Students can take advantage of the more fun tasks of moving into residence halls by decorating dorm rooms
Move-in day is a stressor that adds to an already anxiety-filled first week. Fortunately, decorating the dorm can be an enjoyable task when arriving at Ohio University.
Pictures
With such a new environment, students can decorate dorm rooms with pictures of friends and family back home. Command hooks have been the most common product for students to hang pictures or lights on dorm room walls. The hooks stick directly on the wall and come off completely clean when students are ready to redecorate or move out.
Rachel Grote, a sophomore studying early childhood education, said she was one of the many freshmen who used Command hooks to decorate her dorm room.
“I attached a string to the Command hooks and then I had pictures with little paper clips on my walls,” she said. “I also hung canvases with pictures of my friends on them.”
Some downsides to Command hooks, Grote said, are that they stick better on certain surfaces.
“With my picture I hung, sometimes it wouldn’t stay on the wall that didn’t have any texture, like drywall,” she said. “But the walls that had bricks usually stuck.”
If Command hooks do not seem to stick on the walls, wipe down the area with rubbing alcohol and let it dry before trying again.
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Posters and Tapestries
Hanging posters and tapestries can cover large areas of walls to break up the neutral color of the walls.
“I always liked the tapestries on the walls because I never liked the brick walls,” Grote said. “It made the room softer.”
Grote said there were many men down her hall who hung posters that reflected their taste in music.
“I still live in the dorms, and I still decorate them,” said Abbey Knupp, a sophomore studying journalism. “I haven’t planned out what I’ll be doing, but I know I’ll probably hang similar items and posters.”
Knupp said she bought her posters at the poster sale in Baker University Center, which happens at the beginning of each semester and features posters of all types, from TV shows to famous artworks to bands.
“We had posters — music posters — on the wall,” said Erin Renslow, a sophomore studying retail merchandising and fashion product development. “There were pictures from home and of family.”
Sticky tack is also a good tool to have when hanging posters.
Color Combinations
From the comforter to the carpet, simple color patterns can be the easiest way for students to express himself or herself.
“My freshman year, we had like an animal print theme. No judging,” said •Erin Cullinan, a senior studying sociology and pre-law. “We got carpet from the university that year, but our sophomore year we didn’t.”
Decorating the dorm can seem like an elongated task, but Renslow reasoned it makes living away from home easier.
"(It's) to make it feel more home-y," Renslow said. "It’s more inviting to go back to — less impersonal."
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