Lifestyle

What will come in handy in the dorm room

Posted August 06, 2011 6:00 am

By Deborah Donovan

Yube Cubes start at $29.50 each and all kinds of personalization is available. This wall unit is $354.

Every store comes up with cool dorm finds this time of year. But if you're going to be a freshman and it's your first time living away from home — and maybe your first time sharing a room — how do you know what you really need?

Let's check in with a few real experts — a designer and artist who also happens to the mother of a college senior — and a few experienced students.

Anita Galatte of Vernon Hills specializes in kitchen and bath, which gives her expertise in space planning and made it easier to shop when she sent daughter Tara Jennings off to Purdue a few years ago.

“Everything has a place, and I love multipurpose items,” Galatte said.

Here are things she thinks every dorm resident should have, and they will work well when the student moves on to sorority or fraternity housing or an apartment.

• A three-drawer locking file cabinet on wheels. Galatte thinks the cabinet should lock so the student whose roommate isn't too trustworthy or has a lot of people in to visit can lock up a laptop, jewelry or other valuables.

While Crate & Barrel and Target have cute file cabinets on wheels, they don't lock. Office Max has a utilitarian two-drawer one that does lock for $59.99.

Locking or not, the cabinet can serve as a bedside table and roll into the closet to be out of the way or over to a mirror if it holds makeup and hair care tools, Galatte said.

• Just think, the student without a comfortable chair might have to hop up on a loft or bunk bed for a cozy read or even to watch television. That's why he or she needs a chair besides the one at the desk, Galatte said.

She prefers a chair that folds out into a bed for overnight guests.

We found a gray sleeper lounge chair for $150 at Target. If you can't find it in the closest store, it is available online.

Another choice is the ever-popular butterfly chair like one for $70 at Kohl's.

• A bookcase with 12-by-12 storage cubes helps keep clutter down.

“My daughter uses half as a book shelf and half as storage for things like socks and T-shirts,” said our designer. “Everything is tucked away and looks nice while providing a pop of color.”

Kohl's offers two collapsible storage bins for $21.95. And shower stuff can travel down the hall in one of these.

A different version is the Yube Cube, from one cube that works as a coffee table while hiding stuff to 12 cubes that make a whole wall unit. Each cube is $29.50 with a small price break for volume.

• Here's a Galatte tip we bet most freshmen reject. All towels and sheets should be white. That makes it easier to wash things together when a budget-conscious student is trying to keep laundry loads to a minimum. And they can all be washed in hot water with bleach.

• For a bonus, Galatte recommends lightweight dry-erase boards that can be attached to the walls with heavy-duty two-sided tape. We found cute ones at Kohl's and Crate & Barrel.

Here's a very logical tip from Kara Klaisle who is from Park Ridge and will be returning to the University of Illinois for graduate school.

She doesn't like dorm lighting and thinks a floor lamp can give brighter light for studying while making the room homier at the same time.

We like the lamps from Target that have a torch arm for ambient lighting and a downward one for tasks.

And IKEA's Januari presents a cozy glow with a Stycke shade.

Finally, Marissa Jaeckel, another Lake County resident who will be a junior at Illinois, agrees with Klaisle that color is critical.

“Their favorite color when they paint a dorm is cream for some reason,” Jaeckel said. And then she mentions those cinder block walls.

Both recommend rugs and pillows to make the place more like home.

Picking out ones that go with the bedding of choice should be the fun part of dorm shopping.

And we couldn't resist mentioning this find:

Students want their own mini refrigerators, so Target found one with a dry-erase board on the door.

Targets black floor lamp with torch and task lights is $22.49. It is available at selected stores and online.

This Room Essentials rug from Target is an example of floor coverings that that can brighten dorm rooms.

Room Essentials Sketchy Floral Comforter Set startstarts at 29.99. A Target bolster is also shown.

Targets Room Essentials Striped Duvet set might appeal to young men who are matriculating.

Target offers the Emerson compact refrigerator with the dry-erase door for $89.

The 18-inch-square Rimini pillow is $34.95 at Crate & Barrel.

For $29.95 the five bubbles of Crate & Barrels Thork can hang on your walls. The largest is 17 inches in diameter, and pushpins are included.

Soup bowls come in many colors for $1.99 for two at Target.

The Wide French Twill Memory Board is on sale for $13.19 at Kohls. If double-sided tape doesnt hold it, it can lean against the wall. And its easy to change pictures and notes.