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As August is quickly approaching, many students are beginning to shop for college supplies. I thought this would be a great time to remind you of Em & Jay’s Dorm Room Supply List! In an effort to make your shopping a little easier and more productive, I looked through our own list and pulled out six items that we had problems with during our shopping experience and throughout the year. Here are some tips to help you figure out what to buy!
Linens/Laundry
- Hamper
- When shopping for a clothes hamper, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. The first thing to remember, dirty clothes weigh A LOT. Hampers made from cheap material will rip! I recommend looking for hampers made from a strong netting material. The second thing to consider is how often you plan on doing laundry. If you’re going to do laundry every week, a smaller hamper with straps to carry it with will suit you well. If you’re the type to put off laundry until the last possible second, try to get a larger one. You may also want to consider buying one with wheels unless you want to be dragging it to the washing machines. As for the shape, consider where you will be keeping it. Do you want to put it under your bed, in the corner, or in the closet? For under your bed, you will need a short, wider one. For the corner, you will want a taller, skinnier one with a lid so your friends don’t have to see your laundry. Anything for your closet will depend upon its size.
- Bedding
- Comfort first. If it feels scratchy and uncomfortable in the store, that’s probably how it’s going to feel in the dorm. Now, as for colors and patterns, I do have some advice here. Your dorm is going to be kind of small, so everything that can be used as a seat will be used as a seat. I started with a light colored bedspread thinking it would brighten up the room, and it did, until it became stained with spilt food, random ink marks, and general dirt. These didn’t wash out. My advice is to get a darker colored bedspread/comforter that won’t show these stains. You may be worried that this will make your bed a dark spot in the small room, but you can brighten it up with lighter colored pillows, sheets, and blanket.
Electronics/Appliances
- Laptop Computer and Charger
- Two things to consider here: mobility and usability. A lot of college students seem to be drawn to the tiny “mini” laptops. Yes, these have good mobility, but their downfall comes in usability. You’re going to use your laptop for a lot more than taking notes in class. You will use it to take notes, research, writer papers, and so on. I spent almost as much time working on my laptop outside of class as I spent in class at all. Look for something small enough to fit in a backpack, light enough to carry around, but big enough that you will be able to use it for hours at a time without having to squint. The laptop I use is approximately 14” by 10” and weighs just over 6 lbs. It has worked perfectly for me. Also, when shopping for a computer, make sure the one you purchase comes with the software suggested by your school (you can usually find this on your school’s website) or you will have to purchase the software separately.
- Printer, Ink and Paper
- When you purchase a printer, make sure you know how much the ink cartridges are going to cost! These can be unbelievably expensive. You don’t want to go into shock the first time you try to replace the ink in your printer (which you’ll probably have to do several times during the year).
Storage/Organization
- Detachable Hooks/Wall tape
- A lot of colleges will recommend these to prevent you from peeling paint off the wall. WARNING: Some removable poster adhesives and putty are not oh-so-removable. You may be able to get most of it off without peeling the paint, but it will sometimes leave a discoloration behind, a sticky discoloration. Then, as the humidity changes, some adhesives and hooks lose their stickiness and start falling off the wall. We recommend products from Command™ to prevent these things from happening. Check out their website here for coupons!
- Storage Containers/ Under-the-Bed storage units
- When shopping for storage containers, always keep in mind where you plan to store them. If you want to keep them under the bed, know what height they can be and still fit. Also, keep in mind that, in a dorm room, everything tends to have more than one function. A storage container (such as this one) can easily become a night stand. Look for multiple functions to save money and room!
Good luck shopping!
July 18, 2010 at 8:32 PM
Ah, you must have a 17" screen on that laptop, that's why it's on the heavier side.
You can find a lighter laptop (~5lbs) pretty cheaply ($650-850); some specs it should have:
>2.0GHz dual core processor
>2GB RAM (or, grab one with 1GB for cheap, then buy two 2GB sticks separately)
Windows 7 Home (32 or 64-bit, but note, you'll only recognize ~3.33GB of RAM in 32-bit, whereas you can use up to 8GB with 64-bit; of course, that much RAM is unnecessary)
15-17" LCD screen (anything more or less is not usual, so you pay a premium)
Don't worry about the graphics chip (or card), since you shouldn't be doing too much gaming in the first place. =P
Also, my mom found a really nice netbook (mini-laptop). It was on the expensive end of netbooks ($300-550), but really, it's just as fast as a fair laptop, only she paid a premium for the super small size and light weight.
I only mention all this because a computer is probably the single most expensive item you're going to look at bringing into the dorm, unless you have a really nice TV.