Good question, and I had thought about asking the same thing.
It does get complicated when
different colleges have different requirements/restrictions when it comes to what is allowed in a dorm room.
My DD and a good friend are going to room together (and I'll be praying it goes well and they
remain friends!!!) and they've already bought their bedding, and it is coordinated, and will look awesome. Others who get their roommate assignments in the summer might want to wait until then, and decide if they want to coordinate. I agree tho that more importantly it's what each student likes, and somewhere down the road, DD might very well end up with a different roommate, and she is NOT getting new bedding!
DD will be in a suite type of dorm, with two dorm rooms sharing a bathroom, so they'll have to supply
bathroom items; we're waiting on purchasing that. Even if their suitemates bring their own tho, I suggested to my DD that it might be nice to change off and actually WASH the
rugs/shower curtain/etc every so often.
The university DD will be attending requires that if you want both a fridge and microwave that you have a
fridge/microwave combo that can be rented from them (or, I suppose, you can bring your own combo); when the microwave is being used, the fridge turns off, so that there isn't an overload of electricity being used by so many people on the campus at once. So, I'd
check on fridge/microwave requirements before purchasing.
The dorm rooms at DD's university don't have
curtains, but they do have
flammability restrictions that we need to consider when we buy them. (Who knew?
) A lot of the decor items she'll just want to pick out herself...if there's anything left...we've bought A LOT!
The
university also supplies (or rents?) the items to raise the bed to loft height or lower. DD isn't even sure what she wants to do about that, and is probably going to wait until she's moved in and settled to decide. She has a futon she can take for underneath if she goes the loft route. If she does do that, she'll lose A LOT of storage space that she could have under the bed. That's why we're playing that by ear. (If I
knew what she'd be doing, I'd get her a new cover for the futon that would match her bedding.)
The university also has a
laptop purchasing program, the exact details due out next month, after high school graduation, so we're not sure what route we're going to take to purchase one, or when. We''ll need to get her
a printer too.
I like the idea of
giftcards, particularly for gas! She'll have her car with her, and buying gas has put a huge dent in her P/T job earnings. Love the office supply store gift card idea too.
When I read about the rolls of quarters, I thought that would be a great gift basket item, but then
monarchsfan mentioned the card system, and I think that's what my DD's college uses. (I'm going to bring a list of things to ask about/check out/measure while we're there for orientation in June!)
For Christmas, we had gotten her
a small TV and a DVD recorder with some blank DVDs to take to college. Also got her
a tool kit from IKEA (maybe $6?) with college in mind.
Love the
small coffeemaker idea too, since she's taken up drinking coffee lately.
I'm thinking what I'll end up doing is
a gift basket of sorts, using a storage box that she can take with her. I did buy her 4 packs of dinner napkins at The Christmas Tree Shops that coordinate with her bedding
because, well, they coordinate with her bedding
, and I figure she'll be eating in her room sometimes. Also want to add
a label maker, and some "office" supplies...stapler, tape, etc. I picked up a couple of
books too...one is
Chicken Soup for the College Soul, and I forgot the name of the other one...bought it a while ago, and it's in my bedroom, with my sleeping husband. I've got a lot of thinking to do about what else to add to it; since they'll be cleaning their own bathroom (or not
), I'll probably throw some cleaning supplies in there too...things that will make it relatively easy, like cleaning wipes, or items from The Clean Team. And a
SmartSpin (she got some
very inexpensive kitchen items...plastic bowls, plates, cups...at
Walmart.)
Oh...one thing I will get her for college is a
Table Mate II, "as seen on TV":
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=13973067
I actually had gotten one for DD, but my elderly mom really needed one, so I gave it to her and she loves it.
(Keep your eyes open for 20% off coupons for Bed Bath & Beyond or Linens & Things...they each take the other's coupons, even expired ones up to 60 days old!)
Bed Bath & Beyond has college checklists...somewhat over the top, but some good ideas too...
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/btsHome.asp?order_num=-1
as does Linens & Things...
http://www.lnt.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=1378799
I can see needing to get the roommate's opinion on curtains, but bedding?
