Designer Dorm Rooms Are All the Rage—and May Cost More Than College Tuition

When Dawn Thomas dropped off her daughters at college, she decorated their dorm room as a parting gift. The results were so impressive, she was enlisted to do the same for her niece, then others in her circle—and this is how her business venture was born.

Gone are the days when you moved into a dorm room with a twin comforter, a minifridge, and maybe a few hangers. That’s all changed in the Instagram age, where college students across the country are upping their game for bragging rights to the best digs on campus.

Thomas is a pioneer of dorm design and has been doing it now for two decades, at the helm of After Five Designs. And while her efforts on campus were once a novelty, the trend has since spread far and wide.

Last week, in fact, billionaire Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt‘s daughter, Ava, made headlines with her lavish college dorm room at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

But you don’t have to be NFL royalty to get a lavish dorm makeover. Just about everyone’s doing it, and designers are stepping up to meet the demand, turning college move-in day (or “install day”) into the design equivalent of the Super Bowl.

Inside the booming trend of dorm design

Eden Bowen Montgomery of Essentials with Eden launched her dorm-design business three years ago to raise money for a summer mission trip while she was still in college. And just like that, her businesses took off and turned her into one of the most sought-after dorm designers in the country, along with Thomas.

Clients pay good money for these professional makeovers. Thomas says the fee she charges for dorm design varies, but the Wall Street Journal reported it was as much as $10,000 per room.

Meanwhile, Montgomery also charges an estimated $10,000 per room, or $5,000 per student for full-room installations, depending on the number and quality of items chosen.

Thomas and Montgomery primarily work in the South, since they’re both in Mississippi.

As a result, their work is often posted in the Dorm Rooms of Mississippi and Beyond Facebook group, which has nearly 73,000 members.

What’s trending in dorm room design

The hottest trend in dorm design at the moment is Grandmillennial style, Thomas says, which embraces wallpaper, florals, and heirloom furniture.

Montgomery encourages her clients to choose classic, functional pieces that encompass all the aspects of home since this is likely their first time away from home.

“Light pinks, hot pinks, and all shades of blue are the most popular right now,” says Montgomery, noting that statement-making navy headboards are in hot demand.

Here’s some of Montgomery’s work: