Get excited, we’re talking dorm products! Moving into your college dorm is hard enough on its own, but figuring out what you need to bring is an entirely new ball game. I wanted to put together some must-have dorm products for you going into college and making this new room your temporary home.
Nothing is worse than a dorm that smells like college students before you. And the RA’s really don’t make taking that smell away any easier when they don’t allow you to use candles, granted it’s to ensure you don’t burn the whole building down but still. Thankfully there are options out there to help you out that aren’t febreeze or glad spray (although those would help as well). Bath and Body Works sell these fragrance diffusers that are in the same scents as most of their candles, it’s like they were made for college students. Even places like target sell Insense that will gradually and continually make your room smell better. Dorm products that make your room smell better will be your new BFF. If you are in need of more instant relief, you could use a room spray that is sold in pretty much any place that would sell diffusers, incense or even candles.
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A must! Don’t get me wrong, I know college is expensive and you’re making relatively no money but sleep is also incredibly important. There are ways to get cheaper bedding that is still dreamy to sleep on. Target has some great options that are super cheap. Although there are some dorm products you can cheap out on but bedding shouldn’t be one of those, as you do sleep in them pretty much every night. Their microfiber sheets are truly out of a fairytale. Also for the love of God, please get a mattress topper. College is full of germs and who knows what you’re bringing in after a night out, this is washable, unlike the mattress that has been used by many a student before you. Another pleads, please don’t go more than two weeks max without changing your sheets, I’m begging you. Good sheets are the ultimate dorm product as well as a cozy comforter/duvet.
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There is nothing worse than getting up in the morning and stepping onto a frigid floor. Also sometimes it’s nice to sit on the floor and you can’t do that on a dirty, dusty linoleum floor in a dorm room. Technically not a dorm product but it is a key proponent in making a home of your dorm. If you have friends over and want to play a game or you just don’t have adequate seating in your dorm (which let’s be honest, who does?) the floor is the next best option! So, go to target or even overstock, figure out the dimensions (or have your dad figure out the dimensions) of your dorm and get that fluffy carpet to keep those toes warm in the morning!
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As simple as it sounds, lighting can make or break any room. If your room has a harsh yellow or white over-head light it can be headache-inducing and terrible for Instagram pictures (which are clearly most important). You’re going to want to invest in some new lighting, an essential dorm product. Adding desk lamps for when your roommate is sleeping and you’re in the midst of a late-night study mesh, or LED lights around the perimeter of your ceiling like all the tik-tokers. String lights around your bed are also a great way to add some soft lighting to your dorm and make it feel a bit cozier.
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Call up your parents and ask them what snacks they filled your house with, they’ll be impressed that you’re 1. grocery shopping for yourself and 2. that you actually may miss home. Going home on weekends or over the break and filling up with the comfort foods and home snacks is a big part of what makes going home so nice, so why not bring that feeling back with you? I’m not saying whip up some of Mom’s meatloaf in your dorm but a bag of Smartfood may do the trick. This may not be the normal dorm product but it will definitely make the dorm feel a bit more like home.
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This is such an easy way to decorate your dorm! I know the idea of printing pictures is somewhere in the past and polaroids are what it’s all about now, sometimes printing some of those Instagram and VSCO pictures and hanging them up in your new room is a good way to give your dorm a home feel. Include pictures of your family, friends, animals or anything that makes you happy! That could also include a poster, canvas, even a tapestry. Anything that brings back happy memories for you would be a great idea to include on your walls. Another dorm product to add to this would be cute lights that include clips to hang the photos from.
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The dorm products that every room needs are a TV or a speaker. Although you do have a live-in buddy now, it’s still nice to have another source of entertainment. You could do girls nights watching rom-coms, a movie night with your new college man or even put on a fireplace app and use your imagination. A speaker is a good dorm product for the nights where you need to dance out all those frustrating new college struggles or scream sing your favorite song into your pillow after a bad day. They can also be good for nights when you just want to jam out to some throwbacks.
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I know I sound like a nagging mother BUT this dorm product is important. It will help in not creating a complete mess of your already small dorm room, it will encourage you to actually do the laundry accumulating in your room and they can be a cute decoration some times! There is not much to say about this dorm product other than it is your first step in becoming a real “adult”.
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