December 29, 2009

When does TWIN XL matter?

When shopping for college dorm bedding for your Twin XL bed it is important to know when Twin XL on a the label is a necessity or just an added bonus. The following list breaks down when you need to care if what your buying for your college bed actually says TWIN XL.


It Matters:
1) Sheets - Since your sheets will include a flat sheet, a pillow case and a fitted sheet, it is important that the sheets purchased are labeled Twin XL. The reason is that in order for the fitted sheet to fit it must be made for Twin XL beds. In other words, it has to be 80" L.
2) Mattress Pad / Mattress Topper / Mattress Encasing - As you can see all these products start with the term mattress, which means in order to fit Twin XL beds and the associated mattress they also have to be sized correctly. You cannot get a twin and expect it to fit. Look for Twin XL sized products with a 79" or higher length.


It Doesn't Matter:
1) Pillows - If you are getting a new pillow for your college bedding it does not need to say Twin XL. In fact you probably won't find a pillow that says Twin XL and if you do that company is doing some really good marketing.
2) Blankets - Most Bed Blankets for college will be standard twin bed blankets. Due to blankets being tucked, folded, and in general large, it is not necessary to seek the Twin XL label on your dorm's bed blanket. Just remember your Twin Long bed is typically 36" or 39" by 80". If your blanket is bigger you should be fine.
3) Duvet Covers: As of this post their is no such thing as a Twin XL duvet cover. The reason is that twin down comforters are often made long and fit twin XL beds. Since they fit twin long beds their is no need for a duvet cover for Twin XL down comforters because their is no need for Twin XL comforters. Confusing? Maybe, but you get the point not to look for or worry about needing a Twin XL Duvet Cover.
(Down comforters will be addressed in the next post.. they really are their own topic)

It's up for debate:
1) Comforters: If you ask some people they feel that purchasing a twin sized comforter is fine for a Twin XL bed but if you ask others they will tell you that it must be Twin XL. At first thought it would seem that if the dorm bed is Twin XL then the bed comforter must be Twin XL too. Not necessarily. Although a nice long Twin XL comforter that is 90" long might be preferred, it is not a necessity. The reason is that your dorm bed is 80" and a typical dorm comforter is 84" to 86" long. This twin length fully covers the Twin XL bed and gives you 100% coverage. The question for you is, is 4"- 6" extra enough? Ideally the twin comforter was made for a twin bed which is 75" long with the idea that you get 10" extra length. If that is the perfect ideal length, then for an 80" Twin XL bed you would want a comforter that is a true Twin XL which would be 90" long so you can enjoy that 10" of extra comforter. This however is hard to find. Even Dorm Co only carries 5 comforters that are 90" long. Another reason 90" may not be necessary, is that in college dorms you don't have a box spring, in fact your mattress is only about 8" thick. For this reason your need for an comforter overhang like you have at home is not necessary, which makes an 86" comforter acceptable.

In the end the choice is yours!! At least now you know the whole Twin XL scoop.

Note: The common retail trend is to make the comforter 86" long and call it Twin/Twin XL. This eliminates customer worry and concern that the comforter won't fit and it allows retailers to carry one product for two different sized beds.

Final Tip... although looking for the words Twin XL is important, in some cases you'll ultimately want to look for the measurements. Remember your twin long bed is 80" long and if the product is fitted you need 80". If it is not fitted then you just to ensure it is close.

December 22, 2009

What is Twin XL Bedding?

If you just heard the term 'Twin XL' bedding you can be certain that you will hear it a million more times before you move into the college dorms.

Before we get into what TWIN XL bedding is let's first take a quick look at the list of dorm products that makes knowing TWIN XL important.
1) Dorm Bed
2) Mattress
3) Sheets
4) Bed Toppers
5) Comforters

And just in case you haven't heard of TWIN XL Bedding, below is a list of common terms that can and often are used interchangeably with the term 'TWIN XL.'
1) Twin X-LONG
2) Extra Long Twin
3) Twin Long
4) Twin Xtra Long
5) XL Bedding
6) Dorm sized bedding
7) College sized bedding

Now that you know what TWIN XL is used to describe and that you know the other names that TWIN XL can go by, you are ready for the simple breakdown explanation.

