How to decorate your dorm room or small Space

Being in the dorms last year through COVID made me hyperaware of how much your space and environment impact your overall wellbeing. As my roommate moved back home within the first month of the school year, I had free rein over how I decorated my dorm. Here I’ll be sharing my favorite elements of my dorm decoration as well as tips for decorating when your space is limited. If you’re looking to decorate your dorm soon, this is the post to read!

Tips to decorate your dorm

• UTILIZE FUNCTIONAL DECOR. Check out my blog post all on functional decor HERE.
• If you have an exposed closet/wardrobe, color code your clothes. It’s visually pleasing and makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for.
• Show off your collections. For example, I hung most of my vinyl 33s on my wall, which both helped me save space while giving me somewhere to store my records. I also displayed the books I brought on my window ledge, using plants as bookends, and my coffee mug collection was nicely displayed above the coffee maker.
• Brighter colors make your space look larger. I went for a very “light academia” vibe in my room, which both kept it feeling light and airy while also being cozy.
• Lighting is key to a successfully achieving your desired look. Soft, warm lighting is never a bad choice in my opinion, but it does require some curation on your end. Additionally, people will notice how different your room feels if you’re not using the same lighting that everyone else has. It’s the most noticeable way to differentiate your space from every other dorm room in your building.

Resources for cheap decor

Society6: Filling my sad, cinderblock walls was of the utmost concern for me. I used Society6 to buy a lot of the posters I hung up. Society6 has a great student discount that includes free shipping, so I’d highly recommend spending some time on their site if you’re in the market for decor. They also often run sales for different items, so sometimes I’d save things to my wishlist and then wait until I got an email that pillows or posters or whatever was going on sale.

RedBubble: Similar to Society 6, I bought one of my posters from RedBubble. Overall, I liked the quality of my Society6 posters better, but RedBubble can be worth a look if you’re looking for something niche.

Amazon: I bought a few prints off of Amazon, which was nice because they came quickly, and if they hadn’t worked out, it would have been very simple to return. Amazon is always pretty good for affordable decor.

Consignment shops: I wouldn’t personally suggest buying just anything from Goodwill, but I found extremely inexpensive milk crates and mason jars that I used in my dorm last year. Buying secondhand is generally going to be a cheaper option, so definitely give that a try. They’re a great place to find things like picture frames and mirrors, too. And one of my friends would buy old 45s and paint them as decor as well. There are so many possibilities!

Walgreens Photo/FedEX: Printing your own pictures is also an inexpensive option for filling wall space. I printed lots of pictures at Walgreens to line my window, and I loved how it turned out looking. (I recommend a color scheme if you’re going to do a photo collage. I went with blue).

So…

All in all, you want your space to be one that inspires you and also feels like an authentic reflection of who you are. I found that my favorite things in my room were the ones most personal and unique to me. Only surrounding yourself with things that invoke positive vibes is a solid way to begin curating your decor. Happy decorating!

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