For the first time in 16 years I won't be returning to education come September. It's daunting, depressing and a little bit emotional in general to admit that I am now expected to face the big wide world that lacks the comforts of student life.
But just because I've been released from what some consider the claws and what others consider the comforts of the education system, it doesn't mean I'm going to stop sharing my experiences, advice and anything else that I feel will help you lovely lot going off to university settle in that much better.
If you've received your results and heard that you're in, congratulations! Now, the fun of waiting for university to come around with a mixture of anxiety and excitement begins. Whilst twiddling your thumbs thinking about what lifestyle awaits you and trawling the internet for any guidance or possible future housemates is all well and good, a brilliant way to help pass the time and get you set up for university life is going shopping.
So if you're wondering where to start, you can check out my post on what to take with you to university here!
But where to buy all this stuff is a whole other story.
I bet Aldi wasn't where you were thinking. I do my food shops at Aldi as much as possible, even now I'm a graduate. Bargains belong in Aldi and this store will truly be your saviour whilst at university, and now whilst preparing for university too!
So let's kick things off with some colourful kitchenware!
Whilst in your head it may be takeaways, tins and ready meals for the foreseeable future the reality of student life is that these all get pretty boring - or pretty pricey - pretty darn quick. So whether you like it or not, you'll have to get your chef whites on at some point.
Cooking may feel like a boring task to begin with, but at least Aldi's colourful kitchenware will inspire you to cook some tasty grub - and hopefully all this stuff will also brighten up your murky student kitchen in halls and separate your pots and pans from the dull silver steel of everyone else's!
But it's not just about the colour with Aldi's new 'Back to College' range, because these product's seem like they may be up to the task of standing the wear and tear of student life - within reason (reason being say smashing up pans, or melting spatulas - you'll understand what I mean once you actually get to university).
But it's not just about the colour with Aldi's new 'Back to College' range, because these product's seem like they may be up to the task of standing the wear and tear of student life - within reason (reason being say smashing up pans, or melting spatulas - you'll understand what I mean once you actually get to university).
The same goes for their range of colourful frying pans when it comes to cleaning. Days on end these things can be left when student life tempts you into doing much more fun things - but whilst cooking, your eggs won't burn on the bottom, your pancakes will easily flip and all the food you cook in this pan won't create a challenge for cleaning later on - provided you don't put it on the hob and then leave it for a few hours...a little bit of paying attention whilst cooking will make cleaning these pots and pans a breeze!
Aldi really have thought of everything with this range - when someone bought a wok along with them to uni I was all 'are you really gonna eat that many stir frys?' but seriously a wok will literally be your saviour at university - we had one that couldn't withstand the constant use but I have a good feeling about this Aldi one - and having used it already its 1.2mm thick carbon steel with a two layer non-stick coating and it's ease of cleaning has impressed me enough to want to share it with you all. These aren't just for stir frys - you can use a wok for curries, making sauces, poaching eggs, cooking up a risotto, preparing fajitas or enchiladas and the list goes on - it's a versatile bit of kit that I recommend you get your hands on! And guess wok (see what I did there?) - it's only £2.99! The same price stands for the colourful frying pans above (£2.99 each!).
The one thing I do know about colourful kitchenware is it's tendency to fade or discolour from the heat of the hob - but don't get disheartened about buying products just for this reason, it took 2/3 years before our colourful kitchenware began to fade, and who knows, perhaps Aldi have cracked it! Give me a year to test this one out though...
And even if these do begin to fade, the non-stick pots and pans aren't likely to lose their abilities! And at bargain Aldi prices, you can't really go wrong!
Aldi has really helped to provide a load of the essentials to students in a variety of colours - the pizza cutter is a must have tool, and it's a good one! And you know what's surprisingly hard to find these days? A cheap yet decent peeler! You may think you're not going to eat much veg but when you get a few weeks into the semester without having had a roast, you're going to reach for the potatoes and carrots, and take your peeler in hand. You can grab all these kitchen tools from £1.49 each and a colourful knife set from £4.99!
The colour doesn't stop with the pans and utensils because Aldi have also got some colourful chopping mats and tea towels available too! At £2.99 for four chopping mats you have not only got plenty more colour in your kitchen but you also have different chopping mats for preparing different ingredients. You may have seen the colour coordinated chopping mats around - if you haven't yet you're likely to when you begin your shopping for uni. But these have become much more popular than having your standard one mat for all - with different mats you can use one for raw meat, one for fish, one for veg and one for cooked meat. It's unlikely you're going to be needing to cook or prep all these things at once, but at least you're prepared if that moment comes - say for example if you join the Come Dine With Me society that your university is quite likely to have. If this occaision never comes or you just can't find the right group to dine with, at least you're being hygienic...
Tea towels become the bane of your life at university, and a 5 pack for only £3.49 is like music to a student's ears. No matter how hard you try, you can't keep your tea towels to yourself unless you dry up everything in your room which is a little excessive but you're welcome to do it! So, if you've only spent a measeley £3.49 on your tea towels, you're not likely to get quite as attached to them...but my advice is to put one of yours in the kitchen and hoard the rest because tea towels get really grubby, really quickly!
The benefit of buying all your bits and bobs from Aldi is that you can combine your shopping for all your essentials with your big first food shop just before you head off to uni - if you're relaxed enough to be that unprepared that is! Aldi isn't where I thought I'd find an abundance of products that can come in handy at university - but the Back to College range is excellent (though it's back to university really isn't it?) and the quality of the products is impressive, especially when you take the price into consideration!
Other kitchenware bits and bobs that can be found in Aldi's Back to College range include:
Three piece sieve set - £4.99
Three piece colourful saucepans - £9.99
Lunch tote - £4.99
Oven dish - £3.99
Flask & hydration bottle - £3.99
Kitchen timer - £1.79
Chip and pizza tray - £2.99
Mixing and measuring jug - £.2.99
One egg frying pan - £2.49
One cup coffer maker - £14.99
Kitchen brush set - £1.99
Food storage containers - £1.89
Sandwich/snack box - £1.79
Washing up bowl - £1.49
If you want to get your hands on Aldi's new range, head into stores from the 27th August onwards and stock up on goods to get you through your university years!
It's not over yet though! The Back to College range also includes Homeware products and some gadgets, so come back in a few days and get your shopping list ready...
MissIsGoode
*I was sent some of the products from Aldi's new Back to College range in return for this review
*The product photos have been provided for me by Clarion Communications
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