Here at GladRags we are always trying to find new way to conserve and save.  Inspired by Simple Organic’s Green Goal Setting, we have decided to present you, our faithful readers, with a new Green Goal every week!  We will specifically be targeting goals that are within reach in a small time frame and a small budget.  Tracy (left) and I (right) are going to try them out right along with you and share our experiences in the comments.  We hope you will join us in our quest to reduce our footprint, one small step at a time!

First stop on the GladRags’ Green Goals train: cloth napkins and handkerchiefs!

Personally, I grew up in a household that used cloth napkins for all meals.  I was always weirded out going to friend’s houses whose families only used paper napkins or paper towels.  Cloth napkins feel so practical and comfortable to me!  They are softer and don’t fall apart in your hands like many paper napkins do after some use.  There may be a slightly higher upfront cost, but as you reuse the cloth napkins they will save you money and you’ll never run out!  Most of the napkins I have came as hand-me-downs from my parents or grandparents, but thrift stores are also a great place to pick some up.  Sewing cloth napkins is also a great way to go — even if you are a novice sewer (myself included), this project should be fairly simple.  For a great tutorial on making your own napkins check out Chez Beeper Bebe’s blog post (happy face napkins pictured are from her site).

Handkerchiefs are a whole different story.  Growing up, we always had a box of tissues.  Having had allergies and frequent colds, they have always been useful to me.  The tissues with lots of lotion in them were the best as they did not make my nose raw after many uses.  In college, I started to feel guilty for wasting all this paper and energy.  I started using toilet paper to save money and waste as the cheap toilet paper I use is thin and does not include lotion.  Lately, I have been trying to use handkerchiefs more often.  Handkerchiefs are also easy to make or cheap to buy at vintage stores.  GladRags offers some very soft organic handkerchiefs, too!

Some people have been using cloth napkins and handkerchiefs for years, so this goal is already second nature for them.  We challenge you to reduce your paper towel use even more by declining paper napkins with take-out food or carrying your own cloth for hand drying in public restrooms!

Tracy and I hope you will join us in finding fun, simple ways to make our lives even greener.  Leave a comment to let us know what you’re doing to conserve or share your own tips with us!

*Rolling On the Floor Laughing My GladRags Off

Periods can be a lot of things: uncomfortable, a relief, embarrassing, cause for celebration, a reminder of womanhood, taboo, and more.  But funny?  We think so — and so did Laura S. of Ohio who sent us this story:

One evening on a car ride with my parents, husband, and ten year old nephew, I started singing the song Rock Around the Clock.  When I sang the first line of the first verse, my husband busted out laughing. Only I understood why.  The first line of the verse is as follows:

“Put your glad rags on, join me hon.  We’ll have some fun when the clock strikes one. We’re gonna rock around the clock tonight…..”

Although “glad rags” can mean “stylish clothes,” my husband had only ever heard of the term GladRags to mean your reusable menstrual pads, hence, his laughter! (My husband didn’t believe that I was singing the correct words until we looked it up on the internet.)  So now, whenever he sees me reaching for my GladRags, he asks if I’m getting ready to rock around the clock!

We know you have at least one silly period anecdote — from the time your four-year-old set the table with your “special napkins” to what happened the first time you wore your Moon Cup to school — and we want to hear it!  Goofy photos, like this one of 9-month-old Max wearing a (clean) GladRag as hat, are also valid entries for the contest.  Even better, the submitter of the most laugh-out-loud hilarious tale will win a Cloth Pad Sampler Kit!

How it works: Post your story or image as a comment on this entry by 3/17/10. We’ll pick a few favorites and to be voted on on the GladRags Facebook page.  The story or photo with the most votes wins a Sampler Kit!

So come on, make us laugh!

Menstrual news, art, entertainment, activism, and more!  It’s a short one today.

