For many seniors, college can’t come soon enough. College is full of new experiences, different teaching methods, a new environment, new friends, and the infamous dorm room decor. Some students have been dreaming about decorating their dorm room for years.

Thinking about the “dorm life” can be scary and nerve-wracking. A dorm room can be a safe haven, or it can be the last place you want to be. Part of this depends on the compatibility you have with your roommate, but another part of this is the aesthetics and design of the room itself. Your dorm room should feel like home and be comfortable as well as functional. To do this, try adding some of these items.

Door Decorations

Decorating the outside of your door is a trend at most colleges. It provides a sense of individuality even though every room is essentially the same. Coordinating this design with your roommate can be a fun, bonding experience. People often put pictures, magazine cutouts, whiteboards to leave notes, and their names on the outside of their doors.

Whiteboard/Billboard

Your dorm room should be full of colors, trinkets, and personal touches that make you happy and remind you of home. These can be simple things, such as pictures or letters from friends that hang on the walls. A great way to incorporate these pictures and letters is by getting a billboard and pinning them on it. In college your parents aren’t going to be around to remind you about all of your appointments and activities, so getting a whiteboard to put those reminders on is a practical solution, and also provides a space for your friends to leave you nice notes. Not only can a billboard and whiteboard be a place for cute pictures and letters, they will keep your notes and events organized.

Comforter

Your bed could possibly be your favorite part about your new dorm room, especially if you pick out a great set for your comforter with matching pillows. These come in all different colors, patterns, and themes, which makes it easy to find the perfect one for you. You can also try to coordinate colors and or themes with your roommate so that your room can have a scheme to it.

Lights

Another great way to decorate your dorm room, as well as provide extra light for studying is adding extra lamps. These lights can be chinese string lights, christmas lights, or decorative lamps. However, some colleges have restrictions on what kind of electronics you may or may not have in your dorms, so you’ll have to check the rules before bringing lights.

Storage

There’s always a crunch for space in dorm rooms. Although bringing your whole room sounds appealing, it’s not practical. Picking out your favorite pieces from your wardrobe is a necessity. To make your room seem bigger add some mirrors. Not only do these enhance the appearance of the room, they double as a useful item. Since space is tight, the way you utilize it is important. Storage boxes are crucial to your organizational success. They’re stackable, they come in various sizes, and sometimes they have cute designs on them. They’re perfect for putting under raised beds or stacking against a wall.

Whether your dorm room is big or small, insanely decorated or conservative, it’s going to become your home while you’re in college. It should be a place that you like being in and makes you happy.

Photo Credit: Lucy Knowles/The Foothill Dragon Press