Lunapads Blog

Please post below your favourite finds for socially responsible, handmade, local or upcycled gifts! We have a giveaway of a gift certificate to Cangles for one lucky person to select their very own bracelet!

Ah Christmas! A love/hate relationship for me. There are quaint pieces of it that I adore but a flip side of greed, stress and commercialization I do not enjoy one bit.

This year I have been looking for alternative gifts that give back in bigger ways or unique upcycled/recycled products. I also have a soft spot for artisans and crafters as I do have an artsy side myself. It has been so much fun researching ideas and there are a ton of really neat ones. Here are some of my favourites:

Cangles are a super neat recycled aluminum-can bangle. They sent us a couple to try, and we love them! Based in Michigan they make unique, green, quality-made jewelry and gifts. Their fashionably green jewelry design and construction is based on the 3 Rs: Reusing, Renewing & Recycling! Cangles is kindly sponsoring our giveaway with a gift certificate for one lucky reader so you can pick your very own Cangle!

Blend Creations has really neat stainless steel jewelry, including bracelets, necklaces, earrings, rings, and more! My personal favourites are the customizable Twitter @ symbol and QR code charms. As it turns out one of the owners is a BIG Lunapads fan and has been using our products for years! As many people tell me, Canada does come up with some pretty innovative products. (Lisa likes their ultra-functional honeycomb wrench necklace shown on the left.)

Socially conscious and charitable gifts are my favourite. One year, for my Dad (who is super hard to buy for). we sponsored a whale. He loved it! Here are a few other suggestions of unique and socially responsible gifts from me, and the Lunapads team:

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We’ve had a business crush on the fabulous team of RockinGreen soap company since they first hit our radar at the ABC Kids Show a few years ago. Here’s a picture of Madeleine and I with the RockinGreen team after a lovely breakfast with them in March 2011 at  Natural Products Expo West.  Since then the RockinGreen team has made even greater business strides, most recently acknowledged as “Fastest Growing Company of the Year” and its CEO, Kim Webb, as “Best Entrepreneur” at the 8th Annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

RockinGreen’s highly successful soap formula has clearly been a hit with cloth diapering enthusiasts all over the world. So, when we learned last spring that Kim was working on a formula for cloth pads, we couldn’t wait to try it out. Unveiled a few weeks ago, Femme Rock is now available at Lunapads for those who like to “Rock the Cloth”. To learn more about this fabulous product, I asked Kim a few questions.

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Have your kids brought information packets about periods home after a health education session at their school? What product samples were they given? Did they receive information about alternatives? What can we do to help you spread the LunaRevolution? Answer any of these questions to be eligible to win 1 Teen Booklet and Lunapads Pantyliner!

As many of you know I have 3 daughters. 2 have graduated from High School and one is in Grade 9. Together they have experienced a number of health education sessions offered through the public school health care programs. They have brought home a variety of information packages. Some very elaborate, some with next to nothing (much to my youngest’s dismay). But one thing was consistent every time; there was never mention of washable alternatives and it became a pet peeve of mine. A fair representation of what is available seemed to me to be something that should be happening but wasn’t.

One day I decided to take action and see what it would take to get washable alternative information into the school’s puberty education. To my surprise, it was pretty easy! All you need to do is contact your local health unit or school nurse and offer them this opportunity!

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What is your trusted go-to source for information about sexual health or environmentally friendly and body safe sex toys?
Let us know in a comment below, and you could win a bottle of Hathor Pure Lubricant! You can respond anonymously if you prefer, just be sure to fill out the email box (only visible to us / not shared publicly) so we can contact you if you win. Thanks everyone, and good luck!

ABC Prize-Pack Giveaway
Tell us which prize pack you’d like to win, and why, in a comment below. Good luck!

Prize Pack 1
1 set of 3 piggy paints in candy corn colours
1 small Planet Wise wet/dry bag
1 set of Motivational Posters from FosterMind

Prize Pack 2
1 Rumina Nursing Tank
Sensible Lines Milk Trays

The All Baby and Child Expo held in the fall is the biggest get together in the Mom / Baby / Child industry. I was lucky to represent Lunapads and have the opportunity to attend the event in Louisville, Kentucky!

