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Style. Color. Fabric. Fashion. At Art Van, We've Got The Look! Our team of fashion and furniture 'Insiders' take you behind the scenes for the greatest trends, décor and design tips. Looking for what's new and what's next? It's here!
In our last Back-2-School installment, we tie up all the loose ends so that you can have an easier time cutting the apron strings.
Hi-Tech
Have a back-up plan. This is an especially good idea when it comes to your computer. A travel USB Drive is a great way to ensure all your hard work doesn’t get lost in an instant. It’s a good idea to have a couple drives handy. One for weekly back ups and another for more frequent use.
Play that Funky Music. Keep all your CDs and movies neatly corralled in one location with a multimedia storage tower. Just make sure you properly label all your stuff so you roommate doesn’t try to hijack your copy of Jack Johnson.
Snooze, You Lose. Get up and get moving with an iHome alarm clock or docking station. Our only suggestion is keeping the noise at a respectable level as you get ready for your 8:00 a.m. class.
Miscellany
Say Hello to George. As in George Washington. You know, the guy who’s on the quarter. And you’re going to need lots of his smiling faces for your laundry night. After all, your clothes aren’t going to get magically clean on their own.
Paging Doctor… Unless you’re rooming with the future Dr. House, it’s probably a good idea to have a small first aid kit readily available in your room. Stock it with pain relievers, scissors, burn relief cream, thermometer, anti-diarrheal tablets, flashlight, latex gloves, sterile dressings, tweezers, antibiotic ointment, and an assortment of Band-Aids.
Cleanliness is Next to… Since mom won’t be making the trip to college with you, make sure you bring along some cleaning supplies to take care of the mess in the microwave or wipes to sanitize every possible surface the first time you or your roommate gets a nasty cold.
When you add up all the ingredients on this list, the results are sure to be a sweet room set-up without the calories. Now that’s how you do phat!
The New Freshman 15, Part Two
In our second part discussion of the “Freshman 15,” we tackle the bathrrom and the comforting touches you can add to a dorm room to make it feel more homey.
Bathroom
Who’s Your Caddy? Your living situation will help you determine what style of shower caddy you’ll need. For community showers, you’ll need a caddy you can take back-and-forth. Make sure it holds all your necessary shower items. You don’t want to be all wet and realize you forgot the soap.
If you’re sharing a shower with suite mates, then you can use a caddy that stays in the bathroom. Look for one that either hangs from the shower head or suctions to the wall. It should have enough places for you and your roommate to house all your shower items without getting confused whose shampoo is whose.
Creature Comforts
The Best Part of Waking Up. Perk up with a colorful coffee maker* or other caffeine-inducing contraption so you can hit your first class all bright eyed and busy tailed!
Change Your View. No dorm room would be complete without a futon. Find the one that suits your personality and space, and then sit back and relax.
Pulling Double-Duty. Another space-saving solution is a small ottoman with storage. It’s a seat! It’s a tray. It’s a footrest. It’s a… you get the picture.
Go long… Xtra Long. Since college students come in all shapes and sizes, most schools equip their dorms with Xtra Long mattresses. And we’ve got you covered with mattresses protectors that guard against stains and whatever else the previous occupant may have left behind.
Pantry Raid. Yes. Bookcases are great for shelving your required readings, but they’re also a fantastic way to arrange your “pantry.” There will be times when you want a quick snack, the cafeteria isn’t open, and you have exactly 25 cents to your name. Stock up on a few basics like cereal, peanut butter, and the requisite Ramen Noodles for when the late-night cravings come calling.
Our final installment… Hi-tech & a little r-e-s-p-e-c-t.
*Electronics and appliances allowed in dorm rooms vary from school to school. Make sure you check with yours to ensure you are using one that has been approved.
The New Freshman 15, Part One
Everyone who has ever stepped foot on a college campus has been warned about the dreaded “Freshman 15.” In an effort to save its bad reputation, we’re giving it a new meaning. Here is our take on the 15 prerequisites for any college dorm room:
Organization
A Place for Everything. Storage cubes are great for organizing your stuff in a jiffy. Look for cubes that stack so you can maximize your space. And if you can add a drawer insert, that’s a bonus. Keep in mind your room colors and buy your cubes accordingly.
Much To-Do. Oh, the freedom of being on your own. But don’t forget about your new friend “responsibility.” Buy a white board or some large, erasable wall planner to help you get acclimated to your hectic class routine, while still finding time to maintain an active social calendar.
My Notes are Here… Somewhere. Keep everything on top of your desk neatly in place with a paper storage box or desktop file.
Up next… the bathroom!
