Decorating a rental or dorm room can be a struggle with limitations on space, practicality, and a lack of inspiration. However, BYU-Hawaii has resources to help students decorate their rooms with a little creativity. The Copy Center has a die-cut machine that can punch out paper graphics. The images that can be cut include people, animals, holiday themed figures, and many others. Brinley Fox, a sophomore in exercise sports science from California, and part of the Copy Center staff, said, “You have to use our paper to use the die-cut machine. We also have pre-made cutouts. You get 20 images for a dollar.” Erin Akinaka, a senior history major from California, commented, “I like to make my own art. I use drawings I’ve done in class or collages I’ve made from magazines.” The Copy Center supplies a box of free magazines, old books, and pictures that can be used for collages, decorating, and even school projects. Hannah Packard, a senior in EXS from California, said, “I cut out letters from magazines and write out words or quotes for my walls. It looks really cool and I like being creative with the pictures I cut up.” Fox said, “You can use any of the paper cutters and magazines for free. You can use glue sticks, scissors, crayons, markers, all kind of stuff for free here at the Copy Center.” The lamination machine allows students to preserve the artwork or posters they create. The Copy Center can also print out posters and pictures in 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, and 11” x 17”. Packard said, “My friend gave me a poster she printed at the Copy Center. It looked so cool and it was in color.” One single-sided color print costs $1.15 for an 8.5” x 11”, $1.75 for 8.5” x 14”, and $2.30 for 11” x 17”. “It makes it difficult and takes us a while to figure out the format when international students use the metric system,” said Sandy Sproat, a senior in social work and a Media Lab assistant, when speaking of students who have brought preformatted images to the Copy Center. The Copy Center is a resource for students to create art and designs to decorate their rooms, but there are other ways to be creative. Akinaka said, “I like going to garage sales and getting paintings and art from them. What I mostly have in my house are things people have given me—photos or drawings they did. It’s like a memory thing.”
Writer: Alyssa Walhood