First, I want to give a shout out to Louisville as the most hospitable town I have ever been to, and the Hyatt Regency Downtown Louisville KY staff (Jean in the lounge, front desk, security and everyone in between) gave top notch service. Having a customer service background, I have high standards and want to recognize excellence! Thanks for making me feel cared for and comfortable while away on a very long trip to the land of Bourbon and Bluegrass. A highlight for me was a side trip to the Louisville Slugger Museum and bringing home my own custom mini bat! As a fan of the game and recently retired slo-pitch player it felt awesome to have my hands wrapped around a piece of baseball history!

On the way down to Kentucky I discovered an unexpected benefit to working for Lunapads; accelerated border crossing! At the border, we were asked the usual probing questions: Citizenship, Where do you live, Where are you going, Why, Where are you staying, What business are you in and finally “Can I see your business cards?“ My driving companions did not have their cards handy but I did and promptly handed mine over. When the young man flipped my Lunapads card to the back side he paused, a bit flustered; all of a sudden there was no need to see any more cards, no further questions, and he waved us through. This was the one time when someone not wanting to talk about periods or my work was okay by me!

Now, on to ABC! I know many of you do not have the opportunity to go to this event and I had promised a few of you that I would share my favorite finds from the show. It was very hard to see it all, so I focused on Mom and Baby, Natural Parenting, First Timers and a few other miscellaneous booths I stumbled upon.

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BunchaFarmers Stain Remover Giveaway
Check out Lunapads-fan Melissa (aka TarotLadyLissa on YouTube)’s fantastic video review of BunchaFarmers Stain Stick below! Tell us about your typical cloth pad washing routine and you could win a BunchaFarmers Stain Stick to try out for yourself, too.  We’ll announce a winner at the end of the week. Good luck!

Related Video:
How to Wash Lunapads Cloth Menstrual Pads – Simple and easy methods to clean your washable cloth menstrual pads. Laundry tips including soaking, stain removal and storage solutions. Lunapads are easier to wash and care for than you think!

Other Reviews:

Awesome! Review by Adica
I’m going to have to join the bandwagon and sing the praises of this little stain remover. I just used it on some soiled pads and underwear, and it worked wonderfully to take the blood right out, in some cases stains came out even before washing. I even used it on some other random stains on my regular laundry, and it worked great on those, too. I had a bunch of old white shirts that had some yellow staining on the underarms that I’ve tried remove many times before, and this removed the stains in one go.

Awesome product! Review by Lindsay
I LOVE this product! My kids and I all have sensitive skin and a friend of mine recommended this cause other stain removers irritated! This takes out every stain that I have tried it on so far and it doesn’t bug our skin! I’m passing it on to my sister who has 2 small kids and a few other friends of mine!

Fabulous! Review by Lyndsay Chae
This is the BEST stain remover EV-AR! It took my stains out of my pads, and liners and undies! AND, it removes gross kid stains too! This is so multipurpose in the laundry room! It even helps on grease stains.

This stain remover is awesome! Review by China
This stain remover works great! It got the blood out of my pads very easily, and even got food stains out of my clothes too! Plus, the eucalyptus scent smells great.

Best Stain Remover Review by Carly
I purchased the stain remover for my Luna Pads and was absolutely amazed at how effective it is, so much so that I have even tried it on my kids clothing when they have stains from grass, spaghetti sauce, and other things. It has successfully removed everything I have tried it on and is far superior to the chemical based stain removers on the market. It has a wonderful scent and is now a standard in my laundry room.

Really works! Review by Kathleen
Even after reading the good reviews, I’m amazed at how well this works! I thought maybe it would just get most of the blood out, or make the stain look really light, but I actually can’t even see where the blood was on my liners. It’s kind of shocking!

So Good! Review by Alexandra
This totally exceeds my expectations for cleaning my Luna Pads! I just hand wash, use this soap and warm water, they come out looking as clean as the day I bought them. Works really well for panties that get stained too.

Win a  7 Day Pantyliner Kit!
Anyone have tips to share for honoring your period or the arrival of the Elder / Crone / Post-period phase of life? Or handling the darling little symptoms? Let us know in the comments below and you could win a 7 Day Pantyliner Kit for you – plus, a Teen Booklet to share with the next generation!

