For some students, entering their dorm rooms for the first time can be a traumatizing experience. They ask themselves how they can take a room with chipping paint, plain curtains and bare furniture and make it look like home.

Fortunately, several local stores provide ways to take a dorm room and turn it into a unique and comfortable place.

Before students get too excited about decorating possibilities, it's important to note that Penn State has a few limitations on how students can decorate their space. Pictures, bulletin boards and decorations are to be hung from the silver molding with picture hooks. Darts and dartboards are not permitted, and the use of tape, adhesives, putty, glue, paste, nails, tacks, staples, and screws on walls, furniture, doors or other woodwork or glass is not permitted.

Also, no painting or papering of rooms or furniture is permitted. The use of or installation of wood, paneling, and/or tiles is prohibited unless approved by the university. The university candles, incense or anything else that produces a flame, and halogen lights or lamps.

Posters/Tapestries

The first step in making a dorm room look less drab is usually to cover the walls. Most dorms come with molding on which pictures can be hung. However, since framed pictures can be a little expensive, most students decorate their walls with posters and/or tapestries.

The Apple Tree, 136 E. College Ave, sells posters, with regular sizes costing $7 and "giant" posters ranging from $13.99 to $14.99. Posters in this store range from music-related to art prints. Tapestries at the Apple Tree cost anywhere from $16 to $28. It also sell sarongs, normally used as skirts, but "great for using over a table or a chair," store owner Earle Harner said.

Artifax, 323 E. College Ave., also sells posters ranging from $4.50 to $13.99. Most of the posters are music related. It also sells tapestries ranging from $19.99 to $24.99, depending on the style.

Posters can also be found at Wild Card, 346 E. College Ave., from $3 to $15. Many have an artistic theme.

From August 24 through 30, posters will also be sold in the HUB-Robeson Center. The annual poster sale features posters with varying prices and sizes.

Posters can also be found at McLanahan Student Store, 414 E. College Ave., with regular posters costing $6.50 and art prints costing $12. It also had a small section of $10 posters and small posters that are all under $4.

At Nirvana's Closet, 254 E. Calder Way, posters cost $3.50 each and tapestries range from $18.99 to $27.99 depending on size. Mike's Movies, 210 E. Calder Way, where posters are mostly music or film related, posters cost $6.99 each.

Posters found at the House of Kashmir, 130 E. Calder Way, cost from $6.99 to $9.99. It also has an extensive tapestries section, with prices from $19.99 to $23.99.

Carpets

Most dorm rooms come with linoleum floors, which some students may find too cold for their tastes.

If students don't buy their carpeting through the university (they will get an option to do this through the mail) there are still options for carpeting locally.

Wal-Mart, 373 Benner Pike and 1665 N. Atherton Place, offers different sizes, colors and designs of carpeting. For students without cars who don't want to lug a carpet on the bus, there are some options downtown.

Furniture Exchange, 522 E. College Ave., sells carpeting of all sizes, including many that would fit in a dorm room. Prices range from $39.95 to more than $100 depending on size and design. Five-by-eight foot carpets cost $39.95, six-by-nine foot carpets cost $49.95, and eight-by-10 foot carpets cost $79.95.

Lights

Although dorm rooms come with lights, some students might require a more personalized lighting scheme.

The Apple Tree sells paper mache lanterns, which come with their own plug-in lights. These use a regular 60-watt light bulb and cost anywhere from $7 to $11 depending on the size. They also come in miniature form as a string of lights for $25.

Apple Tree also sells star-shaped lanterns for $14, which can hang from the ceiling by the electric cord.

Wild Card also has star lanterns for $29.95, including the light. Larger sizes cost $34.95 with the light.

The End Result, 109 S. Allen St., has a large selection of lamps. Its star lanterns cost $15 to $25, not including the light, which costs an additional $9.

For black lights, students can find a large selection in Artifax or a small amount at McLanahan's.

Penn State Decorations

Many Penn State students also seek to show their blue-and-white pride through room decorations.

From Penn State posters to blankets, to pillows or magnets, Penn State merchandise can easily be found downtown.

Stores selling Penn State merchandise are The Family Clothesline, 352-B E. College Ave., Student Book Store, 330 E. College Ave., Penn State Bookstore in the HUB-Robeson Center, Old State Clothing Company, 310 E. College Ave., McLanahan's and Lions Pride, 112 E. College Ave.

Lofts/Futons

Lofts and futons can be sometimes be bought from other students.

However, for those who don't want to go the used route, Room Doctor, 1318 W. College Ave., offers a wide selection of lofts as well as futons that are sized for a dorm. Twin-sized lofts start at $129.

The futons it sells can pull out to be any bed size and the store personnel will help pick one that can fit under any loft. The mattresses range in price from $79 to $299 depending on the thickness, size and color of the mattress. Mattress covers can also be bought starting at $30.

Furniture Exchange also sells futons. Full-sized futons with a 6-inch mattress cost $199.95 while queen-sized with a 6-inch mattress cost from $229.95 to $289.99 depending on the style of frame.

The store also sells new A-frame futons with twin sizes costing $129.95, full-sizes costing $149.95 and queens costing $169.95.