Period PantEEZ

"After purchasing brand new sheets, I found myself sleeping on itchy, uncomfortable towels that bunched up throughout the night, in hopes to protect my beautiful sheets, after an extremely restless and uncomfortable night, when I was sitting quietly, my"Aha!" moment came to me, and I immediately began to create Period PantEEZ!"  

                                                                _Vida, Period PantEEZ creator_

Vida is the woman behind the ingenious Period PantEEZ. 

It took her five years of hard work to improve the initial idea and bring the product to the market as it is nowadays, revolutionising women's intimate wear since. Period Panteez are designed and engineered by healthcare professionals and OB/GYN recommended. 

I've been lucky enough to try Period Panteez and I think I know why they've quickly become a women favourite.
Period Panteez give you great peace of mind as they offer extreme protection, they're super comfy, work well as shapewear (which I find great!) and soothe cramps.

I didn't believe it was possible but they work. 

Pretty Eco Intimates Giveaway!

Last week I said to my Facebook followers that I would have brought a super pretty giveaway if I reached 200 like on my page before the end of the week, well I didn't but as I love to make you happy, here it is! 

I've teamed up with Natalia from Pretty Eco Intimates as I love her creations so much (you can read my review here ) to offer you the chance to win one flared 8 inch moderate cloth pad in the beautiful Paris Pin Up print and a coordinated pad wrap. 

Pretty Eco Intimates - My Review

Pretty Eco Intimates cloth pads are prettier, more comfortable, cooler, healthier, affordable and economical as well as environmentally friendly. I use quality materials to ensure they are long lasting, practical, durable and comfortable.   Natalia MacIntyre. 

Towards the end of December I was lucky enough to win a custom pad by Pretty Eco Intimates  (aka PEI) entering a multi vendors Christmas trivia contest on Facebook, I can still remember the question that brought me to win the prize: "list the names of Santa's reindeer" LOL   

It was a lovely Christmas present because I had my eyes on PEI for a while and having the opportunity to customise the pad has made the winning even more special. 

I chose a 9 inch moderate in a beautiful trees and birds print cotton print but I also asked the owner, Natalia, if she could have made an extra panty liner (which of course I paid for), she kindly agreed so I got a small liner to use for backup to menstrual cups.

These are the pads that I got:

      Summer Song 9" moderate and Geekly Chiq on black 6" Itty Bitty liner

                                 

When I got in touch with Natalia I immediately noticed what a nice person she is, then after few weeks I couldn't believe it when I received an email saying that I was the (very) lucky winner of two PEI pads! Amazingly I won one more contest, this time a giveaway hosted by Laura of Mama Pure blog  and the prize were two 10 inch heavy pads and again I got the opportunity to pick the prints/fabrics I like the most. 

Yes, I must be on a winning roll :) (I'm don't even want to say out loud though LOL) but that's the thing: Natalia is always very keen to  offer her fabulous creations for contests and giveaways so the chance you can grab one are very high.  

That's how Natalia is though: a kind, helpful and accommodating lady, she's a pleasure to deal with, and this is for me a big yes when looking for a vendor, it's not only about pretty things in my opinion but it's also supporting a worthy person/business. 

  

For my second winning I told Natalia I'd have preferred to get one heavy and one moderate and again she said it was fine. 

At that point Pretty Eco Intimates had a even wider choice of prints to choose from, so after having spent a whole week browsing the impressive Custom Fabric Gallery  on the website and even getting my partner involved - bless him! - we finally picked these two prints:

           Sushi-10" moderate and Dragonfly Red Stained Glass -10" heavy 

                       (image credit: Pretty Eco Intimates)

Since I got the pads the variety of prints available is even wider and makes you want to get tons of fluff! By the way, I choose the Sushi fabric and the Dragonfly Red Stained Glass is the one my partner picked. He has good taste, I know ;) 

Both parcels arrived very quickly, even though the first shipment has happened during the holiday season the parcel has arrived in about 10/12 days, while the second one took less than a week to arrive from Prince Edward Island to Britain which is more than a reasonable time. 

The following pic shows the second package I received but then I'm showing you all the PEI pads I own. 

All Pretty Eco Intimates pads have an inner core of organic bamboo/hemp fleece and are backed with micro-fleece which is water resistant therefore protects against eventual leaks, the snaps are in poly resin applied with KAM snap pliers. My PEI pads are all 100% cotton topped but you can choose also flannel and cotton, as I said you are spoiled for choices. 

