College Prep: Decorating a Dorm Room
The average college student will spend $3,184 per year to
furnish their dorm room. That adds up to much more than a couple
of posters from the campus bookstore. Making the transition from
high school student to college co-ed does take planning. But
costs can be controlled with creativity and communication.
A dorm room needs functionality first. With a plan in place
before even the first desk lamp is purchased, money can be saved
by avoiding items that don’t fit the budget, room size or theme.
A dorm room is a college student’s haven; it serves many
purposes beyond sleep and study. The best way to assure that it
will meet and exceed all the functions is to establish a color
group and theme.
Color is often the most difficult decision. By choosing a color
or finding inspiration from a pillow, painting, nature, etc. the
entire room can be designed and unified. Once this decision is
narrowed down, visit a paint store for paper color card samples.
Keep the samples handy when shopping.
The theme is the next choice. Any decorating magazine is a
starting point to find a style that conveys the mood. Shabby
chic? The Simpsons? Architectural? Even in a tiny room these
elements can make a big difference.
Armed with a color and theme preference, it is time to start
shopping. The big three, walls, windows and floors are the place
to start.
Colleges often have lots of restrictions about the treatment of
the dorm walls, including no nails and no tape. Creativity comes
in to the rescue. Colored chalk can be applied to many cement
block walls and washed off at the end of the school year.
Hanging Kraft paper with poster putty can be either a blank
canvas to be added to through the year, or painted with a mural,
design or solid color. Fabric is inexpensive at mass merchandise
stores. Applying fabric to walls with liquid starch is fast,
looks great, and leaves only a wall to wash when removed. Canvas
stretchers available at craft and artist supply stores come in
all sizes. Stretched and stapled fabric on the frame gives the
illusion of a colored, finished wall. Clothes line can hold
panels of paper, photographs or posters suspended from ceiling
to floor.
Floors are cold on feet headed to an early class. Many colleges
have carpeting for sale. Another alternative is to paint a
canvas drop cloth and varnish the finished product for a one of
a kind design. Area rugs are easy to find in almost every color.
Even if the room is already carpeted, layering another rug is
effective for tying in the preferred colors.
Windows may be furnished with curtains. If the curtains are
passable, personalize them with trim added with safety pins or
removable Velcro®. Scarves or fabric can create temporary swags
and accents. If there are no curtains, make a rod from anything
the right length…a bamboo pole, baseball bat or lacrosse stick,
or PVC pipe. Dress with ribbons in various lengths, ropes of
artificial ivy, old neckties, sheets buttoned on to the rod. Or
purchase curtains or blinds, purchased to fit the window width
and length.
Walls, windows and floors complete, the beds are the largest
objects in the room. If the cost of a new comforter is
prohibitive, sheets make a bed in a bag with just straight seams
sewn or glued, to refresh an old comforter. Whether buying new
or creating new, consider a reversible comforter for two
different looks and quick camouflage for spills. Many schools
use extra-long twin beds, be certain that sheet sets will
accommodate the extra length.
Storage is biggest hurdle in most dorm rooms. In addition to
purchased closet organizer systems, do-it-yourself storage can
make sense. Heavy duty cardboard boxes with lids (copier paper
boxes or shipping boxes) can be covered with fabric or paper to
make storage for sweaters or old class notes. Hat boxes from
thrift shops are great even unadorned. Plastic hooks are readily
available, but the only limit is imagination for alternate hooks
and hangers. Old drawer pulls, catcher’s masks, even bent
silverware makes unique holders.
Lighting is key for studies. Lamp kits can turn any heavy base
into a functional lighting source. Keep with the theme of the
room and create an accent lamp from a childhood toy, garden
statue or sports souvenir. A store bought lamp is transformed
with a shade embellished with ticket stubs or photos. Holiday
mini-lights can be festooned across a ceiling for accent
lighting.
Accessories for the room are endless. Keep a list in mind of
what is needed first, then add accents as the budget allows. The
best and least expensive place to shop is at home. An existing
lamp or bean bag chair may be just right for the dorm. Summer
garage sales and thrift shops can uncover unique finds for
lamps, storage and electronics. Internet shopping gives a fast
and thorough overview of available items.
Without spending the big bucks of the average college student, a
dorm room can be a place of refuge after a hectic day of classes
that really feels like home.