Dorm Room Design

Well as you may know,  I moved to college this week and so far it' been going really well! I've made a bunch of great new friends and my professors are all awesome. Not to mention the campus is so beautiful right now with all the fresh flowers in bloom and the green grass contrasting next to carefully designed architecture.

Something I really enjoy doing is interior design, so as you can imagine I take dorm styling seriously! First off I've been tired of looking for cute ideas for designing a dorm room on the internet and running into tacky looking images of rooms that look less then comfortable. It's amazing how easy it is to create a space that not only looks good but feels good. Dorm rooms should be a cozy place to come to after a long day of studying and trekking around campus.

I wanted my room to be bright yet corky, something that could bring some sunshine to rainy Portland. I chose this duvet cover from Urban Outfitters because I loved how different it was. I'd never seen a greenish yellow bed spread before and I loved how it would be something I could keep clean easily unlike white or black bedding. For my sheets I couldn't resist these beautiful red polka dot sheets from Anthropologie  so I bravely waited for them to go on sale...and they finally did (kinda meant to be)!! I then picked some fun bright colored pillows to toss on my bed. I ended up finding some affordable ones at Urban Outfitters and World Market. To add definition I placed a cozy Target body pillow behind the other pillows.  Then I collected a few things for wall art to give it that final touch. I found that butterfly poster at Urban Outfitters, My friend gave me the Fantastic Mr Fox art print as a gift, below I have a pic of my adorable cat when he was a kitten, and I found that sweet wood quote at Joann's Crafts.

I hope I've inspired you to add a little bit flare to your dorm rooms as well!

-Leah

Garlands Galore

   A quick and easy DIY project that I absolutely love is making paper garlands. They add a little whimsy to any room! I like mixing my garlands with white string lights just for a little extra twinkle. You don't need much to create them either! 

here's what you'll need:

1. Scrapbooking paper or card stock in any colors you like
2. Embroidery string
3. Glue
4. Large paper cutter or you can use scissors to cut your own shapes

  Once all your essentials are gathered it's as simple as figuring out how long you want your garland. Then make two of every shape. After you have all your shapes with their identical pair its time to glue. You decide how far you want them spaced, I tend to do 4in for my circle garlands. Simply glue both pairs together on the string and keep repeating until you reached your goal length.

To jazz up your garland tie different colors of embroidery string between each shape! I also suggest when picking paper colors do a mix of patterns and solids to add interest to the eye. 

I like to incorporate all different kinds of colors and patterns.

  You can even try mixing different garlands together. The stars and circles seem to go well! Now that you see how simple this whole process is you too can start decorating your home with a little bit of whimsy.

-Leah Montgomery