The smaller pad Natalia make is the 6 inch Itty Bitty liner, it's super trim, once snapped it's 2.5" at its widest and 2.1" at its narrower, perfect for petite ladies, this is one of my favourite liners ever, you can't even tell that you are wearing it as it's so thin and comfy! I love it, it's perfect either for everyday use and as back up for menstrual cups or sponges.

My other PEI pads are 9" and 10" moderate which have one layer of bamboo/hemp fleece and a 10" heavy which contain two layers. Two layers are enough if your period is generous and keep the pad very trim, as you can see in the pic on the left the last pad in blue is the 10" heavy and is VERY thin for an heavy pad! The core is highly absorbent, and a moderate in my case works great for good part of my period, that's why I specifically asked to have a 10" mod although it may sound unusual. 

As I said PEI pads are very trim and work great for small sizes, the all come with two snaps, all my pads once snapped are 2.5" or 2.1".
They are very neatly topstitched and the quilting works great to direct the flow. By the way the quilted side is the one that goes next to the skin (I had already people asking me about it). 

About Pretty Eco Intimates 

Natalia as I told you before is a really nice lady, she's a stay-at-home mom and entrepreneur, she's very down-to-earth and has always had a great passion for the environment, so after cloth diapering her gorgeous little girl Eden (love that name!) she was inspired to try cloth pads and then decided to open her little shop. Thanks God I say! Quickly enough her brand became a very well known name and a favourite of many cloth pads lovers, definitely a favourite of mine too. 


I will definitely buy again from Natalia, my experience with her pads is great, they work very well and they are extremely comfortable, that's their main feature in my opinion besides being SO pretty! 

Just in case you need an extra reason to get some PEI pads you should know then that all the customers get a 10% discount on the next purchase.




You can see and buy Natalia's creations through Pretty Eco intimates website , she also makes pad wrappers, menstrual cup bags and coasters. 

Disclaimer: I haven't been paid for this review, I won some of the pads on a giveaway and purchased the other. All the opinions about the product are my own and based on my personal experience, I wasn't required in any way to provide a positive review. 

Cups Comparison - Si-bell

This one want to be a quick post to compare the small Si-bell with other other menstrual cups, I'll update the post time to time adding more pics. 
I'm going to compare the small Si-bell pink limited edition with a small Meluna classic (orange), a reader asked me if i could take few pics of the two together and compare them so here they are.

If any of you out there have a specific request feel free to ask, I'm always happy to snap pics of my cups, or cloth pads. Yes, I'm a cupaholic, and a paddict, a rumpaholic I'd say, but I guess that if you are here then you are one too! ;)  

Femmecup Special Giveaway

As promised on my Facebook page I'm going to host my first Giveaway! 

I especially wanted a Giveaway to thank all my followers on Fb, Twitter and Pinterest who have been loyal to me during the time I haven't being able to be active on the blog, so giveaway is going to be extra special and keep in mind that this is the first one but I have more coming ahead so stay tuned! 

So to thank you all Menstrual Cups Diary has teamed up with Femmecup to bring you an awesome giveaway where you can win not one but two Femmecup!

Yes you've heard it right,

Femme Cup: One Size One Love

I want to talk about a menstrual cup I got a few months ago, the Femmecup ,I received it in a fun pink package all the way from London! 

First thing I noticed it was that the package itself had written on it "Environmentally Friendly Bags-this product is guaranteed 100% biodegradable" so I was very pleasantly surprised, it's nice to see a company so committed to their ethic to choose to support their cause under any single aspect of their business.  

Inside the package I found a few paper stickers to use to spam toilets, which I love to do! (always ask for permission before though!) there was a window cling sticker, a pen, a sample cup to show people about if you want to spread the word about menstrual cup.

Crimson Wave Cloth Shop

I've been away for a while but I'm baaack! 

I'm so happy today 'cause I've received the my winning from the Purple Bless You Giveaway by Cassandra Benz. Thank you Cassandra and thank you to all the lovely shop owners who took part to it!

Join the She28campaign

I've just stumbled upon a video and I wanted to share it out, I also suggest you to do likewise and spread the word. 

The video has been made by she28campaign which is a non-profit organization founded in 2007 and whose mission is to improve the quality of people's lives in develping countries addressing social and healh problems. 
she stand for sustainable health enterprise. 

"At she, we believe that a girl's life does not have to stop every 28 days because of her menstrual cycle. Missing up to 50 days of school or work is not only a "blood cost" to women and girls, but to their families, communities, and nations as a whole."

