At the end of every academic year, dining halls across campus put out boxes asking for the return of any stolen borrowed items. It’s no secret that college kids are hard on money and often resort to the thriftiest means of acquiring necessities; however, you can only go so far before committing grand theft cafeteria. Rather than breaking the bank trying to stock your dorm with a full kitchen set, buy only the bare essentials that are useful in many ways.
Photo by Allie Bloom
There is no law that says you have to put wine in a wine glass, and these serve as a great alternative to standard cups and glasses. Dishwashers are scarce at University Park and tend to run up water bills in apartments, so hand washing is the norm. This is the major reason that wine glasses are a great buy. Other than the fact that they are larger than normal glasses and can hold more liquid, these open glasses are super easy to clean and won’t leave you trying to squish your hand into a small container.
Photo by Allie Bloom
Following the fashion of cup-ware, mugs are a great asset to any dorm room. Having a few microwave-safe mugs opens up a world of opportunity for microwave cooking. Cakes, muffins and scrambled eggs can be yours if you own a mug. Travel mugs are also a useful addition to any dorm room kitchen because they tend to be thermal. Penn State doesn’t cancel class for anything less than the apocalypse, so having a thermal mug to keep coffee, tea or even soup warm will make trekking across campus a little easier.
Photo by Allie Bloom
Corkscrews and bottle openers are other good appliances to bring to college. Penn State is a dry campus, so you obviously won’t be using these to open any wine, beer or cider, *wink* but luckily, these appliances are extremely multifaceted. They can be used to perform any function of a pocketknife, and they also can often replace scissors for cutting things. They’re cheap too!
Photo by Allie Bloom
Finally, invest in some real silverware. Obviously you don’t need a whole set for your dorm, but taking a few forks, spoons and knives from the drawer at home can save your butt when your plastic knife won’t actually cut anything. Owning your own set can also save you from having to change out of your pajamas to go to a commons to steal some.