Kid's college required the toppers to meet CA standards (and school was not in CA). Sleepyhead mattress toppers are fire resistant and meet flammability standards and comply with California's TB117-2013 flammability standards and are CertiPUR-US certified, meaning the foam is free from harmful chemicals like flame retar_ants.
So cheap ones were not an option for us. And kid loves his sleepyhead.

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

Just why?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do not look for “best.” Get whatever is cheapest on Amazon or Target. It is going to end up in the trash my next yr

Not every kid throws these out.

If you move to an apartment, the beds are different sized. We did try to reuse between kids but they are cumbersome to move if you’re not within driving distance.

kids store things.

god, what a waste it all is

Store it for what? The next time they are in a twin bed (which for me was never)? We tried to pass along to other students, but there were a ton being tossed on move out day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a full size comforter. Your kid can use it to cover their storage drawers if they raise the bed half-way. Maybe even a queen size will work better. No need to buy that bed skirt to hide the their stuff.

This, with the full-size comforter. Worked like a charm. No topper but we did add a mattress protector when there were rumors of bed bugs (false alarm).

Kept the sheets inexpensive and only bought one set. Furnished off-campus apt next year had a different size anyway.

Good luck and don’t forget a full-sized trash can. Never woulda thought of that one ourselves and now it’s almost a gag grad gift (with a nice check in the bottom!) that most have commented on how “useful” it is/was.

My kids colleges both provided trash/recycle bins

So did ours but they were small and barely held one take-out box. :p

That might have been a strategy on the part of housing to get residents to empty the bins more frequently.

What makes a dorm towel different from any other towel? Buy the towels you like. Or better, have your kid buy the towels they like.

Do they like towels with hooks? Do they like fast-drying (microfiber?) towels? (I find the texture of many microfiber towels offputting.)

Surprise item -- my kid bought a drying rack from Ikea for $12. (From experiences at summer camp and such he said a problem was always nowhere to hang wet things to dry.) I thought it would be an inconvenience and never get used (or get bent or broken). At the end of the year he proclaimed it the most useful thing ever and said he and his roommate used it constantly.

He also bought a shoe tray and rack because his roommate wanted all shoes taken off and left just inside the door.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/jaell-drying-rack-indoor-outdoor-white-80242892/
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/baggmuck-shoe-tray-indoor-outdoor-gray-40573756/
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/grejig-shoe-rack-gray-40329868/

Twin XL sheets from Target. New full comforter insert and duvet cover from Ikea. (His cover at home had cheerful woodland creatures, so something a little less childish was in order.) No mattress topper, wrapper, whatever.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a full size comforter. Your kid can use it to cover their storage drawers if they raise the bed half-way. Maybe even a queen size will work better. No need to buy that bed skirt to hide the their stuff.

This, with the full-size comforter. Worked like a charm. No topper but we did add a mattress protector when there were rumors of bed bugs (false alarm).

Kept the sheets inexpensive and only bought one set. Furnished off-campus apt next year had a different size anyway.

Good luck and don’t forget a full-sized trash can. Never woulda thought of that one ourselves and now it’s almost a gag grad gift (with a nice check in the bottom!) that most have commented on how “useful” it is/was.

My kids colleges both provided trash/recycle bins

So did ours but they were small and barely held one take-out box. :p

any suggestions for best dorm towels? ie do they need hooks or fast-drying?

check out Costco

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

DP: IKR? That's insane. I just posted about a Linenspa mattress topper that was $30 on Amazon. That plus mattress pad + Target sheet set plus quilt/duvet cover from IKEA. Not even $200 including chair pillow (Homegoods) and a couple decorative pillows. Also, no one needs a mattress cover for bedbugs. Mattresses are coated in vinyl. Bedbugs can't go through that.

Linenspa 2" foam topper. Kid says it's comfier than home mattress! Don't need fancy name or 3".

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

Sounds about what we ended up doing for DD. We bought the Sleepyhead for DS too but the rest he didn't care about, so Amazon for that. He did order several more pillows to line against the wall.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

You DO know that you can do this MUCH more cheaply, right? You don't need to giggle and be all "I guess this is what it costs to send a girl to college!" about it. She doesn't need two sets of sheets, or more than two pillows, no need for shams or a decorative throw. Hell, she can take her pillows from home.

Seriously! I can see two sets of sheets, but pillows are $10 at Target. Sham is not necessary or desirable. Decorative throw made out of gold thread? Why send a fleece blanket now instead of waiting to see if she actually needs it? Etc.

I was a non-drinker and loved being up early on a Saturday or Sunday morning, when I'd strip my bed to do my laundry while studying all in silence while everyone else was sleeping off their hangovers. By 10am my bedding was washed and back on my bed, I'd eaten breakfast and studied for two hours and had a week's worth of clean clothes again.

Congrats, I guess.

Thanks! That was when I learned that it felt good to get things accomplished and set myself up to have an easy week . I’ve carried that through my adult life. World of difference between studying with or without a hangover. Lack of stress in the morning because all my clothes were clean. So glad I learned that lesson young.

Relevance of this little memoir session to the dorm bedding discussion at hand?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

You DO know that you can do this MUCH more cheaply, right? You don't need to giggle and be all "I guess this is what it costs to send a girl to college!" about it. She doesn't need two sets of sheets, or more than two pillows, no need for shams or a decorative throw. Hell, she can take her pillows from home.

Seriously! I can see two sets of sheets, but pillows are $10 at Target. Sham is not necessary or desirable. Decorative throw made out of gold thread? Why send a fleece blanket now instead of waiting to see if she actually needs it? Etc.

I was a non-drinker and loved being up early on a Saturday or Sunday morning, when I'd strip my bed to do my laundry while studying all in silence while everyone else was sleeping off their hangovers. By 10am my bedding was washed and back on my bed, I'd eaten breakfast and studied for two hours and had a week's worth of clean clothes again.

Congrats, I guess.

Thanks! That was when I learned that it felt good to get things accomplished and set myself up to have an easy week . I’ve carried that through my adult life. World of difference between studying with or without a hangover. Lack of stress in the morning because all my clothes were clean. So glad I learned that lesson young.

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all for the recs! It adds up! We are going with the sleepyhead topper, a zippered mattress cover, 2 sets of sheets, a PBTeen comforter, pillows and pillow protectors, shams, decorative throw, an extra fleece blanket $775!

This sounds great. I want to see pictures! Your daughter will be very happy.

Sleepyhead toppers are crazy high priced. And that's for chemical foam. I'd think about that if you are looking for a more chemical free room.