As the seasons start to shift, the snow melts, the flowers bloom and students are finally stumbling out of their winter hibernation. The winter seclusion broods within students’ dorms, but now that it’s time to open up the windows and let the spring air in, there are some things — rooms, clothes and otherwise — that could be aired out. From deep cleans to donations, it’s out with the old and in with the clean during the spring. While Drake students probably don’t have enough items for a full-on sale or the materials for a surgical sanitation, here are a few ways to revamp your dorm room living space and bring new energy into your life!
1) Start with a simple click!
Living in a dorm, or even a West Village apartment, doesn’t really give the most space to students, making the maximalist lifestyle difficult. Holding onto items can create a messy and disorganized space, and if this is the space that you’re spending most of your time in, it should be calm and comfortable. As the great Marie Kondo says, “Does it spark joy?” Go through your items, even the smallest things, and determine if it’s something that is used and, more or less, loved.
It’s also important to go through items and recognize whether or not the pieces fit your current aesthetic or vibe, which is ever-changing. In a recent YouTube video, influencer Emma Chamberlain discussed how she cleaned out virtually her entire closet and only kept very select pieces that she knew she loved and would wear consistently. Dig through your closet and decide if you’ve used or worn said items in the past month or so. If not, why keep it? Plus, you can use this as the time to donate clothes or sell some more valuable items for a little bit of extra cash.
2) Let’s get organized! Time to get crafty!
If ditching most of your items isn’t the way you roll, then the next step for remastering your spring cleaning guide is to implement some new and improved organization methods. Instead of treating your space as passive by stacking all of your clothes on top of one another or shoving all of your makeup and school supplies in one drawer, allow yourself to improve and declutter your living situation. Many different stores offer options for small living spaces. Putting shelves above your desk or placing a rack on the back of your closet for shoes or accessories can optimize space and place objects out of the way and, even better, out of sight. Having an organized space creates a clearer path for ideas and contentment.
Organization doesn’t have to break the college student wallet. Many stores, like Ikea, Target and even thrift stores, offer basic but cheap options for outfitting your dorm. Thrift stores can offer cheap yet aesthetically pleasing options as well. There are also plenty of DIY hacks you can find online.
3) Out with the old and in with the new!
As spring approaches, as an extra adage to the spring cleaning trend, it is important to remember that this is all to improve you! Cleaning out old items and washing our lives of the things we no longer need can drastically set our paths on a route to success as we make our way through college. The school year is nearing its end, which means we have experienced what could be our first, second or third year of being adults. Sometimes the best course of action is realizing what does not fit into your life anymore, clothes included.
One thing to realize going through college, while cliche, is that everyone truly is on their own path. Not one person has the same plan or idea of what they want to do with the rest of their life. This is your college experience — no one else’s.
You can apply the idea of spring cleaning to clothes and items throughout your dorm, but it can also be applied to curating a healthy lifestyle. Setting boundaries and implementing an environment that focuses on yourself and your journey is a journey that many could take for face value as selfish. The way you can view it is that, since we are all on our own mission — and, truth be told, we’re paying a lot of money for that mission — then we deserve to keep close those who understand us, who value us and whom we feel close to.
If we want a healthy spring, cleaning up our lives is an important first step. Grab some sponges and broomsticks, dust the tops of your dressers and allow yourself to recognize what you need moving into spring. Otherwise, there’s no point in trying to clean the dust bunnies out of your closet.
