1. Tiny Hammer
https://www.amazon.com/Pittsburgh-Stubby-Ball-Peen-Hammer/dp/B008G3VC8C
When maintenance came to loft my bed, it got stuck. Surprise to no one, dorm beds aren’t the highest quality furniture in the world . . . Anyway, they couldn’t get the pieces to separate, so I offered them my little hammer, and they were able to knock the pieces apart. Hooray!
2. Extra Command Strips
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Command-Replacement-Mounting-Strips-White-Med…
As a dutiful preparer and reader of college prep lists, I knew I’d need Command products. I expected to use them for my decorations, towels, and whiteboard. What I didn’t expect was that the DIY-from-the-internet cord holders (read: binder clips) I brought actually didn’t keep chargers from falling off my desk. After I recovered from the shock of being lied to by the Internet, I engineered a clothespin/command strip device to keep my phone charger readily accessible. Genius, if I do say so myself.
3. Collapsible Bag
https://www.aliexpress.com/popular/folding-shopping-bags.html
Our meals on campus come with sides, which means apples and chips about 80% of the time. Problem is, I don’t necessarily want to eat Doritos with my breakfast sandwich, at least not all the time. Supposedly I could have my breakfast sandwich and just not get a side. But I’m paying good money for this meal plan, and if they’re giving me Doritos, then you can bet I’m gonna take my Doritos and stash them in every bit of extra space in my room.
Of course, that creates a new problem: how am I supposed to carry my water bottle, Doritos, apple, phone, and wallet all the way back to my dorm? I could carry everything on the way here, but now things are falling on the floor . . .
Solution: I’ll use the cute little collapsible bag I got with my employee discount! It folds into a little owl with a string so I can hang it on my wrist. It’s adorable and perfect for hauling Doritos, apples, and cereal.
4. Cold Medicine
https://www.amazon.com/Vicks-Dayquil-Nyquil-Vitamin-Caplets/dp/B001LFCQR8
Because I’ve already been sick. Not fun, but it’d be a lot worse if I didn’t have medicine.
5. Lap Desk
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/226828/Lap-Desk-Originals-Student-…
And when I was sick, all I wanted to do was color and watch Netflix in bed. In order to keep my hot chocolate and pens from spilling all over my new sheets, I used my lap desk, which I got several years ago thinking I would use it all the time. I didn’t, but it’s definitely proving itself to be useful now.
6. Book Light
http://www.hobbr.com/reading-gadgets-that-will-make-reading-easier-and-m…
You should know that I’m a reader. As in, if I have to stay up past 3 am doing homework, I’ll still read before I go to bed. Maybe it’s not the best idea, but it’s too late to change. That said, my bed lamp basically lights up the entire room, and I don’t want to disturb my roommate that much. Enter the miraculous book light. Mine is especially miraculous because it has one light for the left page and one for the right.
7. Bedside Caddy
https://www.dormco.com/Bedside_Caddy_TUSK_College_Storage_p/e3-3-2-bedsi…
A good place to store things when it’s late and I don’t want to get out of my blanket cocoon to put them where they actually belong.
8. Shoe Boxes
http://www.mardigrasday.com/mardi-gras-info/how-to-make-a-shoebox-float/
But not for shoes! When I was trying to find places for all the random stuff I brought, there were so many little things with no home, like an extra tooth brush, my hot glue gun, and a hand mirror. Perfect things to store in shoe boxes left over from move-in day. Plus, the ones I have are really colorful, which is always good.
9. Tape Measure
https://www.tinyhomebuilders.com/tools/best-tape-measure
A lot of rearranging of furniture went on during move-in day. Since a lot of that stuff is really heavy (wardrobes anyone?), we didn’t want to move anything unless we were absolutely sure it was going to work out. Tape measures were a must.
10. Sticky notes
https://www.beesapps.com/en/the-lab-blog/5-smart-ways-to-use-sticky-notes/
Because I’m always afraid I’ll forget stuff. Big-deal tasks go in my planner, but small-yet-important things like “take laptop to lecture” or “buy milk” run the risk of being lost in the vast and chaotic realm that is my mind. Sticky notes, especially neon ones, make forgetting to pick up my mail a lot less likely.