Study Smarts
Fall is fast approaching and that means thousands of college students will be heading back to their “home” for another year of academic excellence. And one of the most essential things they’ll need for making the grade is a room that is organized and functional.
When it’s time to hit the books, give them a little more support with a great desk chair. The key to successful studying is having a chair that properly supports your body while you’re burning the midnight oil. Look for a chair that has adjustable arms and height features. This will help ensure that the only muscle they strain is their brain. And don’t forget to make sure their space is well lit. Art Van Furniture has fashionable lamps that will keep them from bumping into furniture while also making a style statement.
Remember, your child is unique and so are their study habits. Make sure they’ve got the right furniture they need to be a success!
Back-to-school: A Dude’s Guide to Dorm Design
Guys tend to have a different approach when it comes to “tricking out” their dorm rooms. For them it’s all about comfort, convenience, and hi-tech “toys.”
Comfort: After a marathon day of classes, your scholar is going to need a relaxing place to crash before hitting the books again. Futons are a great option because of their versatility. We’re sure your guy will appreciate one covered in a soft microsuede fabric with beefy cushions he can sink into. If he’s super tight on space, but still needs a place for his best bud to sleep when he comes to visit, try an ottoman with a hidden Twin-Size bed.
Convenience: For most guys their bed is mainly just a place to crash, so when choosing their dreamtime décor, the simpler, the better. We noticed a lot of low-key looks in bedding that heavily favored blue, grey, and brown tones. You might also want to invest in a good mattress protector to help keep the bed bugs at bay. When it comes to covering the walls, posters, sports memorabilia, or a cool wall mural depicting a serene outdoor scene are the go-to necessities. And for the guy who wants to show some school pride, our College Series Collection offer a small table and stools that can easily fit in a corner for late-night snack attacks.
Hi-tech “toys”: Of course the reason you sent your son to college is so he can study and get a stellar education, but everyone needs some downtime. So, expect him and his friends to bust out “Call of Duty” on PS3 or have a jam session to the latest edition of Guitar Hero®. Just remind him to keep it to a dull roar so that the R.A. doesn’t show up at his door and pull the plug.
We know sending your “baby” off to school isn’t easy, but at least he’ll have a sweet room.
DIFFA’s Dining by Design
Dubbed the “Cannes of tabletops” by filmmaker John Waters, Detroit is honored to be a first-time host for the absolutely spectacular “Dining by Design” event coming this August.
Organized by the Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS (DIFFA) in partnership with the Michigan AIDS Coalition (one of Art Van Furniture’s 2009 Million-Dollar Charity Challenge grant recipients), DIFFA’s signature event is coming to the Benson and Edith Ford Conference Center at the College for Creative Studies August 12-14.
A feast for the eyes, mind, and soul, this event features dynamic and innovative dining environments. The installations are the creation of local designers, showcasing the area’s talent in the design, artistic, and architectural communities.
Designers are paired with Table Sponsors to create 3-D installations, which results in outstanding works of art beyond even the wildest imagination. Each installation measures approximately 11’x11’ to 11’x20’. This year, Art Van Furniture is proud to be a Silver Table Host sponsor at this can’t-miss event.
DIFFA was founded in New York in 1984. One of the greatest supporters of HIV/AIDS services and education organizations in the U.S., DIFFA has mobilized immense resources in the design communities to provide more than $38 million to hundreds of AIDS organizations nationwide.
Event Schedule
Thursday, August 12: Cocktails by Design/ArtWorks Auction
6 p.m.-midnight
- Strolling supper featuring signature appetizers from 25 top-tier area restaurants
- Live and silent auction featuring original works from 200+ artists
Friday, August 13: Open to the Public
Noon-5 p.m.
Saturday, August 14: DINING BY DESIGN (DBD) Gala Dinner
6 p.m.-midnight
- Cocktail reception and open bar all evening
- Dinner and appetizers provided by the Matt Prentice Restaurant Group
For tickets or to learn more, please visit: http://www.diffa.org/
Back-to-school: Black-and-white with color all over.
From L.A. to NYC, up to the U.P., and in the heart of the “D,” colleges and universities are gearing up to welcome back students along with the freshman class of 2010.
So what can you expect to see in hip dorm rooms across the country?
For the fashionable young gal-on-the-go, pink is the dominant color. According to Jessica, a sophomore in Ann Arbor, just about everyone she knows has a rosy room. And it looks like the pink path has also found its way to Kalamazoo where Abigail, an incoming freshman, is using pink accents as a way to give her room some extra pizzazz. While shopping, Abigail noticed, “It seemed like black-and-white is really popular—especially pink with zebra print for the girls.” Abigail decided to pass on the zebra theme, but did stay on trend by sticking to black and white in a Damask pattern.
