Hindsight is 20/20, and while I like to think I’ve always been at least somewhat style-forward, there are a few early design decisions (read: mistakes) I now side-eye with my seasoned editor brain. My dorm room, though, isn’t one of them. Not-so-humbly: it was a tour de force. Sure, my style has evolved, but I made my half of that tiny room feel like home.
I did the most. Stick-on molding. Vintage magazines from flea markets, carefully framed in even older antique brass. I sketched out my pillowscape, which I ultimately ended up upholstering myself. Partly because I’m a control freak – but mostly because, back then, chic dorm room ideas were hard to find in stores.
If only I’d had access to Target’s 2025 dorm decor lineup.
It hasn’t been that long since I graduated, but the dorm room buys you can get your hands on in 2025 are miles better. DIY is still the spirit of these youthful years – but if you can find curated, cleverly scaled pieces that actually fit and won’t damage the walls? Say less.
I still think about that dorm room, but if I could go back, these are the nine Target finds I’d include on my college dorm room checklist. I reckon they’d make starting school a little easier – and certainly, a whole lot chicer.
If your dorm organizer doesn’t have tiers, skip it. In small bedrooms, vertical space is everything. This leopard-print tray won’t hold your whole life, but it adds a pop of pattern and keeps essentials – skincare, makeup, desk bits – looking pulled together.
Throw blankets are one of the easiest ways to layer texture onto a personality-dry space, but dorm life calls for strategy. This one is compact enough to drape over the end of a bed or accent chair – and stylish enough to cosplay a shawl during an 8 a.m. lecture.
You can get a basic over-door mirror anywhere, but this magnetic arch number? Much harder to find. The antique-inspired shape turns your mini fridge into an accidental art installation, and if you don’t have a magnetic surface, you can always stick it up with removable strips to create a bedside gallery wall.
Between your laptop, phone, AirPods, TI-84 calculator – and whatever else you’re plugging in – you’ll have more than enough cords to manage. Give yourself one less with a portable lamp. This one doesn’t look rechargeable at all, thanks to its vintage brass design – a perfectly swanky touch for a desk or nightstand.
A headboard isn’t essential, but it’s easily the most transformative thing you can add to a dorm room. It makes your bed feel like an actual bed, and not a glorified cot. This one, designed by Shea McGee, is worth the splurge with its moss green velvet and soft, rounded silhouette. It also comes in a delicate floral print, which I love just as much.
Everyone needs that accent chair – one that holds half your closet midweek, then serves as your crash pad during study sessions. This one’s up for the job. Its deep tub silhouette and curved backrest are fully upholstered in cozy cream corduroy, making it equally useful for tossing clothes or curling up with a laptop.
Even if the rest of your pillows are fairly basic, one hero bolster can make the whole pillowscape feel intentional. This one, edged in ruffled lace, does exactly that. It’s just the right amount of sweet without feeling too fanciful, and it’s earned a perfect 5/5 stars to back it up.
In a dorm room, everything needs to pull double duty, or it’s simply not worth the surface area. This pink-and-green cotton sateen bedding delivers with a reversible print: florals on one side, stripes on the other. Folded over just so, it adds a layered, eclectic feel – and lets you change the look midweek if you’re bored (or behind on laundry).
One of the best dorm buys I ever made was a drawer storage cart like this – it doubled as a nightstand and saved me from a total closet overflow. I kept the daily essentials close (PJs, undergarments, chargers, supplements) and used the top surface for the things I actually wanted to display – a lamp, a trinket tray, a framed photo or two. This one’s fluted, chic, and under $60. No notes.
Even the most stylish dorm setup can fall flat if the space around it feels chaotic. To keep your room looking polished, here are the dorm room organizing mistakes experts say to avoid at all costs.
