Soooo, I basically wrote you a novel. And then the sequel. Sorry….
I pretty much agree with everything on here. Plastic drawers are a MUST! So are You’ll want atleast 3 towels, you'll never regret bringing too many. If you think you'll last a whole year with two sets of towels, you're crazy. To go along with the whole winter wardrobe conversation, make sure you have a cute, warm hat. Mine changed my life this winter. I never went anywhere without it. Rain boots are great for rainy days/muddy days/days where the snow is melting and you don’t want to wear your winter boots.
Another thing that I found that I found I used (and my friends used) a LOT more than I thought was a rice cooker that you put in the microwave. You can make ANYTHING with those things. Rice (obviously), popcorn, mac and cheese, pasta, boxed anything, I'm not kidding. (They make the BEST cakes, too. And nothing brings new potential friends to your room than the smell of cake drifting through the dorm hall.) Another thing that I found was very useful was a cookie tray. You'll have to see what your dorm hall comes with, but if you have an oven, I suggest you get one. My friends used it more than I did. They bought Bagel Bites and cookie dough a lot and asked to use it at least twice a week. Especially when the dining halls had nothing good that day.
Some other things that you might want to consider getting are:
- Hammer, screwdriver, mini tool set. Yes, you or your friends will end up needing them at some point. The maintenance crew isn't always the fastest goup of people when it comes to fixing things. You might as well do it yourself.
- Duck tape. You'll find uses for this, I promise.
- Over the door hooks. Great for placing towels to dry or wet winter coats.
- A sewing kit. Clothes rip, buttons pop off, seems come undone. Being that you are now a college kid, you wont have a lot of money to go out and replace clothes. Better learn how to use that stuff, too lol
- First aid kit with band aids, rubbing alcohol, guaze, medical tape, and any medicine you ever may need. I know I’ve needed a band aid here or there and its just a good thing to have on hand. Its better to have them when you really need them. Especially if you’re accident prone.
- A rug. They make your dorm more cozy and home-y looking if you have just tiles or hard wood floors. They also prevent your feet from freezing during the cold winters.
- Slippers and shower flip flops.
- A desk lamp. When your room mates sleeping, you definitely don’t want the over head light on.
Here's some useful tips that I found helpful:
- DO NOT get those flimsy, fold-able laundry hampers. They don't really work all that much. They break really easily and they tip over more than they stand up. If you can, get the sturdy plastic ones. Although they aren't as cute, they work a lot better and they are a lot more durable. And you don't want to carry those fold-able ones up and down several flights of stairs to and from the laundry room. Not fun. At all.
- -Don’t bother planning on buying plastic dishes if you know youre the type of person whose gonna let them just sit there and let them be dirty. Just buy paper plates and plastic utensils. So much easier and its one less thing you have to worry about.
- -If you have a rug, make sure you have something to clean it with. Dirty rugs aren’t fun and do not make you new friends.
- -Sounds stupid, but find something that makes your room smell nice. You don’t want your room to smell bad, trust me.
- - Find a fan that’s big enough to push the air around but small enough that its not in the way. Everyone I know used their fan all year round and kept their windows open even throughout the dead of winter. The dorms get super hot. It’s also helpful when its late and you want to sleep because you have an 8am class but your neighbors want to blast that latest Lil’ Wayne song all night long. The white noise will help you sleep better.
