The best way to make a dorm room feel like home is with decorations personal to you. Decorations can create an aesthetic, express who you are or simply make a room your own.

Sophomore nutrition major Bridget Lutton turned to Pinterest for dorm decor ideas.

“My side of the room was more ‘farmhouse’ vibe and lots of pictures, whereas my roommate had more simple decorations,” Lutton said.

Lutton found a majority of her decorations at Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Altar’d State and World Market.

The decorations she chose were a mixture of personal value and aesthetic.

“I have lots of pictures, some wooden wall-hanging frames with quotes, fake plants and lights,” Lutton said. “I have a flag for my sorority hanging up and I have a lot of different pillows on my bed to make it look nice.”

Other decorations she has include photos of friends from home and sorority memorabilia. 

“I have a couple of sorority items hanging up which is something that’s been a big part of my college experience,” Lutton said.

Sophomore business major Nathan Butkowski focused on wall decor for his dorm.

“I’m from Buffalo, so I had a picture of a giant buffalo hanging up,” he said.

Butkowski’s room was the main hangout spot for his roommate and friends.

“I hung up hockey jerseys,” he said. “I had posters and some flags.” 

Some of Butkowski’s posters include a Nicki Minaj poster, “Scarface” and poker players. If given a bigger space, he would have added more posters to his decor.

Senior computer science major Luke Rinehart brought what he had from home to decorate his dorm.

“I have a purple string lights, an American flag, a calendar and a futon,” he said.

Rinehart chose his decorations based on practicality unlike his “hipster” roommate. 

Anything that was not brought from home Rinehart bought at Walmart or received as a gift.

Carlos Diaz, a senior accounting major, chose not to decorate his dorm room.

“You can definitely tell whose side is whose,” Diaz said. “I have no decorations; [my roommate] has all decorations.”

Diaz found it easier to move in and move out by not decorating.

“Honestly I’m a no-decorations kind of guy,” Diaz said. “I have only one thing. It’s a wolf tapestry.”

Junior special education major Brianna Mark also had very few decorations for practical reasons.

“I just know that when I bring decorations, I have to bring them back,” she said. “[My roommate’s] side of the room has so many posters and decorations and my side has two or three little things.”

Despite the minimalist approach to decorating, Mark adorned her side of the dorm with paintings she had made to make it personal.

“I like to paint so there’s a lot of canvases on my side,” she said.

Along with her paintings, she hung up photos of her dog and brought a goldfish.

Contact Hannah Gooch at [email protected].