Well congratulations! You have now traded your home where you had space and freedom to move about and all the necessities in the world that you wanted for a room about the size of a large tissue box, and to top it all off, you share this space with someone else! So far, you have had to decide what are the most important things you want to bring with you to college, your classes, the nitty-gritty stuff and now is your opportunity to make your dorm room just the way you want it. So, how do you make the most of your space and make it feel like home?

Personalize

To start, personalizing your room is key. From having simple posters on the wall, to collages of photos of friends and family, it is important to cover those walls with happy memories so that those white walls look less like a jail cell. You can also do this with wall tapestries and flags. These allow you to add decoration without permanently damaging anything. My room has more of a boho-hippy vibe to it. I love color and mixing patterns. If you have a flooring other than carpet, or even if you have carpet, I suggest a rug. Rugs add comfort and make the room feel cozy.

Creating a warm and inviting atmosphere

Having other forms of lighting make the room look softer and more inviting. I highly suggest using Christmas lights as they are one of my favorite ways to light the room. White lights are the best with the white roping as they create a more inviting look to the room.

Hammock…Hammock…HAMMOCK

The ultimate dorm room accessory which I love love love is my hammock! My Eno hammock and my roommate’s Himal hammock are the best parts of our dorm room. Both are great hammocks. If you are willing to spend a little bit extra, the Eno hammock is fantastic, but the Himal hammock is much cheaper and fits perfectly under a dorm bed. My roommate and I both lofted our bed which allowed us to not only have a “living space” down below, but a place to escape up top to sleep. We put the hammocks under our beds which has been awesome! It provides us with more space when having people over as well as space. With this arrangement our room can be messy, but still look clean because of the amount of personal and hidden space that we have.

From what I have learned in this first semester, College is about seeing what you are given and making the most of it! Your dorm room is the perfect place to start. Make it feel like home. You already spend so much time in this place. It should be warm and inviting for you.