<p>Thanks heaps!</p>
<p>nice, thanks!!!</p>
<p>Thanks!!! That was really, really helpful!</p>
<p>Flip flap ! Wear it during shower !</p>
<p>I don't know how to deal with wet shower. At home, I have my own bathroom, the shower & tub is always DRY and clean.
I guess I have to learn how to share the shower & bathroom with others.</p>
<p>We just got a list from the school this weekend of needed things - mostly clothes. It suggested a quantity larger that I would have for some things (10 dress shirts for example). So, we'll use it as a guide of course.</p>
<p>On the furniture, I would certainly check with the school before you bring anything (and your roommate!). Which, S's school also does not give you until you arrive in September as last minute changes can be made.</p>
<p>My sister told me about this new program they were installing at several schools, including boarding schools, where they took pictures of all the rooms and posted them on the internet, where you could have a sort of 3D walking tour of your future room.. I guess that might help with picking out furniture.</p>
<p>sofi the chevere! thats sooo cool! i went to a coed summer camp for two weeks each summer and i found that you need to bring a ton of socks... the washing machine has a habit of eating only one leaving you with a single sock..... bring extras!</p>
<p>Once i got to boarding school i ended up buying most of my school supplies at teh bookstore (notebooks, binders, etc) because specific teachers have different requests for how you organize your work and you won't know that until you go to class on the first day. and also i wouldn't bring much extra furniture, unless you got really lucky as a freshman/sophomore with a room chances are you won't have much extra room for anything. i expected my room to be much bigger than it is.</p>
<p>Alyria and Arling, thanks so much for your lists. </p>
<p>Alyria, I would have been mad at myself for forgetting to buy the chewable vitamins (Centrum adult brand) for my 14 yr old son.</p>
<p>Arling comment: "I reinforced all the buttons for son's shirts and pants.
I don't think he will use the sewing kit, even we let him bring one to BS."
Arling--ah, a stroke of genius! I have reinforced those buttons in the past for my older son, but would have forgotten to do this for my younger son for boarding school this fall had you not reminded me!</p>
<p>I have also garnered other tips from this thread--thanks so much to all!</p>
<p>bump</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>armchrtravir-- studies show multivitamins are bad for you, it's much better to get vitamins/minerals through fruits and veggies. i dont remember the specifics, but i had to write an article on that...anyway, that was random but... avoid multivitamins, i guess.</p>
<p>"Millions of people take vitamin supplement pills everyday. However, despite common belief, vitamin supplements do not increase life expectancy rate. In fact, studies show that the supplements may increase the risk of premature death. The Cochrane Collaboration, which regularly pools data from trials to evaluate drugs, found that supplements for vitamin A, vitamin E, and betacarotene are detrimental to health: vitamin A was lined to a 16% increased risk of dying, beta-carotene to 7%, and vitamin E to a 4% increased rate. Instead of taking supplement pills to replace, a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables will provide the antioxidants that soak up harmful byproducts of metabolism.</p>
<p>Sources:
Latest</a> news, sport, business, comment and reviews from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk
news.bcc.co.uk
"</p>
<p>I know people have mentioned buying a hamper for your dirty clothes. It's nice to have a laundry basket as well, to transport your clothes to/from the washer and dryer.</p>
<p>I'm going to mail a package to my school before I get there with some things in it that I'll need. That's just a little bit less that I have to shop for once I get there!</p>
<p>And ickleronniekins, "What if my shampoo explodes in my bag and explodes through the ziploc?"
