Looking for an easy guide on how to hang curtains in a dorm room? Keep reading to find a step by step.
Let’s face it, dorm life can be pretty unglamorous at points.
For a year or two, your whole life is bound inside the same small space where you must sleep, eat, study and shower.
Personalizing your dorm room to fit your style and aesthetic is one way to transform the room into your own space that you actually enjoy.
Hanging curtains in a dorm is an easy way to make your living arrangement feel like home. The usual plastic, prison-like blinds that characterize dorms don’t exactly scream comfort and tranquility, therefore adding the softening quality of curtains will mitigate this harshness.
Dorm room closet spaces are usually open and do not usually come with doors, so hanging curtains to box away the mess of a closet is also a great way to tidy up the your new room. Curtains are a source of privacy, shielding the rest of campus, or your roommate for that matter, from seeing anything unsightly.
They also block bright light so you can catch up on lack of sleep and add character to the room.
Due to the small size of the room, there may be limited wall space to work with, but proper planning can alleviate this obstacle.
Dorms also come with a slew of restrictions for tenants, like no open flames, no smoking, and in this case, no drilling into walls.
Here are a few methods that allow you to hang curtains in your dorm room while remaining on good terms with your school.
Read: 20 College Must-Haves You Can’t Forget About
The Best Way To Hang Curtains Without Damaging Walls
Although you can choose to hang patterned, fun curtains for aesthetic reasons, blackout curtains and their ability to block bright outside light have positive health benefits you should know about.
Traditional blinds and artsy curtains still allow bits of natural light to leak through the cracks, potentially impacting your much needed sleep.
Despite the mood-elevating effects and health benefits of both aesthetic and blackout curtains, many college students don’t attempt to incorporate them in their dorm room because they assume that doing so violates any resident agreement they have with the school.
In reality, there are plenty of damage-free methods to introduce curtains to a dorm room that won’t take a chunk of change from your security deposit.
Investing in easy-to-install tension rods, ceiling hooks, or command hooks to prop up curtains in a dorm room are all viable options. Let’s check them out!
Method 1: Tension Rods for Windows and Closet Spaces
Instead of attaching a permanent curtain rod into the wall using damaging screws and drilling, tension rods achieve almost the same function, without the anxiety-inducing holes to patch up at the end of the year.
Curtain rods are spring-loaded and adjustable so that they can wedge between two surfaces, like window bump outs or closet frames, to hold up curtains.
Tension rods are best for small windows and non-permanent setups, as without the proper amount of friction and pressure, they can fall.
It is best to choose lightweight curtains for tension rods and to ensure that the rod is level and tight. This means that heavier curtains, known for their weighted quality, may not be the best choice for a tension rod setup.
You will be impressed with how easy it is to install a tension rod.
First and foremost, make sure to measure the window or closet width beforehand and purchase a rod that is a bit longer than the width you measured. This is because the tension rod is adjustable and spring-loaded so the perfect amount of friction can be achieved.
Next, simply adjust the rod to fit between the two surfaces snuggly and drape the curtains over.
Read: 15 Trendy College Dorm Ideas To Decorate Your Room
Method 2: Installing Ceiling Hooks
Ceiling hooks are often attached to, you guessed it, the ceiling, allowing you to hang a few different objects like plants, lights, decorations, and…curtains!
In this case, curtains hanging from above can be utilized to create separate-feeling spaces within the dorm room itself.
Hanging adhesive hooks around the perimeter of your bed is a great way to have privacy from a roommate when you’re sleeping or resting.
It can get old to constantly share a small space with someone else, so a curtain divider will become a lifesaver after long days or when you find yourself in rotten moods.
Even more, if you want to create a comfortable nook with your bedspace snuggled up beneath, using ceiling hooks to hang a curtain draped against the ceiling like a canopy is a super cool trick, too!
To install adhesive ceiling hooks and ensure that they last, make sure to first measure the space between the curtain rings and mark the ceiling where each hook is needed.
Clean the marked surfaces to remove any dirt or dust and remove the backing of the sticky side of the hook. Make sure to hold it in place for a few seconds to allow a bond to form and to prevent any random mid-sleep scares from the curtain falling down. Hang the curtains, and viola! Nook created!
Method 3: Using Command Hooks for a Simple Curtain Solution
If you are living in a dorm room, it is best if you always have command hooks on hand. These things can be used for everything during college years, from hanging picture frames to shelves to curtains.
If your curtains come with rings at the top, make sure to buy the same number of command strips as there are rings.
Make sure the command strips are positioned level and in a straight line above the frame of the closet, then drape the curtain over.
This method works best if you want to cover up a closet space that may not have room for a tension rod inside the frame itself.
Like ceiling rods, it is important to properly measure, clean, and press the adhesive side of the command hook powerfully onto the surface to ensure a long lasting hang.
The Best Ways To Maximize Your Dorm Room With Hanging Curtains
Aside from their traditional role of hanging at the sides of a window or shielding your room from unwanted light, privacy curtains in solid colors can also create a cozy atmosphere and help alleviate the feeling of clutter that is oftentimes inherent to a small dorm room.
If you share your room, curtains can separate your space from the space of your roommate, allowing your side of the room to transform into the ultimate personal oasis and reprieve from the demanding and exhausting life of college.
Knowing how to hang curtains in a dorm room to hide the clutter of open closet spaces helps dignify the space and give the impression of cleanliness, organization and extra storage.
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