Almost every college freshman gets excited to decorate their dorm, but when it comes time to buying dorm essentials, even the most basic items can add up. Here are two of my favorite and cheap dorm decor DIYs!
1—Brandy Melville-Inspired Wood Sign. This sign is probably one of the easiest (and cutest) DIYs I’ve ever made.
What you’ll need:
- A piece of scrap wood
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Acrylic paint
- Paintbrush
- Sandpaper
- Wire
- Scissors
- Drill
Step 1—Using your ruler and pencil, draw the border of your sign about two centimeters from the edge of the wood.
Step 2—Draw or trace the word onto your wood. For precision, you can print out what you want to write and transfer the print onto the sign.
Step 3—Paint over your pencil marks with the acrylic paint. Black or navy blue tends to work best so that the pencil marks do not show through.
Step 4—Once the paint has completely dried, use the sandpaper to achieve a weathered look. There is no wrong way to do this, but I like to start on the border and sand down most of the edges first before going over the words.
Step 5—Cut a piece of wire about two feet long. Drill two holes in the upper corners of your sign and insert the wire for hanging.
2—Wire “Neon” Sign. Neon signs are the most Instagram-worthy decor trend today… but also the priciest. Many neon signs like the ones you see at Urban Outfitters have to be created using hand-blown glass, thus the high price. This DIY neon sign will give you the freedom to choose what word you want to display in light and best of all, it won’t break the bank.
What you’ll need:
- Neon wire ($7.99+)
- Malleable metal wire
- Twist ties
- Scissors
Step 1—Choose what word you want to create. If you aren’t sure what word to use, do a Google search for beautiful words, or browse your Tumblr and Pinterest for inspiration.
Step 2—Cut a long piece of your wire. It is best to cut the wire longer than you think you need and then trim it later. Once you cut your wire, shape the wire into the word that you chose. Make sure that the wire can keep its shape, which may require twisting the wire around other pieces of the same wire.
Step 3—Cut your twist ties into half-inch pieces. These will be used to attach your neon wire to the metal wire.
Step 4—Line up your neon wire with the metal wire starting, then attach the two wires together using the twist ties where necessary. Do this along the entire wire until you have spelled out your word. There should be excess wire left over to plug into an outlet. Plug in your neon light and marvel at your creation!
Which DIY was your favorite? Show us how your project turned out by tagging @Cfashionista on Instagram!
