After spending the first half of summer feeling stressed about “we haven’t bought any dorm stuff yet!” I finally took my daughter to that big home store that has the pack and hold service - her school is 1200 miles away - and did our shopping. There are a lot of items we chose to postpone until we see the actual room - mostly storage and organization items. But it felt like we got so little! We got all the bedding items and towels, a shower caddy and laundry hamper, a desk lamp, a wastebasket, slim hangers, and a power strip. Plus a tapestry and string lights. She has some other decorative things we are shipping from home.
There are plenty of stores close to campus so that we can get additional things so it’s probably fine, plus she can always get things herself after move-in day as there’s great public transportation there and of course there’s Amazon prime student, but I keep getting this nagging feeling that we’re not equipping her adequately! So many articles I see talk about items like safes and printers and butterfly chairs and drawer organizers and small ironing boards and such…but I’m pretty sure she can print in the dorms and they have irons and vacuums to borrow…no microwaves allowed…and again I want to see the room and let her discuss certain shared items with the roommate she has not been assigned yet - but I’m still nervous! I’d love some advice from more experienced parents!
LOL–you did fine. Bed linens are about the only thing really needed. Towels could have come from home and most never use a shower caddy. And with amazon and Wal-Mart you pretty much don’t need to buy anything before you actually need it. We had a couple collapsible crates which came in handy for storage.
Less is more when it comes to dorm things. No one “needs” extra drawers, a butterfly chair, an ironing board of any kind (unless they are a music major who needs crisp performance clothes), a safe, a printer (save on flash drive and use college printers). Too bad you bought a shower caddy. I think I still have the unused one sent with both of my kids.
With regard to ordering locally and picking up at college at BBB…I would suggest you go back and add whatever to your order. You do NOT have to purchase it when you get to the college town store. BUT if you don’t order it, and have it put aside, you may find…it’s out of stock. We ordered several things we realized we didn’t need for DD. We just didn’t buy them.
@bjkmom I figured we could buy those things once we’re there. She does have a laptop that she will bring.
@thumper1 and @gouf78 No shower caddy? But then do they walk down the hall to the bathroom juggling all the stuff in their hands? Also, with a Target, a BBB, and two Walmarts within a 15-minute drive, I don’t think it will be that hard to find things we need, will it? I’d rather measure the actual space under the bed and in the closet and maximize storage by using that space efficiently, you know?
I second the school supplies suggestion. My son really did need notebooks, pens, folders, etc, and the bookstore was a madhouse on move-in weekend. We hadn’t realized that some professors require that material be turned in stapled - not clipped - so a stapler and extra staples were important. And don’t forget a couple of flash drives. Clothes, bedding, toiletries, school supplies. If she has those, she’s fine. Also, a student membership in Amazon Prime can be a Godsend in the event of losing a charger, not having enough flash drives, forgetting black socks for a performance. Not that those things ever happened to my prince, but they could happen . . . (crossing fingers behind my back)
At some of the newer dorms, the kids each get a cubby in the shower room with a hook for a towel and a little shelf for the shampoo and stuff. A shower caddy isn’t a bad idea, but not always strictly necessary.
Honestly, getting school supplies when school opens can be crazy!!! I’m a big fan of the sales now at Target and Walmart… I have 2 Rubbermaid bins in the basement year round, stocked with school supplies I bought over the summer. No lines, and discounts… what’s not to like?
I’m adding to my list of “things to send from home/things to buy after arriving” as I read this! I plan to get school supplies at a store off campus and not in the school store because I’m thinking it will be easier and cheaper.
LOL! We will be flying in from the other side of the world when it is time for DD to go to college. She will have two suitcases full of clothes, a laptop, and that is pretty much it. I am sure what she really needs will be available in any college town. And the other stuff…a symptom of too much consumerism in my opinion!
