Unique, affordable dorm decorations for students to try

By Francesca Abarca •

Many students, like freshman chemistry major Sierra Wynne, have been planning their dorm decorations since before move-in. High-end decorations are often not in the college student budget, but Wynne and her roommates have found affordable decorations that will not damage the walls and will still allow for their personalities to come through.

Katie Chrencik, junior marine biology major, hangs a NSU leadership poster to add some color to her room. PHOTO BY INDAYA BYER.

“I wanted to add the spice that was always missing from my house into my decorations for this year,” said Wynne.

“I felt that I needed to make the décor funnier and more chaotic since it would be a more accurate representation of my friendship with my roommates.”

She bought most of her items from Dollar Tree, Five Be-low and Walmart and only spent around $30 for the decorations for the whole dorm.
Other students explored similar stores and got creative with the options they found.

Decorating a dorm to make it feel more like home is a long-standing college tradition.

Paint by Numbers

At Michaels, Paint by Number kits are available for $15. Ysabel Ribeiro, junior exercise and sport science major, has been decorating her dorm room with her own completed Paint by Numbers pictures since her freshman year.

“These have been my outlets when I get stressed, and they made the best decorations to the dorm because they add my personality instead of making my dorm look like a prison cell,” Ribeiro said.

LED Lights

At Five Below, LED lights that are specifically used for dorm rooms are available. Sara Toro, sophomore business marketing major, uses LED lights to add more glow to her room and bring all the other decorations together.

“Changing the colors of the lights adds more personality and fun to the ambiance,” Toto said.

Spoons

Students can also decorate their rooms with seemingly random objects that tie back to a memory. Daphne Hernandez, sophomore biology major, understands how this may sound strange at first, but she decorates her room with spoons. She and her roommates have made it a unique tradition to steal random spoons from restaurants and ice cream shops, which has brought them closer together.

“We went to eat ice cream one day, and the spoon was too cute to throw away, so we washed it and put it up on the wall, and then a collection started,” said Hernandez.