By Cathi Coppinger

I have had 2 kids in college, one who still is, so I wanted to pass on a little knowledge to you! From my experience if you will. Consumer Reports posted a list of stuff you should buy for your kid’s college dorm room.  And the top four are cheap towels, cheap sheets, a microwave, and a coffee maker so they don’t drop five dollars at Starbucks every day. I totally agree with this, though she still goes to Starbucks everyday cause one cup of coffee just doesn’t cut it! But what about a list of the four things you DON’T need to buy, because they tend to be a waste of money…

1.  An iron.  They’ll probably never use it.  And if they DO need to iron something, they can borrow one from someone else.  So you’re better off buying some wrinkle-release spray.  Or a steamer if they have room for one. They don’t care about wrinkles unless they have some kind of an interview!

2.  Expensive bedding.  They’ll just end up ruining it by the end of the year, so go cheap.  And things like decorative pillows might sound good, but they take up space.  Which is valuable when you’re in a tiny dorm room. I recommend investing in a fairly expensive, water-proof, bug-proof mattress pad though! I got tired of the backache complaints!

3.  An alarm clock.  It might seem essential to YOU, but they’ll just end up using the alarm on their phone instead.  So don’t waste your money, even if it’s only ten bucks. Agreed!

4. A mini-fridge.  Don’t buy one unless you’re sure they’ll actually USE it.  Otherwise you’ll waste a hundred bucks, and it’ll take up an entire corner in the room. I disagree! Turns out they like to keep their own stuff and keep it separately! Even if they are in an apartment! Oh and I think she just likes watching us move the thing from place to place!