Room for Improvement: Dorm Room

WSVN -- Martin Amado: "We're heading back to campus on today's Room for Improvement, stopping by the University of Miami to give a lucky student a complete dorm makeover, taking it from bland to stylish all in one day. Let's go meet her."

Martin Amado: "So you are a junior here at UM, and what are your majors?"

Melanie: "I have film, also psychology and French."

Martin Amado: "And tell me about your dorm space right now?"

Melanie: "I mean, I like the jail cell look. I think it's very nice. I want more space for organization but yet make it look homey."

Martin Amado: "So, I have to basically meet all those goals for you. That's the challenge for me. We're going to surprise you."

Martin Amado: "Melanie gave us the OK to get rid of all of this generic furniture, so that's exactly what we're going to do. Let's go shopping."

Martin Amado: "OK, Chantal, so I need to make a very small room be multifunctional for Melanie."

Chantal: "Well, Martin, IKEA believes that home is the most important place in the world, and here Melanie will be able to work, sleep and play in a small space by going vertical."

Martin Amado: "We're back from shopping, so all that's left to do now is to clear out the room and begin the makeover."

DESIGN DIRECTION:

When we have a limited floor space, the best way to go is up vertically. That's why the loft-style bed that we saw at the store is the solution, and I found it in the perfect finish."

Martin Amado: "Dorm rules don't allow for painting or drilling, so our new best friends are Velcro, tension rods and double stick tape to add some color in the room."

TOOL TIP:

By turning this bookcase tower on its side like this we have additional seating.

Martin Amado: "Another idea to decorate a dorm space if you cannot paint or dill, is to use these peel and stick designs for instant art."

SMALL WONDER:

This turned out great. Now the tip for this wall is to take these light-weight decorative trays and create a collage, just like this, using Velcro strips on the back.

Martin Amado: "Now let's work on another eyesore in this room that you cannot miss, this air conditioner unit."

Martin Amado: "So what I'm doing first is creating a frame out of wood moldings that's the exact same dimension as the bottom of the air conditioner unit."

Martin Amado: "The second thing I'm doing is stapling a sheer fabric right on to the frame."

Martin Amado: "So the final touch is to add some curtains to separate the entrance from our new dorm space."

Martin Amado: "One, two, three, go ahead and open your eyes."

Melanie: "Can I just keep this forever?"

Martin Amado: "We even have a special folder for you. Well, thank you so much for being on the segment, for letting us do this, to Seven News, of course IKEA for all the furniture that you see here. To all the viewers, thank you for watching, and we'll see you next time on another Room for Improvement."

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Contact: room@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-576-HOME
Broward: 954-962-HOME
Martin Amado's Website: http://www.martinamado.com/