Let me begin by saying... this post is about panties, and periods. Specifically, I'm reviewing THINX period panties, so if you're a family member, you may choose to skip this blog post. Which is OK by me. Or you may be weirdly curious, and read on, which is also OK. That being said, let me start from the beginning....
I used to wear normal cotton underwear (bikini cut) from Victoria's Secret. And the last time I actually bought new underwear was.... unknown. Sometime circa 2011-2012 or so. And now, 5 (or more) years later, it is finally time to take a minute and indulge myself. My old underwear was just that: torn, ripped, holes, falling apart at the seams.
I wanted to actually buy panties that were quality, and would last. So I did some digging, and found out about period panties. Say what? Yes, period panties, designed to eliminate or use less of tampons and pads during your period. They essentially have a built in pad, that is able to absorb up to 2 tampons worth of fluid, and are easily washed, and odor free. I researched the different types, and overwhelmingly, THINX had the best reviews, so I decided to give them a try.
To clear the air... I use a DIVA cup for my periods, and have for several years (since before Ruby) because it is SO much easier, and cheaper over the long run. That, I will save for a different review post! I didn't want panties to replace my DIVA cup, because I'm totally happy with that system. I mostly wanted to try period panties for the other times when there is need for a pad: ovulation, sweat, first/ending days of period, and most embarrassingly, the times when I sort of pee myself.
I just wanted a built in diaper. I'm jealous of my 19 month old, ok? But really... when you become a mom, especially through vaginal delivery, things down there are just different... and even a sneeze can cause a tiny bit of leakage. Which, when wearing old cotton panties, could be uncomfortable at best, and the worst....well, you can imagine. Know when you have to pee REALLY BAD and you sneeze or cough or your kid jumps on you? Yep.
So for a while, I'd taken to wearing disposable pads, but those are
a) expensive over time
b) not so environmentally friendly
c) really, really gross.
I did try cloth pads at one time in my life, and while I wish I could legit wear a diaper sometimes, cloth re-useable pads made me feel like I was wearing a diaper. Just not something I liked.
So, enter period panties. Kind of pricey, but I had saved up a bit (it has been a stellar tutoring year so far!) and decided to order a few sizes and styles and see what I thought. I got the bikini, and the sport. I'm not so much a thong girl, and while my husband likes the boy shorts and cheeky styles, I don't love them, and if I was spending $25-$32 per panty, I wanted to love them. I ordered three colors: grey, beige, and black, and two sizes, small and medium. I went with both sizes to try, because I didn't know how they would fit, and the website mentions that they are a snug fit because of their purpose. In the photo below, the sport are on the right, beige and black, and the cotton bikini are on the left, grey and black.
The shipping took less than a week, and was free, since I spent enough (easy to do!). I ordered 5 pairs, to get the 15% discount. Before ordering, I checked the return policy, and for first time orders, there is a 60 day, money back guarantee, so I felt OK to give it a try.
When they arrived, I was so excited! They felt and looked like normal panties, and sort of feel like I'm always wearing a really thin small pad. I was worried about smell, because if you wear a pad too long, well... you know, but these are GREAT. It took me a day to get used to them, but I seriously feel like it was a great investment. I've had them less than a week, and plan to order more! I have NOT used these during my period yet, but plan to wear them every day, so I'm sure that will happen eventually, but they will not be my main plan of attack to deal with my period.
My only "problem" was that two of them didn't fit great. The small bikini was too small for me to feel great.. they didn't feel bad, but they didn't feel as good as the medium. And the medium sport was too big for me, especially in the "cheek" area. I had one of each, and never wore them for an extended amount of time, but just tried them on. All I wanted to do was exchange them for the correct sizes, so I went to the website and started the return process.
What an EASY process! They send you an email, and then you click the panty you want to return, and the reason why. If returning because of dissatisfaction, they issue an automatic refund for store credit, which if unused in 5 days, is credited back to your payment method. I wanted to exchange, and turns out, they didn't send me a label to print: they said KEEP my panties as a thank you for my patronage! WHOA. Cool. Not sure I'll wear them, but maybe if the others are all being washed... Super great customer service, and easy too.
Care is not difficult at all. Rinse in cold water before washing, throw into a mesh delicates bag, and wash in cold with your clothes. Since I've not tried with my period, I can't say for sure, but THINX guarantees your other clothes will be fine. Line dry, and that is it!
All in all, I love these panties. The company is great, the product is awesome, and I'm stoked to keep wearing them. I think they'll be great to hike in, road trip with, and just live in. Check them out for sure! And thanks for reading this very personal, and slightly too detailed post about my panties. I just wanted to tell the world that THINX is legit. Period.
