College 101: Dorm Life

Moving off and living on your own is already extremely exciting, but getting to decorate where you’ll be living to make it your own, personal space, makes it even better! Decorating my dorm was one of my favorite things I got to do last summer when preparing for the big transition! Don’t get me wrong, there were some disagreements between my mom and I about which comforter would go best with these curtains and what painting would match the right pillows. It was pretty difficult to be able to visualize what it would all look like together in a shoebox size dorm. Luckily though, I was getting to live at Meehan, so I was fortunate enough to have a little bit more room than others. I have tons of clothes and shoes, so my mom and I knew how important it was that I have plenty of storage. It was also important that I have plenty of storage because I lived three hours away, so it wasn’t like if I forgot something I could just run back home in a quick trip. When I moved, I had to bring it all!

To assist with making sure I had appropriate storage we raised the bed up almost as high as it would go, this was at times less convenient than a lower bed would have been, but by doing so we were able to fit the nightstand that the dorm provides you with and two more plastic clothing containers with drawers underneath! To cover up all of the chaotic mess, we zip tied curtains to the bottom of the bed and hid it under the mattress! Another helpful resource we used was a tall night stand with cubbies. I was able to use this for more storage as well as a place to hold a couple more pictures of the people I love the most.

Lastly, I bought a shelf to sit on top of my desk which helped me DRASTICALLY! All the things assisted me in being able to keep everything you could think of needing in my own tiny shoebox. Some other “must-haves” of dorm living would be a steamer to get all of those wrinkles out of your new formal dress, a portable makeup cart so you can easily have the choice of getting ready in your room OR bathroom, and a shelf to go over the toilet in the bathroom. My step dad made my roommate and I one and it helped us so much! I'm even keeping it to put in the next place that I live!

With all the storage I had in my dorm I was able to keep it always looking organized, which I think was definitely one less thing for me to be stressed out about! The most important thing is to make this room yours! Your new room will experience study sessions, late night snacks, a couple meltdowns, and ALL of your best days, so it’s important that you love where you’re at! If you have any questions feel free to message me!

With love,

Logan Linville PC ‘19