And zebra-print bedding is exactly what you’ll find in the Grand Rapids dorm room of Liza and her roommate. Instead of pink, they opted for blue and green color combo. Liza’s half of the room will be green, while her roommate’s will be blue. That way they can show-off their individuality, but still have a cohesive look to their room.
As with all good decorating: make sure you like it, it’s comfortable, and it reflects your exceptional personality!
Back-2-School: Eclectic Attitude
Let’s face it. Most of us haven’t been inside a dorm room for… well, let’s just say a number of years. So how can you make sure your daughter doesn’t commit a freshman faux pas before classes even start? Well, we went straight to the source for the latest in dorm decorating: Jessica, a savvy sophomore at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Here are some of the must-have items decking out her dorm:
- Gigantic wall stickers are very trendy—the big dots, the cute words, the glitter stars, etc.
- Polka dots show up at one point or another in everyone’s room, or wonderfully obnoxious busy patterns in outrageous colors. Basically, you walk into someone’s room and it should visually punch you in the face
- A cute vintage poster is absolutely necessary—Audrey Hepburn or the iconic 1945 V-Day photograph of a sailor and nurse smooching in Times Square
Jessica also mentioned that a lot of girls in her dorm take the high-end and trendy advertisements from magazines like Vogue and Elle, and make their own collage over the year until they have a wall of high-gloss lace and couture.
Mini fridges and microwaves are still required basics, but it seems like each girl aspires for a little more. As Jessica so aptly put it, “I think room decor develops with credit status, so check back in a few years.”
Creating an All-Star Space
Attention, Sports Fans! With baseball season in full swing, you want to maximize your television’s viewing possibilities before the World Series rolls around. Whether you get a new big screen from Paul’s TV in Art Van, or just plan to make the most of your current set, there are a few basic guidelines to make sure your television set-up hits a home run.
Westwind Entertainment Collection
The size of your TV often depends on the room. For a kitchen or bedroom, you can easily view something like a 24-inch screen, but for a family room or home theater, you should go as big as your space and budget will allow. Start by measuring the room you’ll use. If the TV will be against a wall, that space should be at least a foot wider than the base of the screen, to allow for the frame and ventilation (you don’t want it overheating during the seventh inning stretch). If the TV is on a console or in a wall unit, there will be six inches to a foot of space behind it, bringing it further into the room. The TV should be proportional to the furniture, or you risk having an off-kilter room, or worse: damaging your expensive equipment on a too-small console.
Your room’s seating is also very important when deciding the right TV size. For rooms with seven or eight feet between the sofa and the TV, 32 or 36 inches is a good size screen. For a larger room, with 10-12 feet between the sofa or recliner and TV, you can go as big as 50 inches. Keep in mind, sitting too close to large screen may cause the pixels to be distracting and make it hard to watch. But if you’re too far away, you’ll miss the “movie theater” impact, and all those slo-mo replays and “outta the park” hits will lose their thrill factor.
By carefully choosing your furniture—and television—you can make the most out of summer sports, and have a rocking room the rest of the year.
Smells Like Teen Spirit
The Expressions Collection
- So Fierce Furniture: If your teen’s still sleeping in the bed they had in elementary school, it’s time for an upgrade. For a more sophisticated, transitional look, choose items with clean lines that will suit teens’ almost grown-up tastes. Add flexibility with a bed that offers an additional sleep space for those all-important sleepovers. And don’t forget storage pieces like dressers and chests for their endlessly expanding wardrobes. Our youth bedroom selection has some fun items they won’t roll their eyes at. Plus, they’ll work well in a guest room when the kids head off to college.
- Cover Up: Most teens would be mortified by the Pokémon sheets they had when they were eight, so shop with them to settle on something a little more adult. Sure, Jonas Brothers bedding might be all the rage right now, but when they’re not so hot next month, those sheets will be old news. Instead, opt for something more basic, and dress it up with fun pillows or a duvet cover you can switch out.
- Wall the Rage: Let their creative side shine here. Have a budding artist-in-residence? Let them paint a mural instead of a boring eggshell white wall. For the film buff, help them frame movie posters or life-size cut-outs. If your teen is a musician, try mounting their guitars on pegs on the wall—which will also open up floor space for that drum set they asked for.
And if your teen is a “Belieber,” be sure to enter our contest with 98.7 AMP Radio for your chance to win suite tickets to see Justin Bieber live in concert, going on now until August 7! You can check out the Bieber décor on display at our contest locations—visit our events page to find out where it will be next!
However you and your teen decide to decorate their, like, totally awesome room, have fun with it. You’ll get tons of points for being the “cool parents.”