• Learn what your vagina thinks of the tampons or menstrual cups debate in Tampon vs. Keeper: One Vagina’s Story on youtube in which “A vulva puppet learns the difference between standard and reusable menstrual products.”
• Sarah Haskins & Friends Talk Periods, Pads, And Poop at what looks like a very interesting panel discussion with Susan Kim (who you might know as the co-author of Flow: The Cultural Story of Menstruation) and  television producer Allison Silverman.  Check out this Jezebel article for videos and commentary.
• Simple Organic has a great article on Green Goal Setting, Part 1: Personal Life in which the author sets out a number of goals to consider for the coming year including switching to reusable menstrual products.  This has inspired us to create some green challenges of our own.  Look forward to joining us in our GladRags Green Goals in the near future.

Joni Christine has won the Moon Cup Kit contest by posting a comment on last week’s Menstrual Monday blog entry.  Please email us by the end of the week at orders@gladrags.com to receive your prize!

March Monthly Friend: Mary

Name: Mary
Age: 26
Hometown: Laramie, WY
Current location: Laramie, WY
Occupation: University Staff

Interests: Dogs, cooking, coffee, travel…
Dreams: To be a great mom (in 12 weeks when my baby is due!)

How long have you used reusable menstrual products?: 1 year
Reason for making the switch to reusables: I always found regular pads to be so uncomfortable, sticky, and frankly made me yeast-prone no matter how often they were changed. I know a lot of people are worried about the environment, and I care about that too of course, but the bottom line for me was comfort. I picked up GladRags at my local organic co-op and loved them! I have since switched over completely.

Funny anecdotes, deep thoughts, or anything else you’d like to share: So I noted above that I am 28 weeks pregnant. You might think, why does she even need GladRags??? Well let me tell you… it wasn’t too long into the pregnancy that I began to realize that when you are pregnant, everything drips like a faucet. I was at the library a few months ago in an elevator, trying to crane around to look past my belly to see what was on my pants when my boobs started leaking milk too. I may not be having my period, but if I don’t wear a liner every day it looks like I peed my (stretchy) pants! No fun at all. This is the adventure that is motherhood, I suppose. Since I had used GladRags my last few periods before I conceived, they were the natural choice for protection with the increased discharge and I am so grateful! Not only do I leak but I sweat too and I think I might die of heat rash if I had to wear sticky plastic every day. Yuck. Not only have cloth pads been good for me, they have been good for my baby too. I’ve been inspired to stock up on reusable breast pads and cloth diapers! These more natural options just feel right, and that’s important when I’m making choices for the little girl I love the most.

Welcome to Menstrual Monday!  Not to many stories for you today, but all good ones!

• Ascics shoe company comes out with a running shoe that changes shape based on where a woman is on her menstrual cycle.  Read more about how our arches change here.
• Blogger Stumptown Crunch has a great article on why the Diva Cup is so awesome!  The article include some striking visual aids (see photo).
• Frugal for Life reviews GladRags and offers Color Sampler Pack giveaway in a recent post!
• Crunchy Chicken discusses a new product, the glass menstrual cup.
• More menstrual humor (this time from a woman!) in the video Aunt Flow from Let’s Talk….Period from humorist and blogger Bern This.

February Monthly Friend: Teresa M. Stillwell

Name: Teresa M. Stillwell
Age: 37
Hometown: Conover, NC
Current Location: Conover, NC
Occupation: Help Desk Analyst for IT dept at a busy local Hospital

Interests: Nature, saving the environment, green living, photography, and reading. I also love to spend time with my cat baby, Gus, and my husband, Chad.
Dreams: To one day own my own company or be able to work for myself in some self-sustaining way.

