Making a dorm room a home

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By Ryan Rhodes

You’ve read the description and seen the gushed up pictures on residential life’s Web site, and you’re expecting a pretty decent room with shiny, new furniture, a nice, soft bed with an LSU themed comforter, and the friendliest RA’s around. You walk into your room, and there’s the 10-year-old particle board desk and the blue, plastic mattress that is about as comfortable as four logs placed next to each other, crawling with fire ants. Two words come to your mind: “Awwww crap!”

Most freshmen dorm rooms are pretty bland and not very cozy. However, there are many easy ways that you can improve the look and the living conditions of your new dorm room without going broke.

Most people’s biggest concern is that cheap-ass plastic mattress that comes with your room. Unless you’ve slept on a sheet of plywood for the last few months, you’ll probably have trouble sleeping on it. Shy of buying a whole new mattress, there’s a much easier and cheaper way to make the bed more comfortable: buy a mattress pad or a mattress topper or even both.

Whereas a new mattress can run you at least $100, a mattress pads costs as little as $10 for a twin and a mattress topper cost as little as $30. In case you don’t know, a mattress topper is basically like a rolled up, foam pillow that you place on your mattress under your sheets. A mattress pad works the same way, except it covers the entire mattress to protect it from staining and tearing. Most people probably won’t care about protecting the dorm mattress, but these mattress pads also contain a thick layer of padding in the form of several cotton-filled cushions. These simple additions make a mattress much more comfortable for not that much money.

Another complaint freshmen have with the dorms is the very boring, very neutral color that is usually painted on their walls. Well, I’m sorry to inform you that they won’t let you re-paint your room. If you do, I’m sure they’ll charge you about a $1,000 damages fee plus $300 to re-paint plus $264 academic excellence fee plus a $7 fee for the air freshener plus a $50 utility surcharge and a $148 fee for the drug sniffing dog. Trust me; you don’t want LSU charging you any more unnecessary fees.

The best, cheapest and easiest way to give your room a unique touch is wall art. Posters, framed pictures, neon lights or even liquor bottles (if you want people to think you’re an alcoholic) can help take some of the drab away from your dorm room. What’s great about most posters is that they’re not expensive and you can generally find them anywhere from the Union to Wal-Mart. Framed pictures might run you extra, but there’s an easy way to get them for free. Tug on old mom and dad’s heartstrings a little and get them to send you pictures of your friends and family. Keeping those pictures is a great way of reminding you that there are people who love you enough to currently pay for your car insurance.

That’s just a few ways to make your campus residence feel more like your home. If you feel like you need more than just an upgraded bed or some wall decorations, get creative. Mold your room to your individuality; annoy your roommate with feng shui philosophies or decide to make the world’s largest Dr. Pepper can pyramid. College should be one of the best times of your life, so make sure your place of residence suits that statement.

Originally Published: Issue 701 - August 19, 2008

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