TWIN XL - Refers to the size of the University provided dorm bed and mattress. The width of these beds is the same as a standard twin sized bed, but the length is longer. Hence the name TWIN XL. Twin beds measure 75" in length, while the typical dorm sized bed, which is TWIN XL measures 80" in length. 5" get you TWIN XL.

The reason college campuses changed to TWIN XL beds from Twin beds was to accommodate their athletic population, which was often taller and in need of more bed length. Faced with an increasingly taller population, it made sense for colleges to simply make all dorm beds and mattresses TWIN XL. This adjustment ensures that all students would not be too tall for the university dorm beds, which increases student happiness with the college and in the end plays a role in student retention rates.

Next week's blog will talk about TWIN XL bedding products and what to look for when dorm shopping.

December 10, 2009

Dorm Stuff - A Shopping Experience

When it comes to shopping for your college dorm stuff, you'll find that your store options are often limited. Dorm Co on the other hand brings you the perfect combination of personable retailer and big retail cheap pricing and selection.

Prior to Dorm Co your shopping options to dorm stuff generally fell into one of two categories.

1) Big Box Retailers - These include all your well known stores such as Target, Bed Bath, Wal-Mart etc. These stores are MEGA brands. You'll find that they jump into selling dorm stuff for 2 months then pull out as fast as they got in. They are truly only about making the fast sale. This often means their selection is limited and since they cater to the generic shopper they only carry the very basics. You won't find staff that knows college dorms (unless by chance) and you certainly won't be able to create a unique dorm room. What these stores do well is marketing. They lead you to think they carry dorm stuff, but upon entering their store you are left having to visit several other stores. Sometimes their pricing is very good, but often it is no better than online options and they are certainly not lower (better valued) than Dorm Co. In the end these stores will always be present, but due to their size, they can't take risks by carrying products that make your dorm room unique.

2) Small Online Stores - Often these online stores fall into two categories. They are either over-priced stores trying to make a fast buck on those going to college or they are average priced, inexperienced stores, that do care about dorm rooms, but simply lack the ability to sell everything you need for your dorm room. Often these stores carry products that don't quite fit for dorm life. The stores mean well, but unlike the big retailers they just are not able to provide products that make sense for college. Whether over-priced furniture or comforters better suited for your aunt, these stores have items but they don't quite line up to what you really need for your dorm. Service at these stores is often limited as well.

Enter Dorm Co., our goal is to truly make your college dorm the most comfortable place it can be. We are good at providing you dorm stuff 365 days a year at cheap dorm prices you can afford. And our broad selection allows your dorm to be unique.

Underneath our updates on this Dorm Co Lounge homepage you'll see an area where you can ask us questions. Talk to us! No question is too detailed or too small! What do you need to know about dorm stuff or dorm life? We are here to help... Dorm Co is your College Dorm Source.

December 1, 2009

Dorm Co Lounge - Welcome

What's the Lounge all about?!

The Dorm Co Lounge is all about college life, specifically college life while living on campus. Whether it be providing great dorm room information, showing videos of current college dorm rooms, discussing the latest in dorm stuff or providing you with a Countdown Clock to College, you now have a dorm spot to lounge. Most importantly, the Dorm Co Lounge is about making going off to college a fun and insightful topic. If you are a soon to be incoming college freshman, you can pick up some great dorm tips or if you are a current college student and you have a 'Dorm Tour' video then this is the spot to share. Overall, the Dorm Co Lounge will be everything DORM.

Welcome! ...We look forward to being with you during your senior year of high school to graduation and on through to making your way on to campus for the first time! ...And after you have the dorm thing down, have tackled homesickness, awesome parties, late night studying and meeting great friends, we hope you'll come back and share some college tips, feedback and just what makes your campus the best!

Check out all that the Dorm Co Lounge stuff:

- Useful college and dorm information - Getting you ready for college.
- College Countdown Clock. You set the date you leave for college and come back to see how many days you have until FREEDOM.
- Video Tours of college students showing off their dorms (no actors here!... well some students think they are, but you know what we mean!)
- Get Answers. This Section lets you post college related questions and our Dorm Co staff and fellow 'Loungers' can help provide the answers.
- Twitter updates (up the minute news/deals from Dorm Co)
- Share IT so you can let your friends know what you found!
- Mascot pictures. For no other reason except Mascots are fun.
- Link to Dorm Co - The College Dorm Supplies Superstore!

Let us know what else you want to see... in the meantime we'll be working on bringing you the latest and most up to date college dorm tips and information.