How long have you used reusable menstrual products?: I have used reusable menstrual products now for 3 years, and I wish I had tried them 23 years ago (of course they weren’t marketed then). I had wanted to try them for years, but every time I mentioned to any friend or family, they would say: you can’t be serious - reusable menstrual products you have to wash - no thanks! I’ve suffered for years from irritation, infections, rashes, and discomfort and dread every month. Now since I’ve discovered GladRags, I almost look forward to my monthly friend. I’ve never felt so comforted and comfortable and not worried in my life regarding my menstrual cycle. For years I’ve worried about leakage, TSS, and other side effects of plastic and chemically altered products that aren’t meant to go in or on your body. Before my cycle was so heavy, and now since I’ve stopped using tampons and plastic pads, not only am I more comfortable, but my periods last about 1/3 as long as they did before and they are not as heavy. My cramps I’ve suffered with since I was 13 have also greatly diminished. I am in awe! I will forever be a GlaRags customer, until I go through menopause, and then will still be grasping my pantiliners till the end :-). I have told all my friends and family and coworkers about reusable menstrual products. I have even brought new boxes and packs for them to look at and have given some as gifts to get them interested in buying. I love the products and I know if every woman would try them, the disposable feminine product business would go broke! I’m on a crusade to save the private parts of all the females I know from the injustice of rayon, polyester, and plastic, as well as a list of chemicals.

A day with out a GladRag, is a sad day indeed!!!

GladRags are your friends
Up until the menstrual end
No more rash on those private parts
No more worries about those chemical darts
No leaks to ever cross your mind
As long as GladRags are on your behind!

Coming at you from GladRags Headquarters in sunny Portland, Oregon is Menstrual Mondays, your one stop for the latest in menstrual news, art, activism, and more!

•  Mommy blog, Our Sentiments, has a great entry touting the amazing DivaCup.  While she agrees that it may be hard to get used to in the beginning, she is sure to note the benefits far out weigh those early troubles.
• Li’s New Years’ Eco Tips! not only encourages the use of cloth menstrual pads, but has tons more suggestions to make 2010 your greenest year yet!
• Shemiranibrahim.com shares with us a very in-depth article: Menstruation: The Sacred Cycle in which she approaches PMS in a whole new light.
• In a more compact article, Pamela Madsen of DivineCaroline brings us a way to Think About Menstruation As Providing Wisdom.
• Re:Cycling, the awesome menstrual blog, points out the obvious: menstrual activists are ahead of the game.  Blood red lips are now in fashion (see pic)!
  
• Nature Moms Blog has a great post by Tiffany Washko on alternative menstrual products & why you should use them.  Check out Alternative Menstrual Products - Ditch the Disposables.
• Frugal Megan writes about persistence when using a DivaCup or other menstrual cup in this great article: For Woman Only: The Diva Cup.
• Crunchy Chicken announces the winner of their GladRags giveaway here.  Congrats!  If you didn’t win here, check out this weeks bonus below!

**Extra Special Bonus: The Eco-Babe’s Guide to Greening It! is hosting a great giveaway for our Color Pad Sampler Kit!  Check out her great website here and click on “Enter to Win Free Green Products” for more details.

Authors: Elissa Stein and Susan Kim

What it’s all about: Periods!  The authors explore everything related to vaginal and reproductive health — from hysteria cures to douching with Lysol — with a focus on different medical and cultural perceptions throughout history. Flow is a gorgeous, full-color book showcasing a wealth of vintage and modern “feminine hygiene product” advertisements that highlight the trajectory of the last cultural taboo.

Who it’s for: Flow is a great primer for women who are new to the discussion of topics surrounding menstruation and cultural views of women’s bodies.  The authors take on a flippant, funny, “big sister” voice which lends itself to the overall light, magazine-style tone of the book.  Readers already well-versed in women’s studies and issues related to menstruation may find themselves wishing for fewer glossy photos and girl talk, and more in-depth information.

 Devoted cloth pad and menstrual cup users might feel a little slighted by Flow, too.  While Kim and Stein do note that some women swear by reusable menstrual alternatives, they fail to paint any of these products in a positive (or even neutral) light. Throughout the book we are reminded that various iterations of the menstrual cup failed to catch on, and it’s only in the final chapter that modern menstrual alternatives are mentioned.

In this chapter, “Outside the Box,” the authors ask about menstrual cups if anyone really wants to have to get that close to their menstrual blood — and dismiss the possibility of using a cup in a public restroom altogether.*

It was a little disheartening to discover that, even after all of the body-positive, pro-menstruation talk of Flow — a book that is supposed to make us feel comfortable with our periods and help us ditch the negativity and shame we’ve learned from our long cultural history of menstrual oppression — we’re still supposed to be grossed out by our own bodies.

