Let’s face it: dorm rooms can be pretty drab. With the florescent lighting and often plain cinder block walls, it’s easy to view dorm rooms as dull and borderline depressing. But the good news is they don’t have to be.
When you’re living in a dorm room, you have an opportunity to make the space your own by decorating it. The right decorations can really liven a space, and some of the best dorm decorations are pictures. Pictures of your friends, family, and loved ones are a great way to add your own personal touch to the space.
Here are ten ideas for photo displays to use in your dorm room this year!
A gallery wall is a great way to display your pictures if you have a large portion of blank wall area and other things you also want to display on your wall in addition to pictures, like posters or art prints. You have a ton of freedom when it comes to creating a gallery wall in your dorm room.
Get a plain letter board and print your pictures in black and white to create a black and white themed gallery wall. Draw inspiration from your favorite art pieces or artists when creating your gallery wall.
Be careful when sticking your photos to the wall, though. The last thing you want is to get charged for wall damage in your dorm room. One way to do this is with mounting putty. It’s easy to remove without doing damage to your dorm room walls.
String lights are a college dorm room staple. If you already have them, why not kill two birds with one stone and use them to display your pictures?
Hang your string lights above your bed with adhesive wall hooks, and then attach the pictures to the wires on the string lights using clothes pins. This will give you a luminous photo display that will light up your dorm room in more ways than one.
Displaying your pictures with push pins and cork boards can give it a fun bulletin board feel. Luckily, you don’t have to buy a whole huge cork board to make this happen. You can buy individual cork squares, adhere them to the wall, and pin photos into those.
The good thing about this display idea is you can get that bulletin board feel without having to use a space-consuming actual bulletin board. If you want to add to the display’s bulletin board feeling, adhere some paper keepsakes like event tickets, cards, or notes from friends.
If you’re not into DIY dorm room projects, you can buy a photo display board to hang on a wall in your dorm room. There are a couple options for these. One common one is the wire photo display board, which allows you to stick photos in and display them without the need for extra adhesive.
Other options come in grid or clothesline form, and you can display your pictures by using miniature clothesline shaped pins. A photo display board like this one is a good option if you’re looking for an easy way to display your photos.
Here’s a good choice if you’re looking to add some rustic inspired decoration to your dorm. This display idea is similar to the string lights display, but uses twine (or a similar material) instead of string lights.
It’s a good idea if you’re looking for a mini project. Tie pieces of cut twine onto metal key rings and hang the rings on some adhesive wall hooks. Then, hang your pictures on the twine using clothes pins. This could make a good decoration to hang near your desk or over your bed.
Picture frames may seem like a basic way to display photos, but don’t over look them. If you have one or two pictures that you consider special, place them in picture frames and display them on your dorm room desk.
Plus, putting pictures in picture frames doesn’t have to be a boring way to display them. You can buy some cheap picture frames and some paint and other decorations and decorate them to your heart’s content. Picture frames are an easy way to show off pictures that you really value.
If you’re looking to get a little creative with how you display your photos, try adhering your photos to your dorm room wall in a shape. You have the freedom to make your display in whatever shape you want, but some common choices include hearts or letters.
Some online dorm decor stores sell decals that can help you add some style to your photos when you display them. There are a variety of decal options. You can opt for decals that look like decorative picture friends, perfect for turning your dorm room wall into a decorative gallery-like display. There are also decals that’ll make your pictures look like Polaroids, which can help you get the decorative look of Polaroids without having to pay for a Polaroid camera.
There’s a good chance you’ll be spending a lot of time at your dorm room desk during your time in college, so why not add some pictures to liven it up?
Some college dorm desks come with a back wall made of cork, so you can cover this cork wall with pictures using push pins. Tape pictures to your desk to create a display. If you’re feeling really creative, maybe look into laying pictures down in a pattern on your desk top and then secure with a plastic sheet.
If there’s one picture that means a lot to you that you want to display specially, look into getting it printed onto a canvas. These can get pretty expensive, so you can’t do it for all of your pictures, but it’s a good option for a picture that carries a lot of sentimental value, like a family portrait, a prom picture, or a high school graduation picture.
Once you have the canvas, these are pretty easy to adhere to your wall using some wall adhesive strips or adhesive putty.
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