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What Your College-Bound Senior Actually Needs: A Minimalist's Guide to Dorm Essentials
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Hey Reader, The school year is ending very quickly, which means graduation season. We just received our first grad party invite for May. Last year, we celebrated my son's high school graduation. My husband and I went parties for two weeks like it was our job and we loved every minute of it. We've been empty nesting for the past year and our college freshman will be packing up his dorm in a few weeks to return home for the summer. So all that extra stuff is coming with him 😳 and we need to find a place for it, or pass it on. I will likely be selling and giving items to friends because he is living in an apartment next year. So, if you are getting a college freshman ready to leave in August, you must read this article before you buy! I wrote it l based on what we bought and what we did NOT buy. And I just updated it with all our experience from his first year. My Most Important AdviceMy most important piece of advice is to "shop your house" and take advantage of items you already own. Think blankets, sheets, towels, tools, water bottles, office supplies, etc. And my second piece of advice is to be sure they know how to do laundry and budget their money. Summer is a great time to practice this especially with the graduation money they will likely receive. Some of the items on the list my son had to buy for himself. Since I'm a minimalist mom, we had many conversations about what to buy and what not to buy. And now that he's been gone for nine months, I wanted to share our experience to help college-bound families save time and money by not buying everything they see in their news feed. (Yes, you can still return things.) You can help your student create a clutter-free dorm room, learn how to prioritize needs versus wants, and use what you already own. You can find EVERYTHING we bought (and didn't buy), in my updated article A Minimalist Guide to Dorm Room Essentials. Can I ask a favor too, Reader? If you know someone who is sending their child off to college in the next year or two, would you be so kind as to forward this to them? I would be very grateful. Happy Graduation and Happy Packing! Amy XOXO PS....If this email was forwarded to you and you'd like to receive my weekly articles, I'd love to have you. Start by grabbing my 5-day email challenge. I'll send you 5 decluttering tasks you can do in 30-minutes or less that will reclaim hours in your day. I'd love to have you part of my community. Come join us! |
Simply Enough by Amy Slenker-Smith
I help busy women free themselves from clutter, create an organized home, and reclaim hours in their day. Let's kickstart your decluttering and create a home you love. Sign up here!
Hey Reader, Years ago, when my son was little, I was deep in clutter—and deep in denial. I think I was an organized hoarder. 😳 Here’s what I believed at the time: “I just need better storage.” → I thought the right bins or baskets would finally make everything feel organized. “Rearranging will fix it.” → I’d spend hours moving stuff around instead of making real decisions. “I should use every inch of space.” → I believed empty drawers were wasted space, so I filled them… whether I needed the...
Hey Reader, Thank you for all the advice! So many of you shared your thoughts about the dance of kids coming home, leaving again, and all the little ground rules we need in between. Here’s my favorite one: “If you’re staying here, please let us know what time you’ll be back. Not a control thing, but we have a life too—and we want to know if the person coming in at midnight is you or an intruder.” ---Alicia Yes! 🙌 We have a life too. (If you’re new here, my son Zack just wrapped up his first...
Hey Reader, Did you guess? It’s Zack. One year ago, celebrating his high school graduation ❤️ If you’re new around here, my son Zack just wrapped up his first year of college. One whole year—gone in a blink! And today... we’re picking him up. 😱 I. Cannot. Wait. Tonight, he’ll sleep in his own bed, safe and sound. My heart is full. And yet... we’re also feeling a little apprehensive. Can I tell you a secret? We kind of like empty nesting. I feel a little guilty even saying that. But my coach...