Flow’s treatment of cloth pads is unfortunately similar to menstrual cups.  While the authors could have easily provided their readers with the story of someone who found relief from yeast infections or years of uncomfortable periods, Stein instead shares her own story of trying cloth pads.

In her story, we learn that although cloth pads are cute, she finds laundering them difficult and a chore.  In the end she chooses to stay with her regular brand of disposable pads — a brand which she names and is the very same as those she lists earlier as contributing to the cultural taboo.  The book provides no room for rebuttal; no voices from women who prefer reusables are included.  This kind of stark bias in a textbook-style book that is presented as an impartial rendering of facts  — and particularly the endorsement of a certain brand by the author — left us with a bad taste in our mouths.

* Most women don’t have any trouble using public restrooms while using a cup, since you can just empty your cup into the toilet and reinsert without rinsing (or use toilet paper to wipe off the outside of the cup). And, once you’re comfortable using a cup, actual contact with menstrual blood is minimal — about on par with inserting an applicator-free tampon.

Why you should check it out: Flow provides a fun, accessible introduction to the topic of menstruation and covers a wide variety of topics — everyone is sure to learn something new from this book!  The vintage menstrual product advertisements, medicalization of menstruation, and the historical development of hysteria are some of the many interesting subjects addressed within the book.  Be warned: reading Flow with friends will quickly spark engaging conversations!  And if you find a particular section of the book lacking, just use it as a jumping-off point for a discussion.

Take a look: This makes a great coffee table book or gift!  If you do read Flow: The Cultural History of Menstruation, be sure to leave us a comment and let us know your thoughts!

Flow: The Cultural Story of Menstruation by Elissa Stein

Welcome to the first Menstrual Monday of the new year!  You’ve landed at your one stop shop for menstrual news, art, science, and more.  Now, on to the info.

•  Susan Kim, co-author of Flow: A Cultural History of Mensturation writes a very interesting article on Fairy Tales, Child Development, And Unconscious Learning and how they relate to menstruation.  She includes references to the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, Hitchcock’s Psycho, and the infamous menstrual horror that is Carrie.
• Check out the 10 Craziest Pantyliners found on the internet!  See vampires, puppies, and bugs!
  
• Tampaction, a radical menstrual activist group, brings the Keeper Cup to the University of New Hampshire.  Read about it in the independent student newspaper here: Earth and user friendly menstrual products coming to the MUB.
• Savvy Women’s Magazine tells us how to Celebrate your Cycle in Style with cloth pads like GladRags.
• We love Etsy seller lovealittle’s super cute handmade 3D Moon Cup pouches!

January Monthly Friend: Jamie

 Name: Jamie
Age: 22
Hometown: Egg Harbor Township, NJ
Current Location: Milford, DE
Occupation: Housewife, Bible teacher

Interests: I love wildlife, nature, BBC Dramas, Sherlock Holmes, classical movies, vintage style, and antiques.
Dreams: To live forever on a paradise earth.

How long have you used reusable menstrual products?: Almost a whole year.
Reason for making the switch to reusables: It saves money, is a million times more comfortable than disposable tampons or pads, and is a lot healthier for my body and the environment. My husband loves them too because he doesn’t have to run out last minute when I run out of my “supplies.”

Funny anecdotes, deep thoughts, or anything else you’d like to share: My husband is really cool and supported my use of reusable menstrual pads from the beginning. He is not like some other guys who are easily offended or grossed out by seeing menstrual products. He just accepts it as a normal part of life. He jokingly calls the nighttime pad “the elephant.” I believe that using reusables is much better for your body, and helps you nurture your body and have a more positive attitude.  Rather than hastily wrapping up a used tampon or pad and throwing it away in disgust, washing my GladRags, patiently hanging them up to dry, and neatly placing them back in their drawer, clean, soft and ready for my next cycle helps me feel more positive. I know that it’s healthier for my body and the planet. It almost feels “complete.”