<p>I recall that a couple of months ago one of the moms on this board had questions regarding how to use a tension rod to mount a dust ruffle on the beds in the honors dorms. The dorm room decor website, Dorm Suite Dorm has posted a video on You Tube that has a great demonstration. Since we cannot post links to You Tube, you will want to search "How to hang your dust ruffle using a tension rod " on You Tube. (We actually used curtain panels instead of a custom made dust ruffle and secured the tension rod with zip ties to provide additional stability – just remember to bring something that can cut the zip ties when you move out. I broke a pair of basic scissors doing this!)</p>
<p>We also added the zip ties to secure the tension rods into place. We ordered the dust ruffle from Dorm Suite Dorm, but anyone who can use an iron and ironing tape can easily make them at home. I’ll be happy to share the panel widths and the length is purely personal preference depending on the bed height. The weight of the fabric at DSD is exceptional and you can buy it from them if you find something you like and they’ll ship it to you. We have a clean/pressed set of them that look brand new I’ll happily give someone if they can put them to use since we no longer have a need for them. They work really well to hide laundry baskets and such and just to add to the decor of the room.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for both posts. I am hoping to do this on a x-long twin this fall. If you would post panel widths that would be wonderful.</p>
<p>You’ll need three panels with finished dimensions of 51" wide. D’s were 31" long, but that will vary depending upon how long you want them and how high you loft the bed. D’s wasn’t in the highest position, but it was high enough to sit underneath.</p>
<p>Two panels cover the length of the bed and one covers the width.</p>
<p>If you want to make one to fit below the lowest shelf in the bathroom at RCS, the panel should be 55" wide x 24" long. The shelf isn’t that wide, but this allows for gathering. There is room below the lowest shelf in RCS to fit two of the plastic three drawer rolling carts from Target or Walmart side by side (one for each girl).</p>
<p>We used three heavy weight packaged cafe style curtain panels. We hemmed them to about 34" – which could be done with hemming tape for those who don’t sew. (Length depends on how high you plan to loft the bed. We just went with the height that the beds were set at when we went to Bama Bound.) Initially we had planned to use to use two panels on the length of the bed and one on the width of the bed, but the way that we placed the bed in the room neither the foot board or headboard side were visible, so we used all three panels on the length of the bed, which gave the dust ruffle a nice fullness. As bamagirls points out, it really makes the underbed area a useful storage area and was a nice way to coordinate the room’s decor. (This may be more applicable to girls than guys!)</p>
<p>Thanks very much. I have learned from experience if it doesn’t get done at the beginning, it will never happen. Your advice will help so much.</p>
<p>You people are obviously the parents of girls. I don’t even know what the hell a dust ruffle is.</p>
<p>Guilty as charged, Slippy. Think of a dust ruffle as a panel of fabric designed to cover the underside of the bed to the floor. In the case of a twin XL lofted bed in the dorms, the dust ruffle could be gathered or straight panels of fabric and really could serve for either a girl’s or a guy’s room to provide hidden storage or just to add decor to the room. It can make the area under the bed more attractive for a study space. For a guy’s room, you could add pockets for things like a cell phone, pens/pencils/calculator if you wanted. Of course you’d want a masculine looking fabric or maybe a solid or stripe for a guy and not some cute pattern.
I only have girls, so I’ll stick to advising for the feminine side. Most guys probably wouldn’t want them.</p>
<p>I’m just hoping my son washes his sheets more than once a semester.</p>
<p>Tell him the laundry room is a good place to meet girls…lol…:).</p>
<p>Thanks, paying4collegex4, I was that mom asking about the dust ruffle! I will check out that video, I have the fabric for my D and her roommate but haven’t started yet. It’s the length that is holding me back. Are the beds at Bama bound the same as the Tut beds? Maybe I can play with them and check out heights.</p>
<p>You people are obviously the parents of girls. I don’t even know what the hell a dust ruffle is.</p>
<p>We could send you a knitting pattern. Kick one, score three, kick one, score three…and so forth</p>
<p>^^^ roflol</p>
<p>SMBradshaw – According to the room details section for Tutwiler, the beds are “Standard twin bed and mattress (36” x 75”), adjustable height up to 31” max from floor.” The room details for the dorm my daughter lived in last year say that the bed was “adjustable height up to 33” max from the floor." (The extra inch on the drop is accounted for by the positioning of the curtain rod when you install it – the video should help show how this would add about an inch to the drop.) So for Tut you might want to make the drop 31 or 32 inches.</p>
<p>Slippy, I am with you, I have a boy, buy them long and cut them off…no hem needed!</p>
<p>“I’m just hoping my son washes his sheets more than once a semester.”</p>
<p>Hide a twenty dollar bill under the matress with a note asking him to call home when it is found. This will tell you when he washes them for the first time! RTR</p>
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<p>They have shower curtians with pockets. I bet we could cut those down and use them!Or get a closet tension rod, and hang a bunch of the over the door shoe racks and shelves for extra storage…</p>