Wanderlust is a very relatable feeling for students. When summer comes to an end and the new semester has started, sitting around in your dorm can feel a bit miserable. You spend ages dreaming of better weather and being somewhere – anywhere – that isn’t rainy England. The best way to deal with it is to give into wanderlust and decorate your dorm with these DIYs that will have you dreaming of places faraway.
The best way to take yourself back to a nice holiday is by filling your room with photos, so why not try this DIY for a more interesting way to display them?
What you need: A long stick (can be a natural stick) or bar of wood, string, polaroids or photos of equal shape and size, glue or pegs.
Instructions:
1. Start by tying string to your wood and let it hang down. You can make the string as long as you want, though it should be at least a meter. Cut out five other lengths of string the same size and tie them on too.
2. Glue or peg your photos onto the string, evenly spaced.
3. Hang it on your wall in whatever way you prefer. You can use command strips if you aren’t allowed to mark your walls or tie more string to the piece of wood that you can pin on the wall.
If photos aren’t enough to satisfy your holiday nostalgia then create a ‘been there done that box’ for all your summer memories.
What you need: deep/shadow box frame (it must be wood), a sharpie, your old tickets, a small saw
Instructions:
1. Remove the back and the glass from the frame and, on the top, mark out a small rectangle.
2. Being careful, use the saw to cut out this small rectangle. It is best to position this towards the back of the top rather than centrally as this will be easier to cut out.
3. Put the back and the glass onto the frame again. Using the sharpie, write ‘Been There Done That’ on the glass (or any phrase that you prefer).
4. Now just place it in your room and any time that you have an old ticket, post it through the slot at the top of the frame.
Another way to look back on your travels is to make a memory jar, though this will require some preparation while you’re away.
What you need: A mason jar, things you’ve collected on holiday, a label, a photo
Instructions:
1. Take a mason jar on holiday with you and collect a small amount of sand from the beach. Make sure that it is well sealed when you pack it to bring home. Collect some shells or other objects as well.
2. Back at home, arrange the sand and whatever else you have collected nicely inside the jar. Print off a favourite photo from your holiday and add this to the collection inside.
3. Add a label to the front of your jar to write the location and year of your holiday so you can look back on it and feel wanderlust.
When you’re feeling wanderlust, the best thing to do is to create your own travel journal to keep on your desk.
What you need: a nice scrapbook or journal, photos, whatever else you want
Instructions:
This one doesn’t require much in the way of instruction, just do whatever you like! Whether that is journaling about places you have been or those that you are yet to see, pick up your book whenever you feel wanderlust.
Creating wanderlust in your dorm room isn’t just about reflecting on places that you’ve been, it can also be accomplished by creating an eclectic vibe. Macramé wall hangings look like the sort of thing that you could pick up on your travels but are easy enough to make at home.
What you need: a wooden bar, macramé cord
Instructions:
There is no set pattern for macramé, it’s all about tying knots. The best thing to do is to watch a YouTube tutorial so that you can see how to accomplish the knots and patterns.
Hanging maps on your wall is a sure fire way to give your dorm a wanderlust dream, so why not try and make this DIY wall art to really capture those vibes?
What you need: ice lolly sticks, paper, maps (you can print these from the internet, the more variety the better), a glue stick, scissors, a ruler
Instructions:
1. Lay down a sheet of plain paper and, on top, create a hexagon shape using six ice lolly sticks. Glue them down.
2. Cut the plain paper so that you have a hexagon.
3. Put glue on the ice lolly sticks and place a map on top. Run your finger along the edges to stick it down, then cut it to the hexagon shape.
4. Make more hexagons and, when you feel that you have enough, stick them to the wall in a tessellating pattern.
If you’re the type of person who wants to see the whole world, then starting pinning a map. A great way to record the places you’ve seen, over the years you can try to fill as much of it as you can.
What you need: A map poster, pin board, drawing pins, tags, photos from your holiday
Instructions:
1. Start by putting your map up over your pin board.
2. Stick a photo on each tag that sums up your holiday.
3. Pin the photo to the country/location that you visited.
Tie dye is the perfect way to bring beachy vibes into your room to remind you of somewhere that you’d rather be.
What you need: Old T-shirts that you don’t mind destroying, a tie dye kit, embroidery hoops of different sizes
Instructions:
1. Follow the instructions on the tie dye kit to dye your t-shirts. Choose blue tie dye for a beachy look or something more colourful if you want it to look tropical.
2. Once they are dry and ready to use, put them in an embroidery hoop and cut out the circle as close to the hoop as possible so that there aren’t any scruffy edges peeking out.
3. Hang the hoops on your wall.
There are plenty of sayings and phrases out there that can totally inspire your wanderlust and this DIY displays them in a super cool way.
What you need: deep/shadow box frame, map, scrabble letters, glue
Instructions:
1. Cut the map to fit your frame.
2. Glue down the scrabble letters that spell out your saying onto the map.
3. Frame the map and display it in your room.
When you’re sitting around, bored of revision, there’s no better way to get your mind on nicer places than saving up for your next trip abroad. Make these money jars to save spending cash for next summer.
What you need: mason jars, map paper napkins (you can buy these online), white paint, PVA glue, a brush for the glue, cloth, elastic bands.
Instructions:
1. Remove the lids and paint the mason jars white.
2. Meanwhile, cut up the map napkins into one inch wide strips.
3. When the mason jars are dry, lay a strip of map on the jar and paint PVA glue over it so that it is pasted to the jar.
4. Keep adding strips to the jar and then wait for it to dry.
5. Once it is dry, paint another layer of PVA onto the jar to act as a varnish.
6. When it is dry for the second time, cut a small circle of cloth and hold it over the top of the jar. Use an elastic band to secure it and cut a small slit in the top to feed money into.
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