For students, starting a new school year often means heading to new places and finding a new temporary home. Our interior designer Gintarė Gumenikovaitė-Barzdė is here to prove that any place can turn into a cosy and comfortable home, even if it is an old dorm room.
One room for three
Three girls share one room in a dorm. They like each other and live in peace, but are not happy with their interior at all. Yet the outdated wallpapers, old furniture and gloomy colours is a trifle compared to lack of privacy.
Three girls share one room in a dorm. They like each other and live in peace, but are not happy with their interior at all. Yet the outdated wallpapers, old furniture and gloomy colours is a trifle compared to lack of privacy.
No space for storage
The room also lacks for storage solutions. There only are several cabinets and open shelves for all girls' stuff including cosmetics, books and clothes. Not to mention a single mirror that makes them waiting in a queue.
The room also lacks for storage solutions. There only are several cabinets and open shelves for all girls' stuff including cosmetics, books and clothes. Not to mention a single mirror that makes them waiting in a queue.
Inconvenient kitchen
The kitchen area in the corner by the door takes up a lot of space but still looks compressed. Items that don't fit on shelves often end up in boxes under the table. Eating together is uncomfortable as there is only one chair.
The kitchen area in the corner by the door takes up a lot of space but still looks compressed. Items that don't fit on shelves often end up in boxes under the table. Eating together is uncomfortable as there is only one chair.
Similar yet different
To create three equivalent rooms in one room, Gintarė has chosen similar furniture combinations for all of the roommates and added blue, yellow and black as accent colours. The colours are not too feminine, so the interior should be easy to apply even after the girls leave.
To create three equivalent rooms in one room, Gintarė has chosen similar furniture combinations for all of the roommates and added blue, yellow and black as accent colours. The colours are not too feminine, so the interior should be easy to apply even after the girls leave.
Now, each girl has her own NEIDEN bed with storage boxes underneath, a BILLY bookcase and a VITTSJÖ laptop stand that makes browsing, studying or watching movies more comfortable.
Above the beds, Gintarė has left some space for picture frames with personal photos, posters or paintings. She has also added narrow shelves for little things or small potted plants and three individual mirrors for morning beauty routines.
"I have planned light, transparent curtains around each of the beds to provide some privacy in a busy dorm room."
Gintarė Gumenikovaitė-Barzdė,
IKEA interior designer
IKEA interior designer
A kitchen by the window
The interior designer moved the kitchen area closer to the window. She added a durable shelving unit and some rails with hooks for tableware, cutlery and groceries.
The interior designer moved the kitchen area closer to the window. She added a durable shelving unit and some rails with hooks for tableware, cutlery and groceries.
When all curtains are closed, the kitchen area turn into a separate dining room with MUDDUS drop-leaf table and NISSE folding chairs that can be hung on the wall to save space.
In a tiny kitchen like this, RÅSKOG trolley can serve for both extra storage and a worktop (just add a practical HÖGSMA chopping board in bamboo as a lid). The trolley is easy to adapt to suit what you want to store in it because the middle shelf is adjustable.
More options available
More options available
More options available
More options available
More options available
