Dorm Room Decorating

Moving my eldest daughter into her dorm room freshman year was wrought with emotion. We all were new to the process. We had spent the entire summer preparing---we checked everything off of the campus to-do-list at Bed Bath and Beyond. And I had considered myself adept at that point in time at decorating. I had decorated and redecorated numerous rooms at my house. I had confidence—that is until I stepped foot into her dorm room. Not only was the space small but as it was a prized corner room it had two oversized double windows—very little wall space--and all the oversized furniture was  piled in the center. I was clueless how to set the room up—there was no natural place to put everything.

And her roommate’s family was also clueless. So we sent the girls out on a fact-finding mission. They were to spy on the other inhabitants of the corner rooms above and below them to see how they arranged their rooms. They came back with a plan--to center the armoire partially obscuring a window. Then one bed lay alongside one window while the other bed was placed on the solitary long wall. In doing so we managed to efficiently place the desks, mini-fridge and microwave. We elevated things that could be elevated. And when were done I was surprised how everything not only fit, but looked great—all the while defying everyday standards of decorating.

And since that day I learned to abandon the rules of furniture placement. I no longer view a room and think oh the bed belongs here and the dresser belongs there. I have discarded the word “belong”. Things only “belong” where my imagination puts them. Nothing I do now is cookie cutter. There are no more rules. All the beds in my house are now on the “wrong” wall as well as often in the “wrong” direction. It has created more space and allowed for things like couches and coffee bars and snack stations. I realized that every bedroom should be a suite—no matter what the size. All bedrooms should have the basic comforts of a college dorm room.

Bedrooms are the kick-start to your day and a place of solace. Bedrooms are more than a bed.

So while my daughters learned facts and critical thinking in their college classrooms, I learned practical decorating arts from their dorm rooms. They got an education and so did I. And it’s only right--their tuition was expensive enough---I should have gotten a little something out of it besides debt.