Gone are the days of milk crates for bookshelves and Christmas lights tacked above the bed. In 2025, TikTok is being flooded with videos of freshmen students showing off their extreme dorm makeovers, featuring canopy beds, custom headboards, matching rugs, and designer vanity tables. The trend has become so popular that some parents are now spending tens of thousands of dollars, and even hiring professional decorators, to turn their children’s brick-walled dorms into luxury suites.
One such decorator is Shelly Gates, a mother of three who stumbled into the business five years ago. When moving her daughter into Mississippi State University, Gates gave the room a top-to-bottom facelift — adding wall art, custom bedding, bright colored ottomans, and throw rugs — before posting the results on Facebook. “It gained a lot of traction and people were very positive,” she tells The Independent. “I love design, and I thought, ‘What a great summer job.’”
