Bachelors (we are being gender neutral here, denoting all happily single folks out there) are the new face of the tenants in every apartment complex in the world. They are a nomadic demographic group moving from one city to another, chasing their dream careers. Their preferred residences are always apartment units in the city, easily accessible to their workplaces, near to groceries and the farmer’s markets and yet serviced by Zomato, Swiggy, Uber and all the top SaaS players providing daily services.
Young people are perhaps one of the most cash strapped section of the society. They have just started building the ground beneath their feet. Their income is laid at the feet of the rent gods, everyday nutrition and the ever awaited weekend unwinding. However, the ambience of what you come back home to, is always important. Home, even the one on rent in a housing society, is your space. This is where you recharge yourself for the next day. Hence, it makes complete sense to turn your rented apartment into a home, your home, your own recharge den.
Here is a compilation of Top 5 easy on the pocket decor ideas for bachelor pad decorating which turns your rented apartment into a home. Tips are from a fellow bachelor.
Organise Your Home
First things first. Assuming you have rented a standard semi furnished apartment in a housing society with the basic cabinets and shelves, the first step to bachelor pad decorating is organisation. Place your clothes vertically in the cabinet shelves to create more space. Earmark each shelf for different types of outfit. So keep your ethnic wear and formals, party wears, date wears, casual wears and everyday office wears in separate shelves. What’s the benefit? You don’t have to rummage through your entire wardrobe everyday and mess it all up. With the increased space, stack your books and documents in the cabinet. Avoid the headache of dusting your books everyday. Repeat the same process with your kitchen too. Demarcate shelves for spices, utensils, groceries and other food items.
Still feel like you need a bit more? Get a steel utensil rack, a shoe rack and a clothes rack. And you are sorted!
Pocket Pinch : 1500-1800 INR
Jazz Up Your Walls
Most rental properties in apartment complex do not allow massive changes done to the walls. However, majority landlords deduct painting charges from the security deposit. So why not take a wee bit leeway and brighten up your walls? Amazon has an impressive collection of decals, often sold at discounts as high as 85%. Get that classy wall paint feel at less than a fraction of the cost. Bonus: Decals are easily removable and can be taken to your next new address.
Do not stop at decals though. Let your walls be the canvas for the artist in you. Get your paint brushes and acrylic colours out and doodle away to glory. Invest in canisters of spray paint and give wings to the graffiti artist.
Pocket Pinch : As low as 450-500 INR. Sky’s the limit here though.
Light It Up
The right lights can brighten up the dampest of moods. Get a few suction hooks; the tinier, the better. Wrap around fairy lights. Get crazy. Mix colours. Mix effects to get that dreamy vibe. Turn your house, in an otherwise standard housing society, into an idyll where you escape from the reality around you. We all deserve a little break everyday.
If you want to mix lights with nostalgia, there are options galore of fairy lights coming with heat proof clips. Get your favourite pictures of your most memorable moments laminated in the local photocopy shop and hang them around. Alternately, get command strips to hang photo frames on the wall.
Pocket Pinch : Anywhere between 400 – 1000 INR based on how decorative you want it to be.
Collage It Up
Walls are the best places to let your creativity take shape. If you are the one with patience, then this a DIY project to soothe you. Make shapes or even a portrait (why not dare to dream big?) and show off to your friends the interior designer in you. (Psst : You can recycle even your apartment complex’s neighbour’s newspapers with this bachelor pad decorating project). If patience is not your thing, no worries. Get your favourite photographs, collage them and drive on the nostalgia train. Better still, use pictures of all the places you want to visit. A little motivation to get back your spirit hasn’t hurt anyone. Alternately, use pictures of your own achievements. There is no love as intense as self love. Or there is always the classic – posters. Let the noir, the glossy, the colourful, the offbeat, the cheeky and humorous posters take over your wall like a pro.
If you are feeling fancy, modular or traditional origami should be right up your alley to create those personalised vases and pen stands and chandeliers and what not!
Pocket Pinch : Free – 1000 INR
Baby Garden For The Green Thumbed
Is green your favourite colour? Does the sight of trees calm your nerves? Do you yearn for a little garden around your living space in an apartment complex? Then the next best step towards your bachelor pad decorating is a baby garden. With nurseries just a click away and a stash of pet bottles piling up in all our houses, a baby garden is the best option around.
YouTube has a chunk of videos showing how to craft planters from pet bottles. Even self watering set-up. Get in the DIY mode and turn your trash into planters. A good collection of such low maintenance house plants would be :
- Aloevera
- Cacti
- Spider Plant
- Jade
- Rubber Plant
- Money Plant
- Areca Palm
- Ficus
- Curry Leaves
- Cilantro
- If nothing works, a bed of grass is good enough.
Pocket Pinch : 200 INR upwards
These are just the basics. Of course, go all out while giving your rented apartment the glam and glitz befitting the resident. Rent some cool furniture; better still buy pre loved items from trusted websites or Facebook groups to spruce up your bachelor pad. Your home is your getaway world. Make it perfect with best bachelor pad decorating practices. But don’t burn a hole in the pocket.
If you have rented an apartment in a gated community/apartment complex/housing society using ADDA, check out Discover for cool deals to furnish your apartment.
Also, read Innovative ways to decorate your living room.
