Not my website! Just a cool thing I encountered. I no longer have periods, but when I did, my flow was incredibly heavy and I spent a lot of money on pads (and of course threw away hundreds of them). I know reusable pads aren’t an option for everybody, but they’re definitely a great way to reduce waste! Of course, another good option would be buying menstrual underwear etc, but as someone who sews I thought I’d share this for other people who sew <3
(Also you can do cute patterns!)
A few fun facts:
Cotton cloth pads smell better because they allow moisture to evaporate (rather than it being trapped in by plastic)
You can wash them by hand or just rinse them to throw in with the rest of your clothes
Research estimates that people who menstruate use about 11,400 pads in their lifetime
Peroxide followed by washing in cold water with soap is the most effective way to remove blood stains but it can weaken the fabric if you use it every time. Washing as soon as possible, always in cold, even if you’re just using whatever hand soap is available, will get it safely clean. The dryer or hot water would not only stress the fabric it would make bloodstains permanent.
is that doable for pads tho? trying to empathize with the situation of feeling some leakage and having to rush to the bathroom to handwash and then put the probably still cold and not fully dry back down my pants, and really not loving how that would feel for vagina-havers in general lol. even aside from the sensory nightmare that sounds like, it just seems really disruptive to anybody trying to study/work/whatever in a way that i at least have the impression pads were meant to avoid, no? really appreciate the answer to my question tho, even if it raised a bunch more 😂
As with any pads you’d carry a spare or two, in case the first one gets soaked through, and that’s also why a waterproof outer liner is important. Depending where you are, you could probably wash/rinse it and then roll it up in the carry pouch until you go home. Or even without washing it although that’s not ideal.
When a reusable pad is full you just put a fresh one on, wash the dirty one, and let it dry on its own. If you’re out you just put it in a plastic baggie for washing when you get back home. Putting a wet one down your pants would be horrible, haha
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Discussing ways to reduce waste and build community!
Celebrate thrift as a virtue, talk about creative ways to make do, or show off how you reused something!
Peroxide followed by washing in cold water with soap is the most effective way to remove blood stains but it can weaken the fabric if you use it every time. Washing as soon as possible, always in cold, even if you’re just using whatever hand soap is available, will get it safely clean. The dryer or hot water would not only stress the fabric it would make bloodstains permanent.
is that doable for pads tho? trying to empathize with the situation of feeling some leakage and having to rush to the bathroom to handwash and then put the probably still cold and not fully dry back down my pants, and really not loving how that would feel for vagina-havers in general lol. even aside from the sensory nightmare that sounds like, it just seems really disruptive to anybody trying to study/work/whatever in a way that i at least have the impression pads were meant to avoid, no? really appreciate the answer to my question tho, even if it raised a bunch more 😂
Yeah no not like that!
As with any pads you’d carry a spare or two, in case the first one gets soaked through, and that’s also why a waterproof outer liner is important. Depending where you are, you could probably wash/rinse it and then roll it up in the carry pouch until you go home. Or even without washing it although that’s not ideal.
When a reusable pad is full you just put a fresh one on, wash the dirty one, and let it dry on its own. If you’re out you just put it in a plastic baggie for washing when you get back home. Putting a wet one down your pants would be horrible, haha