I hand-sewed cloth pads last week. Basically I used old sweater and sweatshirt material for the inside and out. I cut a rectangle of material for the inside part, doubled or triple-folded it depending on the thickness of the material, then sewed the outside part up. Very simple and basic; each pad took about 10 minutes to make.

I have been using mostly cloth instead of commercial made pads for years, but my cloth pads consisted of me folding 2 old long cotton socks into each other. Sometimes I’d sew up the end. I’d been meaning to sew some pads for some time but just wouldn’t make the time to do it. Having this blog has been great about motivating me to go on ahead and to the environmentally-friendly things I’ve been meaning to do. Not just because it gives me something to post, but because it makes me really stick to my commitment to changing my life. In addition to being environmentally-friendly, using cloth pads is great for me because it saves me money and is better for my body (I’m not absorbing any chemicals and additives like from using a tampon or a commercial-made pad). Here’s some pics of the pads during construction all the way to the end! The finished pads aren’t especially pretty but they are highly functional. I wore them throughout my last period and had no leaks, even overnight. During the day I changed them every 2-3 hours.

If you’re worried about the hygiene involved in using cloth pads, fear not. I don’t use bleach (I don’t even keep it in my house; the only time I buy bleach is when I have something tremendous to kill like the mold and grossness in the basement cleanup) to sanitize them. Just soak them in cold water before washing, that’s all you have to do. Think about it…you probably wear cotton underwear all the time that you wash and reuse, how is a cloth pad any different. Soak before washing and the blood will come right out.

Here is some more info and I hope you consider using cloth pads!
Why Use Cloth Pads
What about Hygeine?
Don’t want to make your own? Buy some at Claire de Lune Cloth Pads

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