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Hello beautiful people!
As some of you may know, I just barely finished my first year at college. I chose to move 2,000 miles away from home and attend Southern Virginia University! I absolutely loved it!
As I was preparing for this new adventure, I was researching up and down what things I should bring with me to college, so now that I have gone through it myself, I decided to make my own college essentials list!
I will preface this post and say ONLY BRING AND BUY WHAT YOU ACTUALLY USE!!! I definitely went overboard when originally making my lists of things I wanted to use at college. Looking back, I thought I would change all of my habits and priorities at college and that was why I needed X. You are still the same person out there! Get what works for you because YOU will be the one using it!
I got all of my stuff from Costco, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Amazon, and Walmart.
I’ll start my list with the things I got from Costco:
The first thing that I am so glad I got was generic socks. Now I know that sounds boring, but if you are anything like me, your sock drawer at home looks atrocious with smatterings of mismatched socks in every color. I got two packs of these socks from Costco so I wouldn’t have to worry about finding matches for any of my socks. It worked great and I would highly recommend!
The other great things I got from Costco were medicine. I would definitely recommend this, especially if you are going out of state because the age to purchase medicine is different in every state. I got cold and flu medicine (which I would recommend to EVERYBODY) and then acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Again, I got both pain relievers because I was already in the habit of using both when I left for Virginia.
I would for sure get one pain reliever (acetaminophen or ibuprofen) and some cold medicine with night and day tablets. You will be so glad you have medicine when you start to get a sore throat the night before a big test or have a headache as you are trying to finish writing a paper. Being prepared pays off! I also like Costco’s sizes because they last forever, work well, and are cheaper than Walmart. Both of the pain relievers come in pack with two big bottles, so my mom and I split the cost!
Next is Bed, Bath, and Beyond!
Bed, Bath, and Beyond actually has killer deals for college students. They have a pass that you can sign up for and then get 20% off everything! It’s a great deal, so here is the link to sign up for that!
I got a trash can, towels, and pillows here, but those are all pretty obvious items to get.
My favorite items that I got were my mini drying rack, tank hangers, and a shoe organizing rack.
Again, if you don’t air dry your clothes, this would be a waste of money for you, but I got this mini drying rack and it was absolutely great. It was great quality and could fold up and be thrown in my closet or under my bed.
Next are these cheesy “as seen on TV” hangers, but they are great! They really conserved space in my closet. I chose to hang my bras and tanks on them. If you are going to be pinched on space, I would definitely recommend these!
I also got this shoe organizer rack! It was great for organizing my shoes and keeping them out of the way. I only used three out of the six layers and let my roommate use the other three. This was a great investment for me!
One habit that I would recommend starting is changing your pillowcase more often! I had two pillows and three pillowcases and would change my top pillowcase every time I washed my hair. This really helped keep my hair cleaner longer, and my acne went down as well! Just some food for thought!
Next is Amazon! This list is VERY Amazon heavy because when my dad and I drove out there, we didn’t have enough room to buy everything at home and then haul it out there. Thus, Amazon became the golden ticket because I was able to ship it directly to Virginia.
Everyone says this, but truly these 10 feet phone chargers are LIFESAVERS!
This mini fan absolutely saved my sweaty self during the humid Virginia weather!
This mirror is the best! It has multiple magnifications and both a battery compartment and a USB port to shine the light. This was great for getting ready with both makeup and hair! It also comes apart, so it can be stored flat which is a huge plus, especially for travel! I would also mention that it is nice to not have to depend on a bathroom to get ready in the morning. A small mirror will ensure you avoid any sticky situations with available bathrooms!
Get. A. Mattress. Pad. Please. 🙂 It just adds SO much to your comfort level and makes it feel so much more homey! Sleep is how we reset and recharge and there needs to be a lot of recharging at college! Invest a little into your sleep and you will not regret it. This isn’t the exact one I got, but it is similar!
This is a great storage tool for your closet! I found that the most important thing to do was maximize storage. This definitely helped! I used it to store all of my pajamas, workout clothes, and any extra clothing items, like swimsuits and hats. I loved this my first semester, but second semester I moved rooms. My second room’s closet rod wasn’t strong enough to withhold the weight of this hanging compartment. (Not this product’s problem, just the rod’s problem) I definitely felt the loss of this product!
THIS BED REST PILLOW IS EVERYTHING. I LOVED having a wedge between me and the wall. It was great. I highly recommend. I would use it to prop myself when my roommates and I watched movies, did homework, or to not lose my pillows as I slept during the night! AND there are few different colors too!
Everyone always asked to use my fabric measuring tape! Not only did I use it when my mom needed my measurements for Christmas, but it works to measure how tall your mini fridge is, or what your ring size may be, or how many inches your border for your art assignment needs to be. It is SO versatile and a great little investment.
I don’t think I was technically supposed to have my mini waffle iron in my room, but I got it for a graduation gift, so I couldn’t just leave it at home! This was great for not only waffles, but toasting bagels in the morning and making cinnamon rolls. If you are a breakfast person, I would highly recommend!
Last, but CERTAINLY not least is this planner! I absolutely LOVED this one because each of the days of the week are vertical instead of horizontal. This is the only planner I could find like that! The front is kind of plain, but I did print off a cute picture from Pinterest to stick in the cover. This planner definitely helped me stay organized! The one linked is for the new school year! If you are wanting to get into planning out your weeks, DM me on Instagram @gracie.mae.adams or go to the Contact Me page and leave me an email. I can definitely give you my tips!
If you are a planner and coloring coder like I am, I would recommend these highlighters. They are awesome!
Next is Walmart.
We had a Walmart about 15 minutes from SVU, so my dad and I picked up these things right before he officially left me!
This Downy Wrinkle Release did a pretty good job of getting the wrinkles out of clothes. It obviously isn’t an iron or a steamer, but it is a pretty good and inexpensive alternative to wrinkly clothes.
I had received another mattress protector from Amazon, but it was so plastic-y, hot, and noisy that I ended up going back to Walmart and grabbing a different one. I would definitely recommend this one! It was cotton, so it was cool, and it did a great job of separating me from the bed that several people before me had slept on.
Maybe I just have extremely sensitive feet, but since the floor is merely concrete with a layer of thing carpet over top, I really loved my knock-off Crocs. I got these at Walmart a few weeks before I came out to VA and they were lifesavers. They also saved my feet from having to walk on the gross floor.
Scissors and tape are also essentials as well. You or someone else will need them at some point, so they are great to have on hand.
Phew! I hope that was a good run-down of things that you maybe hadn’t thought of before!
Just a few final thoughts: College is great! Get out of your comfort zone and have fun, but always practice prioritizing your schoolwork, your self-care, and those things that need to be done. If you can be organized in the chaos, you will be a successful college student! This period in your life super fun time that helps you discover who you are and who you want to be! Take advantage of it and good luck!
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