Agree about not needing an ironing board, but a steamer comes in very handy and takes up very little space. I also think a few storage bins are necessary for a girl, who likely has more clothes than a boy. Most dorms give you one set of drawers (perhaps 5 or 6 drawers) and in addition to storing clothes, they need to fit all the stuff your D had in her medicine cabinet/linen closet/front hall closet at home. A blow dryer alone can take up 1/3 of the drawer, so you may need a storage bin immediately to store some clothes under the bed. It may be helpful to ask housing services about the room configuration, closet size etc ahead of time. You may not need a wastebasket - a lot of schools provide that. If your D is planning to hang anything on the walls, make sure you have the proper hooks and hanging materials ahead of time, and check the housing site, because many schools forbid nailing into walls. A flashlight, some Ziploc bags, a mug, a water bottle, a plate or bowl all come in handy. My D knew ahead of time that there were deep cabinets above the very small closet, so we got some collapsible bins to organize stuff she was putting up there.
Does the dorm have A/C? If not a fan is good to have. We toyed with the idea of a step stool, but decided to nix that and she just stands on her desk chair to reach above the closet. But even though the room gets vacuumed once a week, she wanted a Swiffer and Clorox wipes!
OP, it is natural to want to send more, but I think you have the right stuff. And as you said, Amazon Prime can do the rest if needed. I just brought my D2 home after 4 almost uninterrupted years on her campus. So. Many. Clothes. Acquired while she was there. And I got some interesting looks when I boarded the plane carrying her skateboard as carryon. In general, don’t send too much stuff. It all has to move again someday…
My son had so many clothes last year it was ridiculous. He is in a business major, so he needed the regular casual clothes, plus business casual attire, business formal attire (required for classes), plus performance attire, plus golf attire. It was ridiculous.
@zoosermom My son never cared about clothes much before the last year and a half. His wardrobe has multiplied, as have his shoes. I ordered a shoe rack for him for his dorm room. He is a business major, too, so we will be shopping for a suit and dress shoes this weekend.
@wisteria100 I have bought many of the things you listed and more. I’ve been pretty much been following the What to Bring list. My living room looks like I have gone overboard, but I still have more on my list.
My son is very minimalistic too. His town is 12 hours away from us and has very few stores (but does have the one with pack n ship). We are trying to take just what he needs and then when we get there and actually see the room but what else he needs. Amazon Prime is our friend. He has bought bedding, power strips, hangers, coffee supplies, silverware, and string lights. Of course he has been out of town but when he gets back Sunday or Monday he is getting towels and school supplies with a big Target gift card someone gave him and a desk lamp. We know he will need a nice desk chair but not sure how much room he will have until we get there. I have been bugging him all summer but now that it is three weeks away he is going to have to go quickly. The dorm supplies the microwave and his roommate has a fridge. He has a desktop and a laptop he is taking with him. We need a small bookcase since there are none in the room. Clothes are his main focus but he has so many it isn’t funny!
Oh the boy shoes. Those darn things are HUGE and take up an insane amount of space. Where did those big feet come from anyway?
Don’t forget the shirts, ties, socks and belt. For business majors who need business or business casual attire, a steamer is a very good investment because shirts and pants get smushed and wrinkly.
Psst…let me tell you a secret…there is a whole dorm-industrial complex that wants you to BUY BUY BUY!
My kids had the butterfly chair but I am not sure if they used it. I would make a list of those things and tell yoru student…“If you feel like you would like to have another chair in your room, let me know. I can order it for you.”
Same deal with printers…at first my DD didn’t have one, her roommate did. She would use hers and then she would buy the next round of printer cartridges. But when she had her own room later on she found she needed one.
Also I assure you if your child has never used an ironing board at home they will never use one at school. Or someone else will have one.
Dorm rooms are small…bring less things and add what you need.
The “thing” for decoration these days is those big wall tapestries.
@uwalummom that was one of the things the Amazon Prime fairies sent to my son. Our older kids weren’t in business type majors and didn’t have to attend events requiring shirt and tie regularly. Son learned early that nicely pressed clothing got crushed and wrinkled in the very limited hanging space in a traditional dorm. Shockingly, he really did use it.
You mentioned a wastebasket. You should be aware that a lot of dorms will provide one that students are required to keep in the room so anything you buy might not get used.
In general, don’t send too much stuff. It all has to move again someday…