30 Dorm Room Ideas and Dorm Room Essentials
@Prettydorms
Decorating one’s dorm room is a milestone in life. It is the ultimate space of self-expression. Yet, it can be tricky to navigate dorm room decorations with rules about hanging items, a requirement to use furniture that’s provided, a shortage of storage space, and most often, a roommate who may have preferences for your taste and style. This dorm room essentials guide will outline 30 inspirational dorm room ideas for you to try out this semester.
Customized signs
Accessible on Etsy and other customization sites, getting a sign with your name—whether neon or not—is one of the dorm room ideas that guarantee your space will stand out from the crowd.
Soft color coordination
By keeping the colors light and airy and sticking to a consistent palate, you can make the dorm space feel bigger than it is and bring together parts of the room that are otherwise disjointed or uncoordinated.
Small end tables and nightstands
Adding small end tables or a nightstand next to the best is one of the dorm room essentials that makes the space feel more personalized and homey while providing much-needed storage.
Make the most of throws
Playing with different fabric textures brings comfort, softness, and maturity to the space. It also allows you to tie in various color schemes from across the room or use it as a staple piece that sets the tone for your dorm room decorations.
Maximalism
Sometimes dorm room architecture can be busy and unattractive, with cinder block walls, tons of fixtures, or various textures. Take a maximalist approach to set the mood, bring in your whole personality, and cover up any of the less favorable parts of the room.
Create cozy corners
When working with just one space, use your furniture to break up the space and create sections, areas, and different levels to make it more dynamic. Playing with bunk beds and making the most of the height can break up the monotony of the room.
Incorporate triptychs
Find wall décor that comes in a set of three to make your décor look sophisticated and well-curated. Play with the levels of the three items to emphasize the size of the wall so your room will feel bigger than it is.
Bring the outside in
Whether fake or real, plants are dorm room essentials that liven up the space, bring warmth, and hold onto sunlight for a bright, natural feel.
Maximize storage
Make the most of your storage options with under-the-bed cubes and drawers, which pull together color schemes and allow you to keep your room organized and tidy.
Think modularly
Modular storage units are dorm room essentials. Find pieces that can be reconfigured in multiple arrangements to fit your room’s shape and needs and to allow you to change things up every once in a while.
Picture chains and Polaroids
Snag pictures with a polaroid camera and hand them up on strings to collect memories throughout the year. Plus, add small lights to give each image a cute glow.
Play up the wood with rustic elements
Bringing in outdoorsy patterns and prints is one of the best dorm room ideas for making the wood furnishing that come with the space look cohesive and tasteful.
Landscape prints
Hanging a large poster or tapestry with a landscape or mountain scene will help your room appear larger and give you that feeling of escape.
Create a gallery wall
Since most dorms have cinder block walls or don’t allow any nails and hanging, peel and stick strips are one of the dorm room essentials that let you put together an eclectic gallery wall that ties in colors, patterns, and moods.
Make an organized photo collage
Play with a grid pattern to feature your close friends and family while keeping an organized and orderly appearance. This is one of the dorm room ideas that doesn’t require a purchase, simply a rearranging session.
Brighten up low ceilings with LED strips
Accentuate geometric wall structures and bring brightness to low spaces with LED strips that contour the perimeter of your room.
Get a temporary headboard
These dorm room essentials are a great way to disguise the furniture in the space and make it feel like a unified, cohesive home.
Bold, geometric rugs
A statement rug can cover up the generic dorm room floor and serve as the guide for the color scheme and fabrics of the rest of your storage, bedding, and decoration items.
Bring in vintage imagery
Take it back in time with black and white vintage posters, photos, or album covers to give your dorm room a retro feel. This is one of the dorm room ideas that is adaptable, easy, and super low maintenance.
Play with frames
Frames help bring boldness and definition to the space and dress up the posters or pictures you choose to hang on your wall.
Disguise storage areas
Use fabrics, curtains, or peel-and-stick wallpaper to create partitions in your room and add dimension to the space. This is one of the dorm room ideas that can help you manage strangely shaped spaces or awkward floorplans.
Bring in knitting and macramé
Available for purchase or as a DIY craft, bringing in knitted macramé knotted textiles is a dorm room essential for anyone who likes a bohemian, laid-back style.
Keep it balanced - go matching
If you and your roommate are friends, consider getting matching bed sets and storage furniture to keep the room symmetrical and cohesive.
Throw pillows and ottomans
These plushy accessories are dorm room essentials; they make the space cozy, bring in splashes of color, and tie together any other decorations that you may have.
Cozy eclectic themed decor
Line your space with words you find inspiring or interchangeable text boards that let you create messages and quotes whenever you feel like you need a change in your dorm room decorations.
Subtle neon signs
Lighting is critical for many dorm room ideas, and with cute and trendy neon signs, you can bring in a calming glow and a playful shape all in one.
Pick wall art with a color theme
If you are struggling to figure out where to start with your dorm room ideas, pick a color theme and collect posters, art, and pictures that match. Then, find bedding and accessories that keep with the theme.
Go wild with wall stickers
Temporary and peel-able stickers are a fun way to personalize your corner and keep a theme consistent throughout the room, filling empty space and tying together the images on your posters.
Add ambience with stringed lighting
String lights are a timeless classic when it comes to dorm room essentials. They create a moody glow, liven up the space, and allow you to be flexible with various arrangements.
Add some corner tapestries
Who says you have to hang your tapestry across the main wall? Create a sense of warmth in the corner by wrapping your fabric where the walls meet.