Make Your Dorm Room Look Aesthetic AF with These Tips

Dorm rooms are honestly so ugly and simple. Depending on the type of dorm, they are colorless, boring and small. But instead of being sad about how ugly they are, think of them as a blank canvas. It’s an opportunity for you to show your interior decoration skills and make your dorm room look aesthetic af with these tips. Besides, who doesn’t love dorm shopping?

Coordinate with your roommate

First of all, none of the following tips will matter if you don’t coordinate with your roommate (if you have one). Why? Because if you don’t coordinate, she could choose a different color palette, a different theme and your dorm would end up looking like two separate rooms.

But, honestly even if you two have different ideas and you decide to do your own thing, that’s great! You’ll decorate your side of the room and it’ll be your homey cute little corner.

Don’t stick with the given layout

Don’t be afraid to move things around a little. But do it before you unpack, since it’ll be much easier. You won’t have many options, since the dorms are small, but this way maybe you’ll find a setup you like. Maybe try to put the desk on the other corner, the bed against the other wall, it’s up to you.

Less is sometimes more

Remember that dorms are tiny, so try not to go overboard with the decor. I know shopping for your dorm can be exciting. But keep in mind that a lot of stuff in a small space can make it look overwhelming. Which isn’t exactly how you want your dorm room to look, because then you might get overwhelmed, as well.

But also don’t forget the little things. Small details can add a personal touch to your dorm and that is another step to make your dorm room look aesthetic. Just remember your color palette and theme when looking for small decoration items. The little details I added were string lights and lots of canvases and paintings I made through the summer and also throughout the year. But, also here are some examples of small details you could add to your dorm.

Wall art – a couple examples of wall art are posters, paintings, photos & canvases.
Lighting – like string lights and lamps
Storage – drawers, trunks, shelfs

Choose a color palette and stick to it

In order to make your room look aesthetic, it’s key to choose a color palette and stick to it. Why? Because, if you buy a yellow comforter, a blue rug and a green bean bag chair, you room will look like a rainbow. Rainbows are pretty, but so many colors put together can be really overwhelming. So try to choose a color palette with the colors you like. But keep in mind that the colors you choose have to look good with each other. A great app to find color palettes is Pantone, available in the IOS store.

Think about your design vibe

Choosing a color palette and sticking to it isn’t enough to make your dorm room look put together. You can choose a color palette but still go from grunge to beach vibes, and that makes your decoration look not cohesive at all. So choose a “vibe”, “theme” or “aesthetic” you want your room to give. And if you don’t already have an aesthetic, find it with help of this article. Mine is maybe glamorous and artsy. But there’re so many more “looks”, we all have a theme or aesthetic that attracts us the most.

Arty
Grunge
Minimalist

Beachy
Hippie
Preppy

Musical

If you need some inspiration to get started check Pinterest! And also here are 5 cute dorm ideas I’m obsessing over. And I hope these tips help! Send me pictures of your dorms once you decorate them, I’d love to see them!