We discovered yesterday that those “Space Bags” save an ENORMOUS amount of space with your clothes, no matter how you’re packing. We’d bought some “Magic Bags” which are cheaper than the originals, and D was able to fit literally 3 times the amount of stuff in her large rolling suitcase. You suck all the air out of these bags with a vacuum, fo those who don’t know. They come in about 5 sizes, so if you’re using bins I would go with the medium and large for the big suitcases. Don’t get the jumbo-those are almost 5 feel long-they’re for like quilts and pillows.
We’re using that one suitcase and two of the nylon totes I mentioned here weeks ago. They are very lightweight and quite large, but still within airline checked baggage rules (they total 60" linear measurement). We’re flying and each get one free bag. We’re buying all the big stuff in the college town.
D doesn’t want an iron-she knows someone who was burned badly with one. But her friends are suggesting a clothes steamer. Here’s a trick for basic wrinkles-hang the clothing and spray lightly with water and the wrinkles will just fall out. I saw “Heloise” do this on TV when I was in college and it works like magic. It’s basically a manual cold water version of a steamer.
@sseamom - I forgot about “space bags” - we were planning to just send DD out with summer/early fall clothes and ship other stuff later, but these might allow us to pack more. Four of us are flying and we each get two free bags, so maybe we should try to move more stuff at the outset. We’ll be flying with a snowboard in the middle of August because I’m not dealing with packing and shipping it later!
@carolinamom2boys That sounds like a nice living arrangement for a freshman! My D will be in a three person suite (one double room, one single room) with a shared bathroom for the 3 of them. Her double room is really small, even for a dorm room.
We’ll need to make the trek to BBB to try out their “Pack & Hold” service so we can shop early and pick the stuff up in CO - it seems like a good idea, but I haven’t been in a BBB for probably ten years so I have no idea how their in-store selection is. She’ll definitely need hanging closet storage and some extra drawers, but I don’t know that she’ll have room for much else (although she will definitely need some kind of coffee maker). I think she’s decided to just buy a used bike when when get out there rather than paying $$$$ to ship her old bike that she got when she was a tween.
Don’t get too excited @eh1234 It sounds much more spacious than it is, but he is on the first floor which means he has much larger windows . This is one of the few times I am happy that I have a son because of the limited storage. Speaking of BB and B, they had the under the pillow alarm clocks mentioned way back thread.
Thank you for “space bag” advice @sseamom I didn’t think about this, but we need to fit a lot into those two suitcases and two carrions. As far as ironing, I don’t remember last time I had to iron anything for DD or me. But again we normally don’t wear formal clothes. DD was recommended to bring business and business casual clothing so those might require ironing. But we have to buy those first.
If DD will get her first choice dorm, she will be leaving in a cooking dorm that doesn’t require a meal plan. I still plan to buy a minimum meal plan at least for the first semester and was very glad to learn that I can use Instacart for a free delivery of grocery to her dorm in an hour.
@Ballerina016 Check into dry cleaners near the school if you don’t need to iron that often. It’s not usually too expensive . I figure I’ll save money not having to replace damaged clothing.
Was going to send an iron with DS but, now I think a steamer may be a better idea- just enough that he is not super wrinkled for certain events.
(couldn’t find anything online about a steamer bag…)
Now, I will also second @carolinamom2boys’s suggestion. Hmmmm- decisions- I guess I will let him figure out what he wants to do!
I had thought of taking all of his ‘dressy’ clothes to the cleaners here & have them event ready for the move- (by car, so not a biggie)- just have decide on follow-up events.
Can’t see him worrying about anything else- he’ll go to class wrinkled, I’m sure.
@carolinamom2boys, I got a small Eureka brand stick vacuum/hand vacuum at Walmart for less than $30 and brought it when D was moving out, which was good because someone had taken the vacuum they all chipped in to buy for their floor home when they moved out. It worked pretty well (their carpet was low pile and not very dirty).
My D has a big duffle she was bringing clothes back and forth from college to home in, we also brought plastic storage totes with bedding, clothes, towels with us and she stacked them inside each other and put them under the bed and some we took back home. She had two three-drawer carts (one wide, one narrow) and she put shoes and clothing in those and taped them shut for the move, then used them in her room.
We drove but if they fly, bringing a smaller and bigger suitcase will be better, then one can be stored in the other under the bed or on top of closet. Space bags are a great idea.
D never irons anything, S has wrinkle free shirt for work and I hang it up on a hanger right away.
Make sure irons or steamers are allowed. Only the one-cup coffee makers like Keurig were allowed in D’s dorm, that have the auto-shutoff after it brews.
My D wants to get a hamper with a handle this year for easier carrying.
Wow…sending a boy the first time around has not prepared me for these types of conversations. I’ll just have to wait and see what she thinks she needs.
We like the selection and prices better at Target than BB&B so we created a college registry online and are supposed to get a 15% coupon for everything others don’t buy. We don’t plan on sharing the registry with anyone, just made it for the coupon. Everything we buy can be shipped directly to the school with free shipping. We are flying in, and because I am a nervous driver under the best circumstances, using Uber and public transportation. No one wants me driving in Boston, trust me!
A lot of dorm items we are waiting on until we can get a look at the room. D has communicated with both roommates in her traditional triple. The are all vegans (not too surprising considering it’s a Green Living LLC). D says the are going to need to rent two micro/frig combos (not allowed to bring your own) because they all want to make their own food as much as possible. That would be $400 total in rent. I told to wait and see. I think she will be surprised how little time and how much hassle cooking will be out of a dorm room.
@palm715 We created Target registry as well not for sharing, but for coupons. I am a little confused how it works on sale items. If something is on sale now, I have to buy it now and have it delivered at our home address and then to fly it all the way to Boston, correct? If I the don’t buy it while on sale, I will have to buy it at the price available at the time I will have it delivered to DD’s dorm?
@palm715 I think you are probably right on the vegan cooking in a triple dorm room scenario. My D16 is a vegetarian who will probably be a vegan once dropped off in CO (she’ll still eat eggs if I buy the ones that cost $7.00/dozen and come with little newsletters about the humanely raised hens) but her dining halls have a lot of vegan options - she was impressed with the selection when she went to orientation recently. Good thing, too, because her dorm room barely has enough room for one fridge/microwave combo.
@carolinamom2boys I keep seeing risers on website with dorm supplies, but I think the only way my D can deal with her room is to high loft her bed. (There literally is not enough space to accommodate both students’ desks and dressers if the beds remain on the floor). She could do a middle loft, but then she wouldn’t have access to a flat surface on top of her dresser. I now realize how good I had it with my 90s dorm room - I had so much built in storage!
