<p>August will be here before we know it and before I get too busy wanted to start putting together the stuff we'll need to schlepp on the plane to school and buy once we get there.</p>
<p>D will be a freshman taking foundation year classes. What materials are good to bring/buy (markers, brushes, pencils, etc.)? What just takes up room and is not needed (printer, laptop, canvases?)? I know there is a parents forum post related the general topic of bring/leave, but I am interested in art school specifics since supplies can be so costly.</p>
<p>Take the brushes, they are so expensive to replace. Paints (will always be handy whether taking painting or drawing classes).</p>
<p>About the only ‘art’ supplies my daughter packed with her were her good pen sets, her vast collection of colored pencils and a few sketchbooks. Many of her classes had specific supply lists so she just bought as needed. In addition, there were lots of times where she and her roommates could share supplies that were only going to be used sparingly which helped save on cost.</p>
<p>Printer and laptop? To me those are needed, though others may disagree. My daughter was able to avoid crowds at the computer lab at certain times because she had her own laptop and printer. She could remain cocooned in her dorm room on lousy weather days or days when she may not have been feeling 100% to continue to work because she had her own laptop and printer. Communication with her through Skype made possible because of her laptop.</p>
<p>She did accumulate a good amount of supplies and “stuff” her freshman year that we knew would be needed in subsequent years. Rather than transport/ship it home during her summer break, we leased a storage unit (climate-controlled to protect the art supplies) and packed it full upon move-out, using stackable storage totes. It was quite easy to pick it all back up in September when we moved her back in.</p>
<p>This helps, thanks! Brushes are not bulky and I wondered if she should bring her good prisma pencils and markers. I had forgotten about skype! It may be the only way to get communication since cell is always lost or not charged. We are going to have to find some hat racks to keep wet stuff like towels and coats off the floor. </p>
<p>What about drawing boards? There is not really any space in dorm rooms for that, but I guess I wonder how they manage without.</p>
<p>Depends on the school as to drawing boards. Some provide great desks, some don’t. Where is she going? One other tip I would like to pass on, use Ebay whenever possible for mailable art supplies. If the seller has 100% rating and you know the brand you can almost always beat out any art store discounted or not. Great way to get watercolors, acrylics, etc. Just know your prices and stop bidding if it gets too high.</p>
<p>D has apartments rather than dorm rooms, so she had to bring household stuff as well, but it sounds like your D won’t need that. D brought all her small art supplies, brushes, Prisma and Copic markers, pencils, erasers, and a couple of sketchbooks. She did not bring any of her blank canvases, as they were bulky and we did not want to take up the van space with them. She left her lap drawing board at home for the same reason. And yes, what school is she going to? I know at least 2 schools (D’s included) that had a Mac laptop included with the tuition, loaded with the software necessary for art and graphics projects (Photoshop, video editing programs) etc, ensuring everyone had an equal start. She brought her other laptop with her, but rarely uses it as she likes the Mac so much better. I kept asking if she needed a printer, but she said no because b&w prints were free depending on how many sheets you were printing per day, but she never ran over. We are also doing the storage unit this summer, altho she’ll probably bring her art supplies home so she’ll have them during the summer. If you are interested in ordering, check Amazon too, they have free shipping on a lot of things if you spend over $25.00. Her schools art store has great prices on things, and during one visit, had a sale on Copic markers that made them less than half the cost of anywhere else. She gets all the supplies there she can.</p>
<p>We haven’t signed on the dotted line yet. Looks like MICA will be it, but D may surprise me and pick MCAD if her anxiety over campus size wins out. Either way, it is a flight to get there (but thank God it is a direct one) and the rooms are small with kitchens in the suite. I don’t know how smart that is. I have visions of forgetful art kids burning the place down. But that is just my kid…</p>
<p>I will have to remember that storage idea. We have family in both cities, but I would not want to impose on them with her stuff. I also like the Amazon one! I knew that Prime service would pay off.</p>
