It's that time again... that once-a-month crampy bitchy yes-i-have-to-go-to-the-bathroom-AGAIN-dear time.
No, this isn't going to be a bitchy rant about hating being female or anything silly like that! i LOVE being a girl! i love all the blessings we as women are given, and i can endure the minor discomforts that are part of the whole!
I actually want to talk about feminine products, because i've been contemplating a change for the greener.
(now, for any gentlemen who have read this far: while it might not apply to you personally, what about your daughter? your wife? a little information on options isn't a bad thing! and just think... if they switch to a greener product, that means no picking up pads or tampons on your bread and milk grocery runs!)
i have, thus far, been a plain ole pad and tampon girl. Post kids, i pretty much ceased tampon use, though not for any particular reason. A few recent articles and blogs have brought the issue back into the forefront of my mind, including this one at one green generation.
So, with the idea of change in mind, i started to research my options.
I decided early on that i don't just want to use an organic (and expensive!) disposable option, because, lets face it, other than a few less chemicals, there is NO real difference!
this left me with: cloth pads, alternative tampons, or cups.
My findings and analysis thus far:
lets start with the oddball one: alternative tampons. the one interesting option i've found is Sea sponge reusable tampons (here is one product available) they are supposed to last at least 6 months, and have lower risk of TSS than conventional tampons.
my thoughts? may be a viable option, but i don't think it would be my primary choice!
How about Cups? the three products i've looked at are The Keeper, the Moon cup, and the DivaCup.
The Keeper and Moon Cup are made by the same company, and are identical, except for materials. they are supposed to last TEN YEARS!!!
my thoughts: i want one, but they don't ship to Canada, b/c of federal regulations. poo.
the DivaCup is similar to the moon cup and keeper, but i have seen a LOT more negative comments about leaking and discomfort. they are also only recommended for ONE year use, and are not to be used with IUD's (my current choice in no-more-babies-thankyouverymuch )
Also, cost-wise, the DivaCup costs MORE than the other two. Yes, i know this is kind-of penny pinching, but if I'm going to be frugal, i want to be capital-F Frugal.
my thoughts: not unless hubby gets the snip. and i'd still rather try the keeper first.
Now, on to a broader playing field. cloth pads.
Two commercial varieties i looked at were Glad Rags and Lunapads.
These are both nice products, but Hoo-boy are they pricey!
So, i think to myself; I've got a serger, and a sewing machine, and a nice stash of fabric. why don't i just make my own?
Enter: more research.
the results: lots of nice free patterns available, some with good pictures. a good hub page with lots of links is found here
my thoughts: i'm cheap. i'm-a gonna make mah own!
final results: since this is still just in the planning stages, i'm not sure how things'll turn out, but i'll be sure and keep y'all posted. i definitely will be pulling out my fleece and terry fabrics and deciding on what pattern/patterns to try soon though!
heck, i might even get real crazy and try number 7 on this list of ways to use more cloth and less paper/plastic products! hey, i'm already doing 3 loads (or more) of cloth diapers every week. This would be different how?
take care, everyone, and as the weather starts to warm, like the earth: think green!
HEY! This couldn't be more relevant to what I have been researching ALL DAY! We are organizing a pad making drive at the U of W soonish. The idea being that we are trying to bolster our fem product supply for the food bank. I think the idea we've been kicking around is make 4 pads, donate 2 keep two, for the registration price. Buying a lot of fabric for the workshop will be cheaper than everyone going out to buy their own (because hopefully we can get cheaper prices on fabric for the cause) and we can buy big bags of snaps and other fasteners.
ReplyDeleteI think it'll be great, cause for all those ladies who procrastinate about making their own pads (ahem, yours truly) this gives them the chance to get together with other women, socialize, get what they want and donate to others.
Let me know if you're interested. We can talk more about it on Friday. At the very least, we should have a sewing bee of our own!
guloninae - that's a great idea! i've got some re-sourced flannel and terry that i'm going to use for my first test-pieces... hoping to print out and whip up a couple of patterns this week!
ReplyDeleteHrmm...did I mention you should never let me find out you have a blog, because then I read it?
ReplyDeleteComments: IUDs = cool. I love mine :D But yeah, IUDs + cups = supposedly bad. (Too bad, or Id be curious to try them too.)
I don't think I'm enough of a hippy to ever try cloth pads though...
re IUD's: apparently the keeper cup is 'safe but use caution' in its FAQ whereas the Diva cup say's it's a definite no-no. i couldn't currently cross the border (don't have a birth cert. for the littlest yet) but would consider doing so JUST to pick up a Keeper.
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