It is a really interesting place in my life that I find myself in. I am in my mid forties and fully experiencing the “signs” of menopause. I am taking them in stride and, so far, it is not so bad. Kinda interesting what the body can do.

Remember being a teenager? Ever want to go back?

Well, some parts of menopause do make you feel like a teenager, just not necessarily the good parts! But it does make me ponder every period – are you the last one? How will it feel to no longer have my period? I will truly no longer be “fertile”. I have had my tubes tied for years so technically I have been unable to have children for a long time, but this is really, really the end!

As much as I have had my moments and many years of uncomfortable disposable pad and tampon use before discovering Lunapads; I started my period at the very young age of 8. My first period memories are of being reassured I was not going to die and a trip to our doctor who inserted a tampon in me and told me to walk around. I promptly fainted on the floor.

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Moon Mysteries Giveaway
Comment below telling us about why you feel like there’s more to our cycles than shedding uterine linings (ie having your period ;-) for a chance to win.

I have just finished reading Moon Mysteries: Reclaiming Women’s Menstrual Wisdom (order here) and despite having my curiosity whetted for the past couple of years by our good friend and longtime Lunapads supporter Nikiah Seeds, was not disappointed. The book is truly a labor of love, written by Nikiah and Nao Sims, and illustrated and designed by Eyan Myers. There is so much that is rich and beautiful about this book and its authors and illustrator that it’s hard to know where to start.

I have read many useful books on the topic of women’s cycles, however none that inspire in quite the way that Moon Mysteries does. Reading it brought me back to a powerful place of reflection over my own menstrual history, leading me to realize how Lunapads itself can be read as a reflection of my own unmet yearning for honoring and connection as a menarchal girl. Moon Mysteries delivers this gift on numerous fronts, inviting meditation, celebration and awareness raising in every phase of the fertility cycle experience.

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HALLOWEEN GIVEAWAY
Find 3 Halloween Cats on our website this weekend and receive a free bottle of Lunablend with your order! Offer Expires Sunday, October 9th at Midnight. Sign up for our Monthly Newsletter to find out about future Lunapads sales and giveaways.

All Hallow’s Eve is just around the corner so just for fun, we have created scavenger hunt style giveaway to those of you who place an order over the weekend.

Here’s how to play:

1.  Find 3 black cats on our website (see right). Hint: keep a close eye on our product photos.
2. Click + Halloween Giveaway in your shopping cart before proceeding through checkout.
3. Email info@lunapads.com the same day you order with the subject line “Meow!” and list the 3 locations where you spotted them.

You may be wondering: what do essential oils and cats have in common?  Both are a great help for menstrual cramping and all sorts of remedies.  Lunablend is a combination of orange, lavender and geranium essential oils and can be massaged directly onto your abdomen or you can use a few drops in the bathtub.  A hot water bottle used in combination with the oil can be quite delightful as well.  Even better?  Lunablend and a furry friend to purr on your belly.

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Apple Blossom Sampler Pack Giveaway!
How do you celebrate changes in the season & the harvest? Share what rituals you use to bring in the fall with us here and be eligible to win an Apple Blossom Sampler Pack!

Here at the Lunapads office, we are all about celebrating cycles. As with the Moon Cycle, the cycles of the seasons are great teachers for us and have been reason to celebrate for many millennia. When I was teaching yoga full time, I taught a quarterly meditation on each Equinox and Solstice. Each season is a great metaphor for phases in our lives and the only constant in the world, change and a great opportunity to reflect on the macro and micro cycles in our everyday lives.

A few years back I took an amazing trip to Ireland and Scotland to research my ancestry and visited an amazing site Brú na Bóinne in County Meath, Ireland. While there, I really got how important these cycles are, they have been very important in ceremonies and traditions around the world much earlier than Hallmark. Newgrange is one of the heritage sites there. It is an ancient tomb and temple that has an incredible design. It was built with the doorways opening to the sun at high noon on the winter solstice. Pretty brilliant neo-lithic culture! This site even predates the Great Pyramid!

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