Decorating a Girl's Dorm Room: Useful Tips, Tricks and Resources

If you're heading off to college in the fall, you're probably anxious about settling in and making your dorm room space your own. Unfortunately, decorating a dorm room comes with its own unique challenges - challenges that could easily leave the most experienced decorator stumped. First, if you're like most students, only half of the room will be yours. The other half will belong to your roommate, so limiting décor plans to your half of the room will save potential ill will later on. Secondly, the walls will probably be made of concrete and will be hideous. You may or may not be able to paint, so check with your residential advisor for specifics. The floors are usually ugly tile - carpet if you're lucky. Lastly, the beds will be twin (extra long?), which may mean a new bed set shopping spree. Despite all of this, college is great, so don't sweat it! Instead, try these great ideas for making the most of your space.

Goodbye, Privacy?

You won't have much privacy while living in the dorms, and that's half the fun. But every once in a while, you'll need some personal space. What girl doesn't? Maybe your roommate wants to chat when you need to study, or her and her new boyfriend are getting a little too cozy.

Room dividers are a great way to complement your room's décor and set your space apart when you need it. Talk to your roommate, and make sure she understands that it's nothing personal. She'll probably be relieved to have some space to herself, too! Oriental Furniture Company offers an amazing selection of folding room dividers from $49.00. If you want to coordinate your room divider with your décor, the Double Cross Shoji Screen - Special Edition starts at $79.00 and is 70 inches tall, comes in sixteen colors and an optional 3, 4, 5 or 6 panels! Other fun room dividers from Oriental Furniture include the 65" Window Pane With Shelf Room Divider, Long Life Shoji Screen and 48" Low Double Cross Shoji Screen.

The Floor

If you want something a little cozier than cold tile for your half of the room, there are plenty of options. Throw rugs are a great way to warm up the room, ranging in size from small to room-sized. Rugs USA offers a great selection of carpets in all textures, colors, sizes, patterns and prices. The Clearance section of their site is a good place to find deals at 50% off the regular prices. My favorite has always been shag carpeting for small spaces, and Rugs USA offers a wide variety of that, as well. Be sure you know which space you want to cover - and which you can't. You might end up wanting two or three smaller rugs, as opposed to one large one.

The Walls

Your university may allow painting - with a deposit and under the condition that you re-paint prior to the school year's end. If you don't want to deal with all of that, you still have plenty of options for spicing up those dull walls.

Take your favorite pics and put them up around your room in funky frames. It makes you more comfortable in your space and helps ease homesickness. Also, large art prints do a great job of making a statement while covering unattractive walls. The best site to find inexpensive art prints is Art.com. They offer affordable prints in countless categories, such as music, botanical, abstract, motivational, world culture, vintage art and more! And don't forget - hanging decorative mirrors can make a small space look larger and feel less cramped.

Bedding & Other Coordinating Décor

Back to the bedding - if you're going to find a new bedding ensemble, then make the most of it! My two absolute favorite places to find fun and affordable bedding are Target and WakeUpFrankie.com.

Target has an entire line of products tailored to the college-bound. The Isaac Mizrahi for Target bedding is great, and includes the Peony Duvet Set, Butterfly Duvet Set and more, starting at $79.99. They also have handy college accessories, décor and furniture at reasonable prices.

WakeUpFrankie.com lets you go crazy when creating your new dorm look! This is especially great if your parents want to help out, which many do. I couldn't describe all of the options available to you on this site, so a sampling will have to do. Some of their ensembles include the Geisha Girl, Ice Princess, Bollywood and more. And don't make the mistake of looking at the bedding alone. Each ensemble comes with optional accessories that are truly unique and worth considering in themselves, such as organza canopies, funky lamps and unique picture frames.

Decorating your dorm room is lots of fun, challenging you to decorate creatively in a small space. Make the most of it, and enjoy living the dorm life to the fullest. With all of the options available, making your dorm room a reflection of you should be a snap.