We took $100 to Amazon to shop for a college dorm room. Here's what we got

There’s something special about building out how your college dorm looks. It’s an opportunity for you to make it your own and be a calling card of sorts for people who visit your room. But it might be difficult to know where to get started, so we thought it’d be a great idea to go window shopping, but with a catch. We decided to build a cart of some dorm room essentials, but we could only spend a maximum of $100. You might be surprised what you could get with a Benjamin Franklin, because we sure were. Here’s a look at what we were able to get for our make-believe dorm rooms. Francisco’s Dorm Room Essentials ComfortSpa reading pillow - $37 (33% off)Wiscet 8x10 picture frame set - $19 (23% off)Ronlap folding bedside shelf - $24Wall outlet extender with USB ports - $9 (20% off)Laundry mesh pop-up hamper - $8 I used to do a lot of reading and research while just sitting on my bed at college, and more often than not, I was using my own bed pillows to support my back as I leaned against the wall. So if I were to do it all over again, this reading pillow from ComfortSpa would be at the top of my shopping list. It even has arm and shoulder support to rest your arms while your back and neck are getting the support they need. It also boasts side pockets to keep your phone close, but not close enough that it’s distracting you from your reading. Next is the picture frame set, which is great if you want to put up photos of family and friends along your side of the dorm. You get nine frames for just under $20, a really good deal. This foldable bedside shelf would’ve been the perfect replacement for using my desk for everything from charging my phone to watching TV shows. It’s wide enough that if you have a laptop like a MacBook Air, it could fit and provide a hands- and lap-free experience when watching a show or resting a cup of coffee or your water bottle while you read on your bed. The possibilities are endless!Transform the wall outlet in your dorm room to be an electric juggernaut with this wall extender. It boasts five AC outlets, three USB ports and one USB C port. This is perfect for charging multiple electronic devices, like your phone, laptop, or portable speaker, all at once. Lastly, you need a laundry hamper to handle your dirty clothes, and this hamper I found is not only one of the most popular hampers on Amazon, it’s also less than $10. Once you load your laundry in the washer, the basket can fold down to make it easy to transport and store until you need to use it again. All of these products gave me a grand subtotal of $98.20.Xin Xin’s Dorm Room EssentialsFoldable laptop table for bed - $24.99 (50% off)Vanity mirror with LED lights – $23.99 (41% off)Space-saving clothes hangers - $10.9990L large laundry basket - $9.49 (44% off)Multifunctional desk lamp - $29.99I used to spend hours in the dorm, working on an essay or preparing for an upcoming test. And it can be exhausting sitting in front of the desk all night. This portable, foldable laptop table would have allowed me to continue working on the project from the comfort of my bed.According to the seller, the lap desk can withstand 77 pounds of weight without collapsing and damage. It can fit 11-17-inch laptops, and there is enough room to stretch your feet under the table. It has a built-in stand for holding an iPad or Kindle and comes with a cup holder. It’s also half-off right now.When I was in college, we shared a bathroom mirror with other suite-mates; sometimes, that can get crowded, and the lighting in the dorm room was never bright enough. This tri-fold vanity mirror with LED lights would have solved that problem. It comes with a regular mirror and magnifying ones, and its brightness can be adjusted by simply tapping the sensor switch.Don’t have a lot of room for all of your clothes in the dorm closet? Try these collapsible hangers that could save a lot of space in a smaller wardrobe. Simply place a regular hanger into the hole of the space-saving hanger and unhook the hook on its side to let the magic hanger hang down. This stacking could save 80% of the wardrobe space.Look no further; a 90L large laundry basket is now on sale for under $10 — 44% off of its original price. Save money now on this essential item.Needing some additional lighting for your desk? We found this multifunctional LED desk lamp that also comes with three USB charging ports, one outlet and two pen holders. It comes with three brightness levels. All of these products gave me a grand subtotal of $99.45. Looking for more college essentials? Click here to see a full checklist.