I ALWAYS WORRY ABOUT THAT! Lotions and things, too. I don't like to take anything carry on that the security folks might take from me, so I check basically everything. Hahaha.</p>
<p>I will save my luggage space for things that might be hard (or even impossible) to find near my BS. As for daily shampoo or any liquid things, I will just bring a small bottle (maybe for one week use) and then buy on-line the day before I leave home (if you are not sure whether you will go out campus for shopping within the first week).</p>
<p>a mattress pad! I didn't have one freshman year and it was like sleeping on a crappy bed at camp.</p>
<p>a lot of lamps. the overhead one is usually weak and using it as your main source of light is thought of as very newbly. also it really does suck, lamps make the room feel more homey.</p>
<p>a small couch or chair (again, it makes you seem less newbly...plus people are more likely to hang out in your room if you have seating) (target or a salvation army near the school are good for this)</p>
<p>food and drinks- people will always be asking for some but you'll be more well-liked for your trouble. plus you can (and will) get really hungry at night
(popcorn, small chip bags, cereal, granola bars, water bottles, red bull)</p>
<p>decorations. that's another newb thing to do, have a room that isn't decorated. buy some posters. common ones for girls are:</p>
<p>music (bob dylan, grateful dead, bob marley, and the beatles are popular choices)
modern art prints
posters of vintage ads, movies, vogue covers, etc.
black and white photography (often of couples)</p>
<p>more random stuff I'd bring if you want to avoid the situation in which you notice that all the girls have such and such item and you want one too...so basically just a list of very popular items for girls:</p>
<p>*pashminas
*Bean Boots (tall shearling LL Bean hunting boots, expensive but something you'll probably want for christmas once you see everybody wearing them)</p>
<p>here's the link- L.L.Bean</a> Boots, 10" Shearling: Bean Boots at L.L.Bean</p>
<p><em>cable sweaters (J.Crew is the best for these)
*polos (Ralph Lauren, Lacoste, or Vineyard Vines, not American Eagle)
*pearls (earrings, necklace...you'll find yourself wanting them)
*sweatpants and boxer-y lounge shorts (seriously, it's all anyone wears after check or to breakfast)
*spandex (under armour bike shorts, esp. if you're playing field hockey)
..or if you want people to think you're really cool, cheesy printed spandex
(go to runningfunky.com for these)
*weird clothes/accessories for dances (people are always trotting this stuff out- stuff like a pirate eyepatch, feather boa, shiny spandex leggings (like those gold lame ones from american apparel), leotard, dorky glasses, etc....preppy people love their themed dances)
*DVDs- another popular thing in a dorm...this is an arena in which most things are accepted, so feel free to, *gasp</em>, do what you want on this one</p>
<p>obviously none of this is necessary, but if you're worried about fitting in and everything (especially if you're a girl,) these are good tools to have at your disposal. also, sorry if I sound like a snobby valley girl in this list, it's just what I've learned from observation. I could've saved myself a lot of feeling left out if I had brought some of these things with me, and in the first few months you'll probably appreciate anything that makes you feel like you're a part of the strange world of boarding schools.</p>
<p>oh and a couple of things I wouldn't bring:</p>
<p>binders, paper, pens, notebooks, etc. don't buy this stuff in advance, it's just a hassle and you can easily go to a supplies store when you get there. also don't buy too much of these...remember that you won't need a binder for every class, and you can buy things at the bookstore.</p>
<p>a printer. maybe other schools aren't like this, but mine has a dorm printer that is always stocked with ink. printers take up a lot of room and aren't really necessary if the dorm has one.</p>
<p>a desktop computer. my dad had me bring two computers, a mac mini and a macbook, and it was a mistake. just bring a laptop. again, the dorms have computers (in my experience)</p>
<p>old textbooks. a few people I know did this and it's not a good idea.</p>
<p>winter clothes. you'll be going back home for at least thanksgiving, so save room and bring the coat and heavy boots back with you then.</p>
<p>ahh I've been talking waaay too much.</p>
<p>Unless you liver far away, though, the school bookstore is much more expensive than the department store for binders, notebooks, etc. I bought lots of this stuff on sale and packed it all in a plactic crate. My son is set for a couple of years.</p>
<p>Neither my college daughter, nor my bs son used their printers (and my older son never even brought one). There is one in the lounge and in pretty much every building.</p>
<p>Someone should make a compiled list of everything on this board..or at least start and then we can all help out..omitting repeats. That way we could look at what has been said, copy, paste and add if we think of something that isn't already on there.</p>
<p>I'll do it, I've been meaning to; this is such a great thread!</p>
<p>Awesome! If you have to stop, just post the post # that you ended on and one of us can try to pick up where you left off.</p>