Eco Femme Cloth Pads - My review

One of the first brands of cloth pads that really caught my eyes is EcoFemme.

I've always loved that sort of exotic Indian fabrics that remind me those seventies hippie style boho tunics, kaftans and fair trade Indian bags, well the Eco Femme pads are made of beautiful Indian fabrics and soon as I saw them on-line I liked them straight away. 

Another reason why I was eager to try them out is because of the project behind the product itself.

Eco Femme is a global women's empowerment project promoting healthier, dignified and eco-friendly menstrual practises, it was created in 2009 in Auroville  a village in the south of India by a team of 11 wonderful women-the Eco Femmes -with big hearts driven by the will of breaking the silence and the shame around the menstruation in rural India and creating a connection between women around the world through a topic common to us all.

"The Eco Femme project empowers women in the areas of environment, education and livelihood"

A Quick Update - Talking Heart-to-Heart

 HI!

I haven't been very active on my blog lately, I haven't posted articles as much as I wanted to do, it's not going as I had it planned in my mind and my project has slowed down quite a bit.
Unfortunate circumstances in my life are causing the annoying delay of this project as well as other and everything it's not as I intended it to be.
During the last few months I've been struggling with my health, I have been away from my job for already five months now and I won't be able to come back to it for a while, this blog has been created for many reasons, the first is surely, as I've always said, and as specified on my profile, to share my experiences and promote the use of eco-friendly menstrual products and talk about the benefits I achieved by using them, I'm very passionate about everything related to the feminine universe and all things that allows me to lead a more sustainable life; the second reason for giving birth to this blog (which is my first ever-I'm amazed myself!) is more personal. 

Si-bell Menstrual Cup : My review

I'm excited every time I get a new cup but I'm proper thrilled for the one I'm going to talk you about today: the Si-bell menstrual cup. 

I've always thought of the Si-bell as a luxurious cup, I like the shape very much and the fact that it's manufactured in Italy by the Si-line, a French company with over ten years of experience in mastering silicone made products, so when the parcel arrived at my door I was buzzing, and when I open it I definitely knew that I was right.

My Lunette Menstrual Cup Review

This is my review of the Lunette menstrual cup.



First of all I'm going to give you some basic info:

•Lunette is made in Finland of medical-grade silicone

•it's FDA approved, the colours used are 100% safe and free of heavy metals

•it's designed with a smooth cup lining for easy cleaning

•the texture is kind of velvety to the touch

•it presents a flat easy-to grip stem and 3 grip rings at the bottom of the cup which result really helpful for the extraction

•it shows 4 suctions holes on the very top next to the rim which allow to make the most of the capacity

•it's available in clear and in four colours

•it's available in two sizes: size 1 and size 2

Size 1

diameter                       41mm

total lenght                   66mm

lenght without stem        47mm

stem                             25mm

capacity to the air holes   21ml

capacity to the rim           25ml

not as stiff as size 2

Size 2

diameter                        46mm

total lenght                    72mm

lenght without stem        52mm

stem                             20mm

capacity to the air holes   26ml

capacity to the rim           30ml

stiffer then size 1

Lunette size 1 is recommended for women with light to moderate flow, young girls or women who have never had intercourse or that haven't given birth; the size 2 is for women who have a normal or heavier flow or/and have given birth. 
Also, contrary to many other brands, the size 1 is softer then size 2 as you can see on the following pic where I compare the stiffness of the two sizes and the diameter of the rims. 

The Lunette menstrual cup can be used continuously for up to 12 hours, it's hypoallergenic and safe.
Can be easily cleaned by washing it with a mild liquid soap or placing in boiling water for 5 minutes.

You can also use Lunette washing liquid or wipes, personally I love the Lunette wipes, they are a quick and easy way of cleaning the cup on the go and they have been a real life safer in many occasions. 

Lunette cup looks kind of "frosty" and the texture it's quite velvety and very smooth, it only shows two very subtle measuring lines; the Lunette logo and "Made in Finland" situated along the top ridge (just under the rim) are cleverly printed on the outside of the cup to avoid trapping any eventual blood residue.

I received my Lunette menstrual cups in both sizes together with a lovely satiny storing pouch, the instructions sheet, some very useful Q&A booklets and lots of stickers, which I always enjoy receiving (if you are a secret spammer you know why ;) Shhhh!) 

When I received my two cups I sterilised them boiling them for 5 min. I usually do that with all my cups as soon as take them off the package, then when I'm going to use a cup on my period I prefer to sterilise it in the microwave for 2/3 minutes.

