Ladies, let’s be real. As soon as you got your first college acceptance letter, you most likely immediately started browsing for items to buy for your future dorm. This is because one of the most exciting parts about going away college is being able to decorate your dorm. But if you’re someone who is as serious as me about décor, we’re not just simply talking about decorating here: we’re talking about transforming an empty room into the perfect living oasis for you and your future roommate. Here is where I shopped to create my dream dorm that has made every person who has ever walked into our room totally jealous.
Bed Bath & Beyond
When you take a trip to your local Bed Bath & Beyond the summer before you go to college, you’re most likely going to see everyone in your graduating class along with their mother’s grandmother’s, and great grandmother’s picking out items for their dorm room. This is because Bed Bath & Beyond is the go-to place for dorm essentials. Typically when we think about shopping for our dorm room, we think of buying beautiful tapestries, fluffy pillows, and monogram wall signs. You can and you will buy all the “pretty” stuff to decorate your dorm, but you’re also going to need sturdy hooks to hang your tapestry, a vacuum to vacuum up the wandering fluff that sheds off your pillows, and a hell of a lot of Command strips to hang your monogram sign. Luckily, Bed Bath & Beyond has you covered for these items and hundreds of more. Trust me, you are going to be surprised with how much stuff you are going to need so start asking for Bed Bath & Beyond gift cards now (ideal graduation gift) to knock off the huge price tag of your future dorm registry.
Amazon
If you don’t have an Amazon Prime account by now, then well I really don’t know what to tell you other than to get one because it will not only revolutionize your dorm shopping experience, but it will revolutionize your life. Amazon makes life so much easier by being able to shop for anything and everything and have it delivered at your doorstep in a matter of a day or two. But before you go crazy with that mouse, just remember that packages in college do not unfortunately get delivered outside your dorm room door and you will have to go to the mail distribution center to retrieve all packages. Luckily for my parents, my Amazon shopping record has decreased because I am too lazy to walk to the other side of campus to pick up my packages. And yes, you will very shortly turn into that lazy college student too. But the great thing about Amazon is that it saves you trips to local stores and centralizes the pickup of all your items in one location. And if you plan on venturing across the country like I did to go to college, then it will save you a tremendous amount of time; but time is money, right?
PB Teen
Even though your dorm room will most likely be the size of a cardboard box, it is still in fact a bedroom. To keep your dorm room from looking like a cardboard box, PB teen offers great items to make your dorm room both look and feel like a bedroom. They have all sorts of different kinds of comforters, pillows, rugs, to choose from to make your dorm room feel right at home. But what makes PB teen different from others places to shop on this list, is that PB offers great ways to store all of your stuff. Now, I feel like I am doing a disservice to my third-grade teacher who made me take a vow to never use the word “stuff” in a sentence ever again. But really, “stuff” is the best way to describe the contents of your drawers, storage bins, and laundry baskets you will be needing in order to keep your room from looking like your neighborhood yard sale. A much as we want to jump right into buying the “stuff”, you have to consider what “stuff” you want to buy to store the “stuff”.
Etsy
Ok ladies, I’m done lecturing you on the necessities… now time for the fun part: DECORATING! I’m going to let you in one my dorm shopping secret to creating your dream dorm: shop where no one else is willing to shop. As much as it sounds cliché, it is crucial to explore all your options for decorating your dorm or else we’re all going to have dorms that look like they are straight outta Dormify. And that is an utter travesty if you ask me. To avoid this, I highly suggest shopping from Etsy. Etsy is an online marketplace where everyday people open up their own shops to sell handmade and vintage items. As an avid lover of all things Etsy, I sincerely support this franchise because every product I have ever bought from this website was handmade with TLC. Not only have I fallen in love with every single item I have purchased from this website, but each of these items has made my collection of dorm décor grow into something extremely unique. Some of my favorite items I have purchased off Etsy include a “Namaste” sign made out of seven different license plates, pencils with inspiring messages on them, and the cursive name board above my bed as pictured above. It’s safe to say that Etsy will make all of your dream décor become a reality for your dream dorm.