<p>I don’t remember a desk in either school. I also have visions of the homework assignment getting ruined by being placed on a greasy table, but you can’t protect them from everything I guess.</p>
<p>Call the housing number and ask about furniture. Or check the 2 schools web sites, they should describe what’s supplied somewhere. Also check both schools as most are insisting on a computer (usually a MAC) purchase these days. Also I was absolutely shocked at how much “stuff” I saw being moved into the dorm rooms, my advice is travel light and don’t cram your room full of too much stuff. Art students will have enough “stuff” by the end of a semester as it is, supplies, finished works, works in progress. Do it the way you should pack for a trip, get everything together and then take away about half of it.</p>
<p>I’m tempted to joke and say don’t worry about greasy tables and homework, who’s going to be doing homework when there are all these new friends to visit with but I won’t. Ooops guess I did. Don’t worry, it’ll work out one way or another, but my advice is don’t oversupply. By the way, if you take Amtrak you can take a lot of baggage without paying. One more piece of advice, space vacuum bags for all clothing and bedding, those seemingly somewhat expensive bags that you suck all the air out of. It’s amazing how much stuff you can get into a suitcase using those, just zip the suitcase real quick before the air starts to leak out.</p>
<p>Oh I forgot, check the bed size before buying or shipping any bedding. While most have twins, or extra long twins, some have slightly large beds where you’ll need double sheets.</p>
<p>My D is at MCAD now, just finishing freshman year. Her Mac was included. When you sign up for housing there, you have choices, furnished vs unfurnished, and how many people in a room. They state that most freshmen will be 4 people to a 2 br apt, which is what she has. Each student gets a drawing table (larger than a desk). In her place, only 2 students really use one, and the third is a catch-all. They asked for the 4th one to be moved out to save room and no one has missed it. Kitchen table is small, circular table, enough room to eat, but not really work on. Also MCAD’s studios are open 24/7, so D spends a lot of time in the comic studio for large projects. They had the names and contact emails of their roommates before the semester started so they could coordinate who was bringing what when it came to things like microwave, toaster, vacuum etc.</p>
<p>Oh, and don’t buy anything until you know where she’s going, artsmart is right about bed size. They have regular twins at MCAD</p>
<p>At Mica, D had a small table with chairs in her suite (in the commons) with 2 small futon couches. Also an armoire type closet in her room and an extra long twin platform bed with 2 drawers under it. These were all supplied by Mica. She bought a cheap, small kid’s desk to have her computer on and brought a dresser with her too and one of those plastic sets of drawers from Target to put near her bed. The rooms fill up quickly!</p>
<p>Great advice! Thanks everyone! D made up her mind today that it is MICA. SO glad to have this loooooong process finally done. Back to Launch Planning!</p>
<p>greenwitch - no desk to do art work on? Still waiting on my roommates assignment from MICA before I make purchases but time is running out! Will buy my computer this weekend (mac) tax free weekend in Mass., every bit helps.</p>
<p>Hi Goodschoolhopefully! Be sure to check out Apple’s student discount before purchasing your Mac! You can find the info on their website, or even through your college. Have a GREAT year!! :-)</p>
<p>Sadly, Mica is famous for not providing any desks. There will be a table and chairs in the suite’s common room and they are usually quite sturdy and blocky.</p>
<p>Is there enough space for a desk in the bedroom? Would it be a mistake to bring one, do people usually bring one? I’m confused. Oh yeah, I got my room mates - very exciting!</p>
<p>From what I understand, dd rarely used her desk except as a surface to store things on! She did most of her work either in the studios or the work space provided on each floor of her dorm, in the company of her friends. Her dorm room this year has a drafting table for each student. Since we realized that the best way to get more storage space for all those art supplies and to stay organized is to maximize vertical space, we decided to look for a shelving unit that will surround the drafting table (think those shelves at BedBathBeyond that fit over a twin size bed, sort of like a headboard). If it works, the table space will still be free and there will be shelves above it. Crossing fingers!</p>
<p>There’s enough room for a small desk. D got one at a thrift store, nothing fancy. I think it was about 36 - 40 inches wide.</p>