African Motifs and Glam Accents Make This New Space Feel Like Home

A student housing crisis at Florida A&M University left senior Mia Diamond displaced and searching for an off-campus apartment. Luckily, she found a space she liked — and with the help of some new and borrowed decor pieces, she turned it into a home she loves.

All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.

How did you find this space? It was in the midst of a housing crisis. As FAMU’s freshman enrollment increased, a lot of students were displaced from their student housing and forced to search for apartments. I fortunately found this apartment, which is within walking distance to campus. 

What was your first impression of your bedroom? I love how spacious the room feels because of the large windows that look out onto the city.

What is your space best known for? The vibes. The ambience is truly unmatched.

Define your personal home style: My home is largely influenced by the African motifs my mother and aunts had in their home. I actually used artwork from my family’s garage to decorate my room. It’s a reflection of the culturally centered pieces I admired in my childhood. 

Did you get any other inspo for your space? I think TikTok influenced a lot of the decor — I watch a lot of renter-friendly transformation videos.

What’s your favorite element of this space? My bed. It sounds so simple, but the amount of pillows and throws that I added to the bed decor really makes my room feel like a hotel suite.

In an effort to remove the stigma associated with talking about money in college, we’re asking students to share how they plan and budget for their space.

How much does your housing cost per semester? $3,675

How much did it cost to decorate your space? $3,000

Biggest decor splurge? My chunky knit blanket; it was $79 when it went viral on TikTok. 

Best budget find? My artwork, as they’re secondhand pieces from my mom.

Favorite DIY hack? I used thumbtacks to hang my photos on the wall. I wasn’t able to drill a lot of holes into the wall because I couldn’t find enough studs in the appropriate places. So my mom told me to grab some thumbtacks from the dollar store and place five behind each frame, equidistant from one another. It worked!

What was your biggest challenge in this space, and how did you overcome it? I have more clothing and accessories than I can store in the closet, so I found some creative storage solutions. I have a bench that covertly stores my entire purse collection. Under my bed, there is a large canvas storage box from IKEA that houses over 50 pairs of shoes.

I quickly learned that as someone who is constantly busy, I sometimes have to sacrifice meticulous organization in order to have a clean-looking room. If you have storage items that can conceal what’s inside, you can just shove stuff in there — even if it’s messy, no one would ever know.

This submission’s responses were edited for length and clarity.

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