For this issue, the Student Paper decided it was time to take a look at student housing. This time around, we checked out a couple’s apartment, a studio, and a room with shared facilities. Perhaps you’ll find inspiration for decorating a small space, discover the hottest spots for shopping/thrifting, or, you know, just enjoy getting a glimpse into other students’ glamorous lives! So, let’s meet our volunteers!

Andrea Ósk Sigurbjörns and Sólveig Daðadóttir:

“We were sitting on the beach in Jamaica in the summer of 2018, head over heels in love and excited for our future, when we sent in our application for student housing. In late November the same year, we got the keys to our apartment on Eggertsgata and have now lived here for over two years,” says Andrea. She and Sólveig are both students at the university and live in a couple's apartment. Sólveig is a postgraduate student in statistics and Andrea is working toward a diploma in sexology. Their dearest memory of their apartment is “when we had a picnic on the balcony, sitting on a blanket with vegan hot dogs and beers”.

What inspires your decoration style?

“We try our best to use eco-friendly and sustainable decor. It’s important for us to make our home ours, especially during COVID-19, since we spend more time at home now. We have over 30 plants now, but during the winter months we love to add some candles to our decor.We make good use of our balcony, where we grow greens in planter boxes during the summer, and we have a bench and light bulbs to create a cozy mood. Memories from our trips together are scattered around our apartment. They inspire us to do more of the fun stuff in life.”

What’s your favorite tip for making good use of a small space?

“We use a low table as a dining table and use these cushion-stools to sit on. They’re only around the table while we’re eating and are otherwise stacked up. We don’t have a TV; it doesn’t fit our style. We use a foldable table in the living area for both work and dining. Keeping it folded when not in use helps keep the area open. We share our clothes, so ultimately we need fewer clothes. Mirrors make spaces feel bigger, so we love to have one in every room. Keeping the doors open into all rooms all the time makes the apartment feel like one big space rather than three small ones.”

Where do you get your decor from?

“The only furniture we’ve bought ourselves is a cheap sofa from the showcase products (umbúðalaust) at IKEA. Our grandparents have given us a lot of furniture, decor, and plants. Their unique style has shaped ours. Our living room table was homemade by Andrea’s parents, and our kitchen table has been with Sóla’s family for over 15 years and has traveled to four countries. We love finding radical art pieces, at festivals and queer spaces. Our political stance is very visible on our walls.”

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture that you cannot imagine your place without?

“Our swing is the centerpiece of our living room. It‘s almost 40 years old and was Andrea’s mother's first piece of furniture when she moved out. It has brightened the mood of many of our guests and many more to come.”

Arnaldur Starri Stefánsson:

Arnaldur is a postgraduate law student who has lived in student housing since he started his undergraduate studies four years ago. He currently lives in a studio apartment on Eggertsgata. Arnaldur was born and raised in the countryside, in Þórisstaðir, Svalbarðsströnd. “I’m interested in almost everything – watching football, listening (possibly too much) to podcasts. I’m quite interested in perfumes, and I play a lot of board games as well.” Who doesn’t like a good board game, right?

What inspires your decoration style?

“Nothing specific, mostly stuff I see online. I tend to go for relatively minimal and simple decor, as well as decor that resonates with me personally. More importantly, I try to do whatever it takes to make this place feel less like a retirement home (sadly I can’t change the flooring).”

What’s your favorite tip for making good use of a small space?

“Multifunctional and mobile furniture is key. In an apartment this small, it’s quite likely that you’ll have to move some things around any time you’ve got guests over. I’ve got extra chairs and even an extra table in storage, which I bring out if I’m having people over for dinner or a party. With regards to wall art, I really recommend checking out ARTOTEK, the art library at the Nordic House, where you can borrow graphic artworks for three months at a time - a great way to decorate your walls on the cheap.”

Where do you get your decor from?

“Mostly IKEA, Søstrene Grene as well. Góði hirðirinn is also a great place for decor.”

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture that you cannot imagine your place without?

“The dinner/bar table turned out great. It makes great use of the apartment’s awkward layout and allows me to have dinner facing a window, which, after having dinner facing a wall for the first year living in this apartment, is really nice.”

Helgi James Price Þórarinsson

Helgi is an undergraduate law student at the university. He lives in a single room with shared facilities in Gamli Garður. “I’m used to living in a dorm environment, as I lived in a dorm for three years while in junior college. For me, living in a dorm is the ideal university experience. I like the feeling of a place where I can be on my own but also have the opportunity to meet new people from all over the world,” says Helgi. He adds, “The biggest difference in staying here compared to the other apartments is the lease time, as I’m only renting for nine months a year. I can go back home during the summer and work, make some money, and save on rent.” Flexibility is the key!

What’s your favorite tip for making good use of a small space?

“While living in a room with a shared kitchen/bathroom it can be challenging to find a balance between going out and studying. It’s very important to remember to go out and meet other people, as staying in can bring a feeling of being enclosed in a tiny cell, so make the most of your friends, make a study date, and find activities that suit your interests.”

What inspires your decoration style?

“The rooms are quite small, so making use of the space is very important. My personal preference has been to not have too many decorations around but just enough to make it feel like home; minimalistic but with a hint of your own personality, e.g., some lights in the windows, a floor mat, a couple of pillows, or something along those lines. Sometimes I think of things I can do to make my room feel a bit more welcoming, but I guess I haven’t put in the effort of adding anything yet and probably won’t do it this year. But who knows what I might bring next semester!”

Where do you get your decor from?

“Most things I already owned and brought from home. My fridge, for example, I owned from being in a dorm in junior college and the rest of the stuff is mostly just clothes, books, and those types of things.”

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture that you cannot imagine your place without?

“Not in particular, but one thing I have found very helpful in the dark winter months is my alarm clock. It has a built-in light that’s supposed to replicate the feeling of a sunrise. It really helps you feel awake in the mornings during the darkest months of the year.”

A Glance into Student Housing

Andrea Ósk Sigurbjörns and Sólveig Daðadóttir:

Arnaldur Starri Stefánsson:

Helgi James Price Þórarinsson