Faces + Spaces: Bailey Halkett

Photographed by Sarah Loper

With the inundation of opportunities and responsibilities we have at college, we all need a sanctuary, a comfort zone of sorts. For Bailey Halkett, like most homebodies, that space is her room. But Halkett takes it a step further by cultivating the aesthetic of her room not only to be cozy and visually appealing but to be a reflection of her evolving self, her memories and experiences.

When Halkett first saw her room in the house she currently lives in with her friends, she knew she had to do something about the walls. “The bright red walls looked really gross before,” she says. Throughout a five-day process involving paints, tapes and other utensils, Halkett transformed her wall into a crisscross of whites and blues — a geometric design that is modern and abstract, yet organic and natural. Halkett’s bedroom is also full of nostalgia — from a photo wall to a built-in shelf containing objects of personal significance. “I like being reminded of home on a bad day,” she says.

“If there’s one way to describe my home décor vibe, it’s cozy,” Halkett says. The opposite was true a year ago when she used to go for a sparkly combination of golds and pinks. She says her style evolved as she found herself through her many experiences in college, and she felt more free to “design (my) room the way I want to rather than trying to be cool and follow what’s trendy.” For many of us, like Halkett, maturity brings the ability and liberty to be who we are through our words, clothes or homes. Halkett also says she will continue to express her evolving personality in a room that will “constantly change, just like I will.”

While the bedroom is a sanctuary for most of us, it can also be a space for productivity — especially with the various tasks we’re always juggling. Halkett, as a third year student majoring in LOC, minoring in computer science and working at the SESP Dean’s Office, along with being part of Gamma Phi Beta sorority, certainly has her plate full. She says her room, “as an aesthetic and functional place, has played a key role in effective time and stress management. The natural feel and organization not only make for a great study space, but also calm down a neat freak like me.” This combination of aesthetic and functionality came together in the built-in shelf in Halkett’s room, which was once simply a “pretty, white shelf ornamented with random things,” but is now one of the most useful spots of her room that houses daily necessities.

A bedroom is evidently not just a space, but is an amalgamation of our personalities and tastes, and of our past experiences, present commitments and future ambitions. We witness a cozy coming together of all of this in Halkett’s artistic, yet simplistic safe haven.