Ideas for Decorating your College Dorm Room

First Things First

Before you get down to the fun stuff, there are a few steps you need to take.

Find Out your College’s Rules

The first step in your decorating mission is finding out what is and is not allowed by your college. Are you free to paint the walls? What about nails? Save yourself a lot of hassle, not to mention cash, down the line by familiarizing yourself with the ground rules up front.

Talk to your Roommate

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This step of course becomes most important when you’re about to move in with a stranger. If your tastes are similar, you can make some design decisions together. If not, you will still need to come to an understanding that allows each of your some space to express your design personalities. Don’t sweat the clashing themes too much - it’s college, not the Lincoln bedroom. You’ll laugh about it some day.

The other great thing about talking to your roommate up front is that you can find out what they can contribute to the room and split up purchasing responsibility. Which brings us to our next step…

Decide What to Bring

Ok, it sounds obvious…but what kind of lighting is in your room? What about closet space? You need to the room to be as functional as possible, but you don’t have the space for extraneous stuff. In general, between you and roommate, you should bring:

• TV
• Stereo
• Linens/Towels
• Basic kitchen gear - utensils, can opener, etc
• Trash Can
• Cleaning supplies
• Desk lamps

You also have to decide what NOT to bring. Your college will have some strict rules about this one. The family pet stays at home, as do space heaters, cooking appliances, toaster ovens, candles…as a rule of thumb, remember the only thing burning in your room should be the midnight oil.

The Fun Part

Now that all the boring stuff is out of the way, it’s time to start actually decorating your dorm room.

Color

You color scheme will determine most other parts of your room. If you can paint your walls in your color, great. If not, you decorate your walls with posters that incorporate your scheme, or even hang fabric on your wall. If you can’t use nails or tape, there are a variety of specialty options available at any hardware store that will leave your walls mark-free.

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Bed

Your bed will be the focal point of your room, so this is the space to go all out. Keep your color scheme in mind when picking your comforter, but also remember the amount of traffic that comforter is going to get. Try and choose something that looks goods and is good at hiding the dirt. Accessorize your bed with plenty of pillows for color and ooh-la-la factor.

When you’re buying your sheets, remember most college beds are extra-long, so you’ll have to be specialty sets. If you suspect your mattress pre-dates indoor plumbing, an egg crate mattress or mattress pad can make all the difference.

Desk

You’ll be spending a lot of time here, too, so make it comfortable and functional. Invest in some good lamps and also some desktop organizing units.

The Finishing Touches

Make your space your own by adding the little things - framed pictures from home, posters, cork boards, or anything else you like to snazzy up your walls. Swap functional lamp shades for more fun ones. Try fairy lights around your bed and walls. Increase your storage space with milk crates that can double as tables - drap a makeshift table cloth over them to dress them up.

Your dorm room decorating needn’t use up your whole student loan. Make stores like Target, Wal-Mart, and thrift stores your destinations of choice, and soon your room will be the envy of everyone on the hall.

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