DIY Dorm Decor at University of North Carolina

See inside a fully decorated freshman dorm room at UNC, complete with temporary wallpaper and DIY curtains.

August 29, 2017

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Every once in a while you’ll stumble across something in real life that looks like it popped off a beautiful Pinterest board. Well, continuing the dorm décor IRL series, University of North Carolina freshman Alexis Ard’s dalmatian-print-chic college room is one of those occasions. Basically, everything in this well-dressed dorm is pure Pinterest perfection. Design buffs note the bold temporary spotted wallpaper, gold accents, and the paper lantern lighting.

Alexis enlightened us on her dorm décor process saying, “I felt no pressure to have my room perfect at all. I knew I wanted a space that didn't feel sterile, and I wanted it to have a fun and lively personality!” Personality is indeed present inside this teeny tiny space. Onlookers will notice the stylish wall shelves that double as storage as well as a place to display favorite photos. However, one décor element in her room does stand out more so than the others, the cascading black and white drapes.

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“My favorite feature in the room are my drapes! The window in my dorm was super small. Two drape panels would have been too much, and I knew that was the look that I wanted! My brother had the idea to split one panel and add trim. He told me how I could hem and add the trim with a hot glue gun. I Can’t BELIEVE I MADE THEM MYSELF! They definitely made the biggest difference in the space!”

The toughest part for Alexis wasn’t dreaming her dorm vision, but executing it. “The hardest part of decorating my dorm would probably have been the furniture layout and hanging all of the décor for the room... with it being such a small space, I wanted to maximize as much space as possible.” In addition, the size of the room offered a few design challenges.

“We had to arrange the furniture a few different times to get the best fit. My brother TomTom from TomTom and Company was such a huge help! His eye for design and placement were awesome to help my vision come to life. Most dorms have strict guidelines for how to hang things in your dorm, and the walls were concrete... 3m hooks and Velcro became my best friend!”

Other room accents blended with Alexis’s DIY-d décor make this space ideal and affordable for any college coed. “A lot of the major items for the room came from Target. The peel-and-stick wallpaper, and a lot of the accessories came from there. I had my brother paint a lot of the art and my favorite quotes for the walls in my room.” She continues, “My inspiration for the room came from Society Social, and TomTom and Company. I love how they both use pattern and color! They are so bold with their choices and aren't scared to make a statement!”

With the hard part completed, Alexis has one stylish oasis to study and live college life to the fullest. However, her vision couldn’t have been completed on her own. “I could not have done my room without the help from my parents! They were the biggest help with hanging the wallpaper, to making sure my bed was made perfect. It was a hard day’s work for them!”