I was walking through the college dorm aisles in Tar-jay the other day when I realized what sort of trends I was suckered into so many years ago with regards to college bedding: 1.) I bought the jersey knit sheets. Although soft, they did pill very quickly and didn’t last more than a few months before looking shabby. 2.) I had the reversible comforter that about 23892783 other girls in my dorm also had in their rooms. This one item that was to be a major focal point in my room was the same main feature in so many other rooms. Blah. Plus, I had never cleaned a comforter before in my life which in turn led to a very dirty sleeping space for a long time.

So, I thought I would take the opportunity to try and prevent such catastrophic events for student going through the college dorm preparation process by passing on the three big college bedding lessons I learned:

1.) Don’t give in to the super cheap. Super cheap sheets will either be extremely scratchy or will fall apart quickly. You don’t need the most elaborate sheet sets while in college, but you do want something that you will not have to replace quickly or will keep you up at night with discomfort.

3.) Think duvet. Although most college students may not know the meaning of the word, they will appreciate the function. I have to admit to thinking a duvet was a pillowcase or a diving board or a special type of loo for many Read the rest of this entry »

Contest Alert! If you’ve evolved beyond bare-bones milk crates, crappy plastic clippy lamps, and keg coffee tables, enter the Apartment Therapy and Housing Works My Dorm Room Rocks contest! From my own memories and from scoping out our site, I have a few suggestions and links:

1) Keep the hot pot cleaned out! I’ll never forget the nasty blob with the life all its own that grew in my roommate’s hot pot after she left Chef Boy-R-Dee remnants in it for a month or so!

2) Kegs are not furniture, and they get moldy as well. Read the rest of this entry »

So how about the greater campus design. My favorite, hands down, is Mr. Jefferson’s Academical Village. For you non-wahoos, that’s the University of Virginia’s Lawn. You won’t make it through an American Architecture survey course without seeing at least a diagrammatic slide. In the spirit of FULL DISCLOSURE I admit I’m biased, as I loved the place so much I wound up staying for 11 years. Read the rest of this entry »

OK, I was trying to find some links to my favorite campus designs, so I Googled “Sullivan Exeter Library” and I came across a great personal website, by one Narrow Larry. He’s an architect/planner in Houston, and his site is chock full of great photos, itineraries, folk art info and fun to read architectural opinions (I have to say, I agree with almost all of his picks).

The craziest thing I saw on his website was the Longaberger Basket Building.

Oh. My. God. I’m speechless. So I ask anyone who has read Venturi and Scott-Brown, is this the biggest duck you’ve ever seen or what? If not, what’s the biggest duck you’ve ever seen? Or is this a basket-shaped shed? If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you’ll definitely think I’ve lost my mind.

Anyway, I promise to get back to Campus design tomorrow. There are so many great buildings and campus designs out there to admire (and a lot to make fun of as well). So for homework, check out recent work at MIT by Stephen Holl and Frank Gehry (here and here), and discuss amongst yourselves. You can do that here if you wish. Come on, I’m bored! Tell me what you think!

If you’ve been following along with us for this week of Design on Campus, you’ve learned a lot. So far we’ve helped you out with

. . . some cool dorm inspiration . . .
. . . how to determine whether your furniture is for Chillin’, Kickin’ It, or Keepin’ it Real . . .
. . . and how to decorate your blank walls on a budget.

Today’s Friday. Class is not in session this weekend, plus you’ve got a day off Monday. Enjoy it. We’ll leave you with a final list of tips for the semester: dorm room decorating “Dos and Don’ts”. These tried-and-true rules will have your place looking ship-shape in no time.

Links:
View College and Dorm Decor Dos and Don’ts