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Post by SisterNancy on Apr 26, 2008 12:49:33 GMT -5
Sister Brenda, the ones I have seen on the web look complicated. Do you only use cloth diapers and nothing else? or do you layer in other things like plastic, or terry cloth etc? I guess what I am asking is do you just take a diaper and fold it and that is that? or have you sewn them etc? do the wet pads make your panties wet? sorry, I am trying to understand. thanks!
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Post by 7schmicks on Apr 26, 2008 19:09:12 GMT -5
Dear Sister Nancy, I just fold them and that's that! It is very simple and inexpensive. They stay in place fine with well-fitting cotton panties, and I just make sure to change them in time! They get sweaty in the summer, which makes them need to be changed more often because the sweat wicks the flow. I've thought about folding and sewing them to keep their shape, but they would probably take longer to dry, so I haven't done it. Sister Brenda
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Post by SisterNancy on Apr 26, 2008 21:24:04 GMT -5
Sister Brenda,
thank you!
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Post by glenda on May 10, 2008 21:34:27 GMT -5
We have used them for years. They last for ever.. I have three teenage girls and honestly they have hardly ever used store bought. We like them because for one there is NO landfils when we use them. We also like them because we are the one in control of what we clean them with. I use homemade laundry detergent and just put them in a tub of water allow them to soak and then wash them.. They work great and we have had NO Infections since we started useing them. also another thought is because we use them our bodies can breath.. just my thoughts glenda
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Post by 7schmicks on May 10, 2008 23:15:29 GMT -5
How do you ladies who use cloth pads and have daughters handle this. My daughters are 9 and 6, so I haven't crossed that bridge yet, but do you each have your own marked pads or do you just all use the same ones in turn? I've been thinking about this more since my 9-year-old is over-weight, and I worry about her starting her period early. I think her cousin was around 9 when she started. I would like her to slim down not only for the health of her body, but to help prevent early on-set puberty. It is hard getting a child to slim down, though, and I also worry that our concern over her weight might make her too self-conscious. (I'm a worry who needs to quit it! ) Sister Brenda
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Post by wife on May 12, 2008 13:47:11 GMT -5
I have been using cloth only since the fall, and I have felt much better since then. I have had less pain and also a shorter time. My oldest daughter is 12 and we have discussed whether or not we will have her use them. My husband at first said "this is in no way anything I would ever ask you to do" meaning that he thought it was disgusting and no matter how much disposables cost he would always purchase them for us. However, he now things it is a much healthier (not to mention significantly cheaper) way, and that it frees us up from having to be a slave-consumer to this just because we are female.
With all that- I have made my own out of pretty fabric and batting. I also use plain fabric diapers when I need to but as the time progresses I have found less of a need to (less flow). If I need "extra protection" I jujst use more than one pad. I also have made "pad holders" with snaps that attach to my panties, complete with "wings" for added protection. I don't use anything but cotton for all layers, and I have had less accidents with these than I did with the disposables. Also, I just rinse them in cold water, and put them in a bucket with cold water, a little soap and some hydrogen peroxide. The bucket has a lid, but I don't snap it all the way on because the peroxide lets off oxygen which would cause the air in the bucket to expand. I pour the water out and wash every day using a lingerie bag to hold them in and they can go in whatever load I happen to be washing (with the exception of kitchen things- I find that if I have gotten up spilled grease, even though I wash it all away in the laundry, I don;t want to run the risk of making my pads less absorbent). They are no different than any other laundry. I figure if life grows in that- it has to be cleaner than the stuff that we pick up on our clothes outside.
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Post by mitchell on May 12, 2008 14:27:48 GMT -5
Back when I faced this question of what sort of feminine hygiene protection to us, tampons were all the rage. I always disliked them immensely and thought they seemed unsanitary, not very dependable and uncomforable as well. I settled on disposable pads which were probably not a particularly good choice as far as cost and the environment were concerned. My mother's sister and her daughter always used any sort of cotton rags they could get hold of to use, then they would launder them in lye soap and then boil them in a big old cast iron cauldron over an open fire outside. That was a long time ago, and I thought we were pretty progressive to use the disposable pads. My parents burned every bit of burnable trash we generated back then (over 40 yrs. ago), so we didn't actually have anything to go to the landfill - even tin cans would burn and deteriorate pretty good). - I would say that the reusable cotton ones are a kinder, gentler choice for this day and age; but I wouldn't feel the least bit guilty if I were in the midst of traveling or other endeavor and needed to use the more convenient disposable ones temporarily.
There is a sort of cup type of reusable, washable "collector" that the ecologically minded women are using of late that I've seen advertised in magazines like "Countryside". However, it would seem to me to raise questions about the health questions associated with using plastic type materials, not to mention the question of comfort as well. This would certainly not be anything suitable for girls; only possibly for women. I don't even remember what the product is called, and while it wouldn't appeal to me personally, it's not for me to rule out anyone else's ideas.
It's my idea that the more natural we can be in any area of life, the better off we are!
