This past weekend was a milestone for our family. My youngest sister, the baby of the family, moved into her college dorm! It also so just happened that 10 years ago I moved into my first college dorm a few feet away at the very same university.

It was a mixture of budding enthusiasm for her new endeavor in life as well as nostalgia while thinking back to my college years!

Nostalgia aside, we were all eager to get our sweet Maggie settled in!

A few years ago I did a few posts about our sister Becca’s Dorm Inspiration, her Dorm Reveal as well as a 7 Ways to Make a Dorm Room Feel Like Home. We wanted to create an equally cozy room in this space, so we decided to go with a cheerful color scheme and layer playful patterns.

This was the original inspiration for our design. As you may remember from the makeover of her room in our parent’s home, Maggie enjoys color! We knew that we were working with a very blank canvas, but wanted Maggie’s vibrant personality to shine through in the space!

We pinned a few other ideas and inspirations, but our jumping off point came with the items below:

We loved the neutral background and large geometric lines of the IKEA PS 2014 Duvet Cover. Maggie was not sure about this duvet at first, but when she saw it in person… it was a done deal!

*(I will warn you there is only low stock of this item at best because it was a 2014 collection item)

Then we fell for the HEJSAN desk accessory set… We knew Maggie’s desk area would be limited on space but this collection was a great way to incorporate some much needed color and fun!

For dorms, and especially for someone starting out, IKEA can be the perfect place to start.

Our next major hurdles were a rug for the space and a comfy yet functional (not enormous or expensive) armchair. In both of these areas, we were blessed to receive free alternatives that we were able to DIY into fabulous items. (eek!)

This armchair was a dinged up and dust covered sample frame that our upholstery company was nice enough to give me. Seen here on a forgotten shelf in the warehouse.

We recovered it and added nailhead trim to finish it off. Consequently, upholstery is not always for the faint of heart! This little chair consumed a few hours of one Saturday. Note to self: striped fabric curved furniture is attractive, but maybe I’ll have a pro do it next time!

My little nugget chilling out in the semi-finished piece in Grammy and Poppa’s living room. The finished piece will be in tomorrow’s Part 2.

Last, I had been given a stack of FLOR tiles that were originally used as a temporary solution for a client. They had been sitting in the back of my car taking up space until we realized that they might work in the dorm perfectly.

There were an awkward quantity of each color, but we fiddled around with a few different designs.

… You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to find out which one!

I’ll be posting the reveal and more info about the finishing touches and accessories. I just can’t wait to show you!