Ahh, adolescence. That wonderful time when your face resembles your favorite food, boys no longer have cooties, and girls experience that rite of passage, menarche.My 12 year old step-daughter walked into womanhood this summer. Being the terrible procrastinators that we are, we were unprepared for the event. A late night run to the local grocery store and a myriad of choices Oy!, none of which I have used since I was 12, took care of the problem at hand. The next day when we, I, was thinking clearer we logged on to Lunapads to discuss her options. Disposables had been covered at school, but she had no idea there were alternatives. We discussed the pros and cons of each and I left it up to her.
Bucking the norm, she chose to go the reusable route. I was surprised, but gleeful. Not even I had ventured into that territory. I started using the Diva cup a year ago, but was still using disposable pantyliners as a backup. Who is teaching who here? Having no personal experience to base her decision on, she went with economics. Although I think the leopard print had something to do with it. Putting aside all societal perspectives going green just makes sense. It seemed a pretty easy decision for her. "I can buy these and use them over and over, or buy these and buy them over and over?" Ahhh... Yep.
So we ordered a mini pad and a few liners to get her started. The total came to $34.97 with shipping. Not exactly a small price for 5 liners and 1 pad, but will ultimately save money in the end. She has been using them for several months now while with us during the week and disposables while at her mother's house on the weekends. After experiencing both options she has decided to go reusable all the way. Stating, "they feel better."Since participating in Rob's Make Do an Mend Challenge and the simplicity of their design we thought a little DIY was in order. She found purple flannel fabric and matching thread she liked. Total for the half yard of fabric and thread was $4.32. We used one of her Lunapad liners as a template and cut out a few pieces.
- Overcast around a single piece for a pantyliner.
- Pin two pieces together, sew a straight stitch down the center, and overcast the edge for light days.
- Using an old towel, cut an inner lining piece. Cut two pieces of fleece slightly larger (1/4 inch or so) than your inner liner. Pin inner liner to one piece. Sew zig-zag down center and around perimeter of inner liner. Pin second piece of flannel on top of first. The inner liner (towel piece) should be face down. Sew straight stitch around edge of inner liner leaving a two inch opening on a straight side. Trim excess flannel and turn right side out through opening. Sew two straight stitches on either side of center zig-zag. This will prevent shifting. Hand stitch opening shut. This would be for heavy days.
We have not even used half of the fabric and already have nine pads of varied thickness and design. Some with wings some without, some short some long, some fasten some do not. Add a waterproof layer of nylon if you like. Use scrap fabric you have, old flannel shirts, whatever. You can totally customize them! Ask Pauline has a great tutorial and free pattern to make your own. The Cloth Pad List is a great resource for finding every brand, size, shape there is. Also lists tutorials and free patterns available.
Before buying the fabric we walked past a pack of disposable pads in Target. They were nearly $9.00 for 32. When we got home she started doing the math. According to a 12 year old:
21 pads per month x 12 months = 252 pads per year x 33 years (she's assuming she doesn't have to pay for them until she's 18 & the average age of menopause is 51) = 8,316 pads divided by 32 (the number in the package she saw) = 260 boxes she would have to buy x $9.00 (the cost of the pack she saw) = $2,340.00 for disposable.
33 years divided by 5 (the number of years Lunapads states their pads last) = 7 (she rounds) times she would have to make new pads x $4.32 (the cost of fabric and thread) = $30.00 for reusable. (the cost of laundry doesn't even cross her 12 year old mind!)
$2,340.00 - $30.00 = $2,310.00 she saves! "That could feed a lot of cats!" HA!
She certainly gets the economic benefit of reusable pads, but also understands their environmental impact, too. Way less waste and no plastic. It has served as a great life lesson and a launching pad for her to think outside the norm for common sense solutions for the rest of her life.
Before buying the fabric we walked past a pack of disposable pads in Target. They were nearly $9.00 for 32. When we got home she started doing the math. According to a 12 year old:
21 pads per month x 12 months = 252 pads per year x 33 years (she's assuming she doesn't have to pay for them until she's 18 & the average age of menopause is 51) = 8,316 pads divided by 32 (the number in the package she saw) = 260 boxes she would have to buy x $9.00 (the cost of the pack she saw) = $2,340.00 for disposable.
33 years divided by 5 (the number of years Lunapads states their pads last) = 7 (she rounds) times she would have to make new pads x $4.32 (the cost of fabric and thread) = $30.00 for reusable. (the cost of laundry doesn't even cross her 12 year old mind!)
$2,340.00 - $30.00 = $2,310.00 she saves! "That could feed a lot of cats!" HA!
She certainly gets the economic benefit of reusable pads, but also understands their environmental impact, too. Way less waste and no plastic. It has served as a great life lesson and a launching pad for her to think outside the norm for common sense solutions for the rest of her life.
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11 comments:
wow - had no idea such a thing existed! have heard of mooncup,and have friends who swear by it, but this...???!!!
How nice to be eco-inspired by your step-daughter! I love that you looked at making the pads at home since the manufactured ones seem to be so much more expensive. Thanks for joining us this week for Thrifty Green Thursday!
I recently bought some lunapads and really like them. I wish I had started using them sooner. That's awesome your step daughter made that choice!
Fabulous. I've been using organic pads with no plastic, but it's still waste. I love this idea.
I am also really impressed by your step-daughter's decision! I also prefer the Diva Cup to pads, but a twelve-year-old would probably want pads. I know when I was her age, it never even crossed my mind to sew my own. Maybe she'll influence the next generation to embrace green living!
I am amazed by your step daughter! I coach a bunch of girls her age, and they all thought the diva cup was crazy. To them, the thought of washing any feminine project was beyond where they were willing to go.
It probably helps that she has been influenced by you and doesn't feel like she's the only one. I wonder if she will influence her friends?
I applaud your stepdaughter's choice. I made the switch about a year ago and wonder why I waited so long. My dd uses cloth pads as well, it wasn't really a surprising choice though since I make and sell them :)
One suggestion I would like to give is that nylon is water-resistant but not waterproof. PUL is a laminated fabric that is breathable but waterproof, you may want to check into it in the future if her flow becomes heavy.
For anyone who wants to use new materials, bamboo fabric is an eco-friendly product that will absorb a lot more than cotton and is really thin. One yard goes a long way in making the inner layers. Also for those who don't feel confident with making their own, there are a number of small makers out there on Etsy.com and Clothpadshop.com. Most of the small sellers are WAHMs who offer high quality products for a little less than the big sellers.
My daughter (14) uses cloth pads- except for PE days when she wears a tampon for the morning. I use them for backup protection. We have thought of making them ourselves but just haven't gotten around to it. She has some that have velcro wings but her favorites have snaps on the wings. Those are much easier to wash as the velcro doesn't get snagged on everything.
So, what do you do when you are out and need to change pads? How do you store the pad that is "full"?
JAM - If you back the pad with a material like flannel or fleece it tends to grip your underwear and not shift. For extra stayputness you can make them with wings that wrap around and fasten with snaps or velcro. FYI: velcro sticks to everything in the wash and loses its effectiveness. Make sure to keep it fastened when laundering. We prefer snaps.
Kim - Thanks for the tip on lining materials! I too, love the Etsy.
Anon - No problem, just carry bag to store them in until you get home. Launder the bag with the pads. If your pad has wings with fasteners, fold it into itself and fasten it closed with everything inside. (I think there is a picture of this at the Ask Pauline link in the post.) If your worried about seepage, use something waterproof like a ziploc bag if you haven't sworn off plastic.
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