Reusable Washable Sanitary Pads

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• Description

  It's shocking to us how much plastic is in period products (up to four plastic bags worth in a pack of sanitary pads, did you know that? That horrified me). And tampons are every bit as bad, they're often wrapped in plastic and have plastic applicators, and even plastic inside the actual tampon. And the way pads are designed, sticky on one side, isn't always the most comfortable thing either, they bunch, they move and well, plastic held next to your bits is a road to other problems that we're all way too familiar with. Enter the reusable. Logically, it's a no-brainer isn't it? Yup, plastic is bad, reusable is good, so switching should be easy. But it's not, let's be honest about this. There's an emotional leap to be made here. There's the ick factor, there's the "do I really need an extra job?" notion and there's the logistics to be considered. This is a big idea, so let's unpack it bit by bit.

   

  We like these pads becuase they're discreet, they're black, so the ick factor is reduced enormously. When it's time to change the pad, rinse it out if that's practical, fold it up if not and pop it into the handy waterproof bag till you can deal with it.  So, to the washing of them - you need to rinse them out before you pop them in a machine and do a normal wash at 40 degrees without fabric softener. Popping all the used pads into a washbag will keep them all together and make sorting washing easy. Then hang to dry, you'll lengthen the life of them by not putting them in the dryer. They are waterproof, so let's get that elephant out of the room too. The waterproof lining is 100% polyester PUL and the wadding is polyester microfibre. You're right, it's not perfect, there's a trade-off here, we're vastly reducing single use plastic and we're still holding on to some of the comforts that we've come to expect as standard from period care products - being leak proof is just something I see as non-nogotiable and that's why these aren't in the Plastic Free Section of the site. The purists forged the way and all bought Mooncups years ago - but I see this range as the most brilliant half way house, if you haven't been open to the idea of reusable sanitary products in the past, I really think these will change your mind.

   

  So, on to how they perform. They're just lovely. That's not a word I've ever used about a period product before. They're soft, so very soft. They don't get warm and uncomfortable, they don't stick to you, they don't bunch or slide in the night, they don't smell. They make periods less uncomfortable and if you're someone who battles thrush every month because of sanitary pads, these could well be the end of that. Leakproof, comfortable and reliable, they're all the things you need from a pad. You won't feel the snap stud (I don't know why I thought you might, but you don't) and if one of these dropped out of your purse or pocket, nobody would bat an eyelid. Discreet as all heckers. Change them every three to four hours or when you feel you need to. And if you want to rollerskate or go for a run or whatever while you're wearing one, you can, they're not moving. They get great reviews from women that have used them and we have all tried them here and love them. They were designed by a woman, which I think is important, so that top layer that's next to your skin, that's 100% cotton flannel. Finally, for those of us of a certain age that um, cough sometimes and get a bit of a surprise, they'll cope with that too. The bag has two sections and a waterproof lining so you can keep used and unused products away from eachother and everything else in your bag. It's all been very, very well thought through.

   

  Looked after well, they should last five years. The average woman spends £10.24 a period, that's £665 over the five years these will last you. Let's assume you'll need 3 sets (one of each size) to deal with one period, that's a total of £44.00. That's a saving of £621 over the lifetime of your pads. That's a rent or mortgage payment. That's a holiday. Now it's not just comfort or ethics we're talking about, that's a significant sum of money. And all that waste not going into landfill, that's got to be a huge consideration for all of us.

   

  Maxi – 30.5 cm length x 6.5cm (width of middle of pad) triple layered inner - for heavy flow, maternity or overnight use (will hold up to 40ml of liquid)

  Regular – 25.5cm length x 6.5cm (width of middle of pad) double layered inner - for regular or "normal" flow

  Mini/Light – 22 cm length x 6.5cm (width of middle of pad) single layered inner - for light flow or use as a pantyliner