The cups arrived in perfect time for my period, I tried the size 1 first, I wore it for the night and the first day, then I tried the size 2.

With both sizes I used the punch-down fold, I smeared all the rim and the longer side of the cup with water based lubricant.


Then I inserted the cup, with the folded side facing the back of my body as the back wall of the vagina is softer and the cup opens easily.




The insertion was amazingly easy, Lunette menstrual cup pops open very easily, without causing pain or problems, it create a strong seal and it is very comfortable.
I found comfortable both sizes, I couldn't feel them at all, personally the only difference I found (apart from the stiffness) it's about the capacity, that's why I prefer to use the size 1 on the first and last days when the flow is lighter and the size 2 on the heaviest days. 
The suction seal created is quite strong, one of the stronger I've ever experienced compared to other menstrual cups, but probably that's why I didn't have any leak at all.

Taking the cup off it's as easy as insert it, because of the strong seal you need to pinch the bottom quite firmly and you may also need to slightly press one side of the cup with a fingertip too but nothing too tricky. 

My opinion about Lunette menstrual cups is really positive, easy to use and easy to clean, you can tell the silicone is of really good quality, all the colours available are very pretty  and I love the fact that are FDA approved.
I suggest Lunette to any woman, even as a first menstrual cup as it pops open very easily and it's an good quality cup.

Lunette is one of the stiffer cup available in the market but that doesn't make it uncomfortable, on the contrary that's why it opens so easily.
What I personally love the most about Lunette are the soft "velvety" texture and the grip rings which make the extraction really easy.
  

At the moment Lunette is available clear and in four colours: blue Selene, purple Cynthia, coral Áine and green Diana, keep in mind though that the purple Cynthia is now been changed with a new brighter purple colour and soon the green Diana won't be available anymore but it'll be replaced with new exciting colour in August...looks like we are going to have a yellow Lunette! (thank you Teresa at Feminine Wear for the tip!) Can't wait to see it! 
I guess that you may still be able to purchase the classic purple Cynthia and maybe the green Diana but you have to be quick!

This a video made by Lunette that shows how to fold the cup using the punch-down technique which is the one I use but there are many more demonstrative videos on YouTube to show more techniques. 

I want to thank Eija and Mari at Lunette as they have been so gracious to allow me to test and review the Lunette menstrual cups.

Lunette menstrual cups can be purchased on-line through:

Lunette website  http://www.lunette.com/ 

Luxury Moon      http://luxurymoon.co.uk/

Feminine Wear    http://www.femininewear.co.uk/




Disclaimer: I haven't been paid for this review, I received the item subject of this post for review purposes only, All the opinions about the product are my own and based on my personal experience, I wasn't required in any way to provide a positive review. 

Watch this space!

I'd like to show you my collection of menstrual 
cups, I'm actually writing my reviews so if anyone has any interest to a specific one and need some info or want me to review it, don't be shy, feel free to ask, I'll be more than happy to help.
Or if you have any personal experience to tell I'll be glad if you'd share it leaving a comment. 

Lunette clear size1

Lunette 
Selene size2   
   

 FemmyCycle

                       







                                   Femmecup

How I got into reusable menstrual products

I'd like to talk about my discovery of the world reusable menstrual products and to explain why I decided to give up old plasticky (and smelly I'd say!) pads and tampons switching to menstrual cups and cloth pads.

I've been using disposable pads and tampons basically since ever, I started using pads then after about a year I switched to tampons and I must say that I never had any problem with them (I was still virgin), I know some women do but for me they always worked alright even if frankly I never truly liked them because of their tendency to dry up the vaginal mucoses resulting quite uncomfortable, especially the insertion. 
But we didn't have any other options at that time and surely for me tampons sounds great compared to bulky, plasticky, sweaty pads. 
Then it was about two years ago when I was wandering on Facebook and I came across a picture of an object totally alien to me,

About me and this Blog

Welcome

This is my first post so I'm going to introduce myself and to explain the purpose of this blog, even though the clue is in the title i guess ;) 

I was borned in sunny Italy in 1979 but I've lived in the North East coast of England for the last seven years, please be kind and pardon me if my english is not perfect being not my native language.

I'm passionate about life in general but above all I like reading, web activities, crafting, cross-stitching, ecology and I'm a menstrual cups and cloth pads enthusiast.

I moved in England because of my job and because I really wanted to make a change in my life, I easily get bored.and I like experimenting new things and having new experiences. That's probably one of the few reasons who got me in this blog adventure.