you can jazz it up further: by pinning the lights in a zigzag pattern like above! Instead of purchasing a separate photo grid to display Polaroids of your treasured memories, make full use of the space within each string of fairy lights, by clipping your photos in between each bulb.
Hang fairy lights from the ceiling above your bed for a pseudo star-gazing session.
Photo courtesy of Affiq, Resident, Tembusu College
Fancy going for a star-gazing session sometime soon… Perhaps in the comfort of your own room? Hang fairy lights above your bed, clip on photos of your family and friends to achieve a dreamy effect, and drift off to deep sleep every night with a warm, comforting feeling.
2. Hang a tapestry
Originating from a Nordic/Scandinavian décor style, tapestries are typically displayed to occupy a large body of space or function as removable wallpaper for a room. Naturally, the design of the tapestry influences the whole vibe of the room in various ways, and speaks for your personality and taste.
A bohemian design, for example, could hint that the owner of the room could be into alternative design (and possibly have a soft spot for indie music), while someone who chooses a tapestry of a backdrop of New York City could be someone full of wanderlust and dreams of visiting NYC one day. The possibilities are endless.
Example of a large Bohemian tapestry that immediately influences the vibe of the room
Photo courtesy: Affiq, Resident, Tembusu College.
Check out some great examples of Scandinavian design here, and check out tapestry ideas on Pinterest!
3. Put up a feature wall of postcards, watercolour quotes and/or posters
Most room décor enthusiasts endorse the idea of hanging up various items on one’s wall – be it pictures, cards or even a poster of their favorite band. If not done tastefully, you may end up with weird, haphazard arrangements of a variety of mismatched items on your walls, bringing down the overall vibe of the room. Worse still, if you’re using hooks to hang stuff, removing those hooks could later pose a hassle, leaving stains or peeling paint if you’re not careful.
Thus, it is important to have a mental picture of how you want our wall décor to look like, before your start actually designing. Do you want a spacious, industrial-design wall, or would you rather have a flexible arrangement – sticking stuff on as you go?
Great example of a feature wall – consisting dreamcatcher, photos, personal notes and paintings.
Photo courtesy of Cherie, Resident, CAPT.
You can set important items and photos out together first, and then stick them all up at one go to ensure an aesthetic feel. If you’re an avid or aspiring painter, this is a great opportunity to showcase your paintings on your feature wall as a reminder to paint more often, or just to liven up the place!
A feature wall idea for the travellers amongst us.
Photo courtesy of Cherie, Resident, CAPT.
For those of you who are hardcore travellers, you could also display past travel photos as a form of reminiscence, and include photos of potential future destinations! You could lose yourself in these pictures once in a while if you need a studying break, and give yourself something to look forward to – planning your next trip!
Inspirational quotes never go wrong on a feature wall.
Photo courtesy: Nadine, Resident, Cinnamon College.
Ever seen inspirational quotes beautifully painted in watercolour, on sites like Tumblr and Pinterest? Print them out, or even try painting them yourself for some quick mental therapy – then stick them up on your feature wall!
Whether your décor style is Scandinavian, Boho, modern or industrial – there’s a room idea for everyone, and the best part is that decorating doesn’t have to be outrageously expensive or extravagant. Ultimately, it’s your room, and it should be somewhere that you’re comfortable being in… So the style in which you want to decorate your room (or not decorate) is completely up to you! For those of you who do want to decorate, we hope that you’ve gained some useful tips on how to give your room an aesthetic Tumblr vibe after reading this article. If you have any other décor ideas, share it with us in the comments section, and maybe we’ll write another post about it!
Till then! 🙂
