Decorating a dorm room can be difficult! Trying to coordinate with roommates, and working with tiny cramped spaces is not easy. Dorm rooms usually come with a standard ugly wooden bed, desk, and dresser, and not much else. With a bit of effort and dorm room décor essentials, the space can become efficient and stylish. Learn how to maximize your space!
Dorm room mattresses are usually Twin XL. This size is made to accommodate even the tallest of college students. If previously owning a twin bed there is a good chance that it was just an average length twin size bed, so when shopping it is important to pay attention to the length of the sheets!
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Some dorm rooms already come with a microwave, but several do not. This is a must. There will be several times you do not feel like venturing down to the dining hall. The microwave and a pack of ramen will save your life at some point!
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A mini-fridge is right up there with the microwave. You will be grateful to have it. Having a mini-fridge in the room is nice for keeping drinks cold, and is a good space to store leftovers or snacks that need to be refrigerated. Even if it does just end up being a skincare fridge, it will come in handy at some point.
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A clothing hamper has so many benefits. This does not exactly count as cute décor but is totally necessary. Invest in a durable hamper, so that when you wait two weeks to do laundry, a strap won’t break when going to pick it up. There are even some on wheels.
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Dorm rooms do not typically have a ton of outlets. There is a good chance that there may only be like four outlets, which is not nearly enough. A power strip allows for a curling iron, a laptop, a phone, and a lamp all to be plugged in at once. You never realize how many outlets you need until you are put into a situation with limited outlets. There are ways to make even the biggest of eyesores cuter, try decorating a box, or buying one on Amazon to hide the cords. Power strips even come in cute colors or patterns.
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Buy an extension cord. Honestly, by like 5 they will get used. There is no harm in having extra extension cords. Outlets can be placed in inconvenient locations, and your cord may not stretch. Be prepared, and buy an extension cord.
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It will be a rough transition from the Tempur-Pedic mattress at home, to the thin dorm room plastic mattresses. This is the saddest part of going away to college, not being able to bring your own bed. Making the bed comfortable is important. A good way to make a bed more comfortable is to get a mattress pad. Remember when buying one make sure it is the proper size, usually a twin XL.
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Body pillows are great for decoration and functionality. Older dorm rooms have cylinder block walls. The walls are not comfortable to sit up against. If you like to do homework in your bed, this helps a ton. Purchase a cute pillow cover to match your dorm room decor!
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A pillow with attached armrests, are like body pillows. If you hardly leave your bed, invest in one of these bad boys. They decrease back pain from slouching. Now you can do homework in your bed upright, or just about any other task that can be completed from bed.
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A lap desk is the pillow with arm rest’s counterpart. The two go together great. A lap desk is convenient when having to write while sitting down, or even balancing a laptop and textbook. This is a good flat surface to eat a bowl of ramen on in bed. Keep that in mind, because the scenario will arise.
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Dorm rooms are poorly lit with fluorescent light bulbs. Not the easiest on the eyes. Having a lamp will brighten the room. It is nice to be able to turn a lamp on for some light when a roommate is trying to sleep. This way the light will not bother them as much!
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With limited space in a dorm room, some creativity needs to be involved to fit everything necessary into such a tiny space. This is where bed risers come into play. Bed risers lift the bed higher off the ground allowing for more under bed storage space. Use this space!
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Decorative lights add a warm touch to a bare dorm room. A string of lights are cheap and make a dorm room have a cozy feel.
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Picture frames are perfect decorations. Parts of pre-college life can be in the dorm room and not forgotten. Pictures can be comforting to look at when feeling homesick. They serve as a good conversation topic with the roomie too.
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Decorating in college is hard since more than likely, holes cannot be drilled into the wall. A tapestry is a quick and easy way to decorate. Depending on the size of the tapestry it can cover a lot of bare wall space. Tapestries add a fun flair to the room. They come in fun prints or sayings on them.
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A fan or space heater is the best friend to any college student who lives in a dorm room. Rooms can either be freezing or hot with no in-between and sleeping in a room that is too cold or hot is not ideal.
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Dorm rooms do not have a ton of space for storage. It can be hard to not take everything in your closet when moving to college. Under-bed storage containers allow for more storage. The containers are long and can fit any folded clothes, or shoes.
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Dorm halls have strict policies on damaging the walls when decorating. To avoid the hassle, try command hooks. At the end of the year, the command hook comes off the wall leaving no damage behind.
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Buy desk organizers to hold folders, books, and school supplies. This will help keep your study environment orderly. The days of struggling to find a pen be gone if kept in a designated location.
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Some dorm rooms come with a trash can, but it can never hurt to have another. There are always tons of trash in a dorm room. Having a small trashcan will reduce the mess in the room.
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Candles are a no go in a dorm room, so the next best thing is an essential oil diffuser. An essential oil diffuser will not catch on fire and will make the room smell amazing. This should on the top of the dorm room décor checklist.
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Tired of spending money every day at the campus Starbucks? Maybe, try making coffee in the dorm room. A Keurig is a good option if willing to spend more money. The hot water from a Keurig or coffee pot can be used for other uses besides just coffee.
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This is awesome for maximizing space. Hanging shoe storage can be hung on a hook, or over the back of a door. All shoes can be stored away, without taking up the whole closet space.
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Hang a mirror on the back of the door. This way a quick outfit check can be done before leaving the room to go out. Make sure you are looking as fresh, as your dorm room decor will be after including all the essentials from this article.
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Television is not a necessity but is nice to have. Netflix or Hulu hits differently on television than it does on a laptop screen.
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