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 Natalie Weinstein is President of Natalie Weinstein Design Associates, The Natalie Weinstein Home Decorating Club and Uniquely Natalie, a quality consignment outlet. Hear Natalie’s design tips on WALK 97.5 FM, enjoy her Long Island Focus featured in House Magazine or call: 631.862.6198 |
| I’ll never forget my first college dorm experience. I had read the brochure. I was smart. I was organized. I was ready to take my first-born to the nether-land of higher learning in style. Was I ever clueless! Today, I look back and chuckle. But no one, absolutely no one, designer included, can imagine how small a dorm room shared by two students, two beds, two desks, one infinitesimal closet, a refrigerator, a microwave (if allowed), mounds of books, luggage, computer equipment and sundry other clothing and necessities can be. Maybe you can when you realize how unbelievably small they are with nothing in them! So here are some tips (from someone who’s been there) to help the “getting ready and setting up a viable dorm room” stage of life for you and your college bound student. If you can, try to get the size of the assigned room in advance. If by some good fortune you can get information on the size of the bed or other provided furniture, as well as closet space, you’re ahead of the game. Lay out the room on graph paper and think vertically. A clever arrangement we devised for David and later, Jason was to raise the bed (or mattress) above the dresser drawers and storage area to maximize floor space. Next, find inexpensive but workable organizers to utilize every area of closet space, including the back of the door. Choose clothes carefully and make sure your college student gets a lesson in doing laundry as well as judiciously organizing drawer and hanging space. Desk and study areas are most important. If sharing a room, back to back desks may provide more space for both students to work and allow for wall shelving for textbooks and other materials, while being a natural room divider. Before buying bed linens, remember to ask if the dorm mattress is “extra-long”. You will need to buy sheets to fit. Consider buying a “husband”-not the kind you marry, but the kind you lean back against on the floor or in bed for reading or studying. Find a great toiletry organizer for your student to carry back and forth to their designated shower area, and if they are inclined, shower slippers, as well. When you arrive in town, locate the nearest hardware store for incidentals. You may need to hang a fixture, buy a window treatment, or make repairs in a hurry. Then kiss your grown-up college kids goodbye and wait for the dirty laundry to come home at first break. Here’s the good news. You won’t have to see what their dorm room became twenty-four hours after you headed home to clean up the room they left behind! |
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