Wanda
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Post by glenda on May 12, 2008 15:45:16 GMT -5
One thing that you might want to do when that time comes is make your daughters in a nice cotton fabric that she likes. Let her go out with you and pick it. For our home with there being four of us that use them we sometimes have to use one of the others. NO big deal we wash them anyway.. The great thing about homemade montly essentials is that you can make them to fit each person. And also you can make many different sizes to go along with your own cycle. Some months we need a thicker one other times we need a thiner one. Also at night time we have longer pads that we use. As far as my children they are 18, 17, and 14. They have used these well almost there whole life of being on there cycle. They have seen me use them so it is no big deal. When we are out and about we will take zip lock bags with us and inside is a clean monthly pad. We change them out as needed and put the dirty one inside the bag. When we get home we just put them into a soak. You can take a old makeup bag with you to make it less noticeable. One of the good things about using homemade is that well one it is less in the landfils, two it is a whole lot better for you, and there this is something that you can reuse old tee shirts, or even a old flannel blanket to make.. We have also used old washclothes and towels to make ours.. Hope this helps. glenda
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Post by divash on May 21, 2008 11:17:26 GMT -5
I'm reluctant to post on this subject, to a board which men read, so I won't get into specifics. However, here's what I recommend:
1. Use a diaper that is small, meant for a newborn. Fold it into thirds for thickness and shape. Rely on tighter underpants to hold it in place, OR pin it to your underpants with a safety pin, OR sew/pin together a belt made of elastic that will hold it in place but be removable. Benefit: You can wash it and bleach it, then hang it on a drying line without the whole world knowing what it is.
2. Buy manufactured pads. They are expensive, yes, so buy just one at a time (or a small package, if they're not sold singly). Use that one on your heaviest day, at a time when you know you won't leave the house for a few hours. Check once every half-hour to figure out how long you can reasonably expect to go without changing. Every month, buy another one (or small pack). This way you can get used to wearing the cloth pads in a gradual way; you'll be phasing out your use of disposables; and the cost won't seem so insurmountable if you buy them one at a time, as if you buy them all at once. You'll also have some disposables in the house for when your daughter(s) are old enough to need their own, or for when a guest comes and needs to borrow something -- you don't want her using yours, and she probably doesn't want to use yours, either!
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Post by SisterNancy on May 21, 2008 16:51:53 GMT -5
Divash, I love your advice and am glad you join us!
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Post by wife on May 23, 2008 20:02:46 GMT -5
I have recently had to be away from home for about 5 days and it was difficult to use the cloth pads. I was caring for my mother-in-law who just found out that she has 3 tumors in her brain. She's been having chemotherapy for lung cancer since August, 2007, but it has recently spread to her brain. When she found this out, she wanted to not be left alone, as well as she was having confusion and balance problems, etc... so me and my daughters stayed with her during those days. She will stay with us during the week while she has whole brain radiation. I think I would have used my pads if the circumstances would have been different, but with all of the house work and cooking at her home I needed to do - and out of my own element too- I didn't have time to wash my pads as often as I needed to in order to have enough, so I used disposables. It was uncomfortable and expensive. I plan to make more pads, and get a smaller- maybe 3 gallon size bucket to carry with me when I know I'll be away from home like that. The problem mostly was the inability to wash them in a timely fashion so as to have enough to get me through the whole time I was away.
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Post by benshelpmeet on Jan 23, 2009 13:41:38 GMT -5
Dear sisters,
We changed over to cloth pads and we love them, me and my 2 oldest daughters use them.
I do not know how to make them, and I can't afford to buy them so we use white wash cloths. I bleed heavy so I fold mine in thirds, my daughters fold theirs longer and thinner. I can't afford baby diapers yet, but Divash had a great idea about newborn diaper size.
We take a bag of fresh wash cloths in the van with us when we go out in public (which isn't too often.) We put a zip lock bag in our purse with a fresh cloth in it and we take the used one and put it in the bag, and put the fresh one on, no mess no fuss, we wash it when we get home.
We wash our cloths with cold water and Fels Naptha, it's good to leave a little soap in the rag and then toss it in the clothes basket.They come out clean.
We bought a couple pkgs (18 wash cloths for 3.00 at Wal Mart) of white wash cloths. These work great for us, we share, we all are responsible to wash out the stain in cold water with Fels Naptha at the sink right after we change it. This works out real well for our family.
Store bought pads leak real bad with me, but I do not have that problem anymore.
This saves us so much money a month. We have 4 more daughters that will need pads and this will work great for us all.
We have a washcloth drawer just for our white cloths (not for family or household use) We put a stack on the back of the commode when we need them, and we keep a bar of Fels Naptha (other soaps work good too) on the sink in the family bathroom.
If you haven't tried this you should give it a try. I'm a pretty picky person and I wish I would have been doing this from the start.
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Post by Donna on Mar 4, 2009 14:30:11 GMT -5
Right now www.softclothbunz.com is having a half-price sale on some prefold diapers that they consider "seconds" I purchased the preemie size in the unbleached. After washing them 3 times to get rid of the non-absorbent finish on them, they measure approximately 9 x 11 which seems to be perfect for me when folded in thirds. They were only 63 cents apiece. Hope this helps anyone interested in giving them a try. Donna
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Post by benshelpmeet on Mar 4, 2009 15:02:24 GMT -5
Thank you sister Donna , that is very helpful. Diapers are so expensive, that's a great deal!
I love the absorbency and savings with homemade pads and both my teen girls like the homemade better than store bought, I'm glad they do.
Your a blessing!
Love, ~ sister Darlene ~
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Post by benshelpmeet on Mar 24, 2009 10:50:09 GMT -5
In the automotive section in Wal Mart they have a pkg of 12 cotton Terry Towels, they are 14''x 17'', these would be perfect for heavy flow or after one has a baby, I bought a bundle just to have on hand they were $5.00. These look like huge white wash cloths and they use these for car detailing,( buffing and such ).
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