Adorn your dorm room walls with collages that showcase your interests and photos of family and friends. Start with a poster board or 12-inch-square pieces of cardstock designed for scrapbook layouts. Use double-sided tape to stick pictures and memorabilia to each collage, allowing the items to overlap. Add tidbits to the personalized dorm decor like concert and movie ticket stubs, postcards from vacations, restaurant takeout menus, and descriptive words or images trimmed from magazines. Affix completed collages to your walls with temporary putty adhesive if your campus has rules against using tacks or nails.
Let your roommate or fellow students know where you are at all times with a decorative sign that pinpoints your whereabouts. Cover an inch-thick piece of Styrofoam or craft foam with colorful fabric, decorative paper, or cardstock. Use rubber stamps, letter stickers, or pens to add labels to the sign like "Studying at the library," "Chowing down at the cafeteria" or "Sitting in class." Place a decorative pushpin or small photo of yourself near the appropriate phrase when you leave your dorm room. Hang the do-it-yourself dorm decoration by your desk or on the outside of your door in case someone comes to find you while you're out.
Use vinyl wall lettering to add customized messages along the walls, on furniture, or around windows. Because the letters' sticky backing doesn't leave marks, it will be easy to peel the temporary text away at the end of the school year. Purchase premade phrases or buy vinyl cling material and use a die cut machine at a scrapbook or craft store to cut your own lettering. Try text messaging phrases, memorable song lyrics, or lines from favorite movies. You can also cover the walls with long pieces of butcher block and use the space to doodle, write study points, or leave messages for your roommate, for example.
Instantly change the mood of your space with DIY dorm room decorations like vibrant light strands, slipcovers, and decorative blankets. Tack twinkle lights in your favorite colors around the window and door frames as a funky accent. Transform plain dorm furniture with colorful slipcovers. Use throw blankets with playful patterns or your school logo to add color and take the place of regular posters on the wall.