Cheap and Chic in the Dorm
When budgeting for college, don't forget your personal space
Cinder block walls, puce-color carpet, coffin-size closets . . . ah, the unfortunate staples of dorm-room decor. With their fluorescent lights and institutional furniture, college rooms are designed for longevity, not livability. But today's students want more. Weaned on IKEA, Target, and Trading Spaces, they are part of a movement toward cooler, cozier dorm-room design.
Retailers know they're out there. Designer Todd Oldham's "Homeroom" series at Target--refashioned from the college line he launched in 2002--features funky furniture tailored to dorm-room dimensions, while Bed Bath & Beyond's Web site lets future roommates (in different parts of the country) plan to buy items like bedding, rugs, and towels in complementary colors. And colleges themselves are capitalizing on the craze; last spring Kilgore College in Texas sponsored its own version of Trading Spaces, setting two teams of students loose in each other's rooms with $100 and a mandate to redecorate. "We did a lot with fabric," says Renee Gatons, 19, of the budget boundaries that drove her team to sew curtains, pillows, and bedspreads to accent the room's blue-and-purple theme. "Some of my favorites were like a dollar a yard."
So what else can you do with a limited budget? U.S. News talked to today's design experts to come up with these tips:
Wacky wallpaper. Typically, schools don't let students do much to dorm walls--paint and nails are often prohibited, or at least impossible to pound into cinder block. But that doesn't mean you're stuck with cellblock white. If fire regulations allow, try finding several posters of the same print and line them up like wallpaper. Or cover the walls with brown paper, suggests Tana March of the lifestyle Web site Tanashabitat.com. "Then you can color on it, or have your friends over" for stress-relieving painting sessions.
Vertical space. No, it's not a trick from The Matrix. Double dorm rooms are typically a tiny 12 feet by 14 feet, so think up, rather than out; a set of shelves that sit on your desk clears up clutter without taking up scarce floor space. Perhaps the best-known use of vertical space, the loft, is still a premium space saver. If your school forbids the structures, try the Container Store's new plastic bed risers, which can elevate your bed a few inches, enough to store stuff underneath. Then head to antique stores or junk shops for old dresser drawers, suggests HGTV's Decorating Cents host Joan Steffend. Attach wheels to each corner, paint the fronts, and "it's like having another dresser drawer under your bed. They don't even have to match--that makes them more interesting."
Happy hues. "For dorm rooms, the easiest, quickest fix is always color," says Brooke Stoddard, style editor at House & Garden magazine. It doesn't have to be costly--plastic tumblers, which typically sell for less than $10 at housewares stores, can double as cheery vases or pencil holders, and you can brighten dull corkboard by covering it with fabric. Carpet stores also often sell remnants--perfect for the smaller scale of dorm-room floors--at cut rates.
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