This is a joint giveaway with Hobo Mama and Natural Parents Network. You may enter at one site only. I'm also cross-posting this here at Hobo Mama Reviews to make sure everyone sees it, but it's the same Rafflecopter entry system at all sites, so enter at just one. Please find the section marked "Win it!" for the mandatory main entry and optional bonus entries.

GREEN YOUR PERIOD special event: We are featuring a series of reusable menstrual products for review and giveaway. Go green, no matter what time of the month!

MotherMoonPads is offering our readers a giveaway of a cloth menstrual pad prize pack, a value of $26.75.

The pack includes two 10" Normal Pads and one 12.5" Ultimate Overnight/Postpartum Pad.

Postpartum mama cloth

I switched to cloth menstrual pads awhile ago. So when I was pregnant and considering what I was going to do for the postpartum period, I realized I didn't like the idea of going back to the bulky, crinkly, smelly disposables I remembered from my last time postpartum. Plus, cloth pads could be reused for overnights during future periods, or for any other birth.

But could cloth pads really stand up to the demands of postpartum bleeding? I was happy to test out a few brands and try it out!
I was really excited when Denelle of MotherMoonPads contacted me to do a review, because she usually doesn't do blog giveaways. I was really hoping to have some postpartum pads to test out, and her pads looked like a gorgeous, perfect fit!

MotherMoonPads sent me two 12.5" Ultimate Overnight/Postpartum Pads and one regular 12" Postpartum Pad for review. I realize the prize pack is different, because Denelle and I decided you might want more of a mix in your selection, so the winner will receive two Normal Pads and one of the Ultimate Overnight/Postpartum Pads. Since I was pregnant then and not going to have my cycles back anytime soon (crossing fingers), I knew postpartum pads were all I could safely pledge to review!


My pads came lovingly wrapped. I was so excited to lay them into my birthing kit so they'd be ready.

Beauty and comfort

One thing I immediately loved about these pads was how pretty they are!



You can see the absorbent section is a variegated, hand-dyed velour, which is stylish and functional. I love how soft it is against my skin, and I appreciate that the color swirls help disguise any staining. I know it shouldn't matter if a cloth pad gets stained, but I do appreciate little things like that.

The wings on the non-Ultimate pads are a coordinating print, and I thought they were all lovely.

MotherMoonPads features

One detail to these pads that makes them stand out is the labeling on the wings. You can see that an initial for the size is embroidered right on there (for the non-Ultimate sizes), so you can always tell your pads apart. The two above are PP for postpartum/heavy and N for normal.

The wings also help the pad stay in place by snapping under the crotch of your underpants, and help absorb any slight leaks that go around the sides.



You can see the lush, soft texture of the velour. MotherMoonPads offers two varieties of fabric topping: organic bamboo velour or the colored cotton velour seen here. I found that the velour allowed good flow-through, so I like that it's functional as well as soft and pretty.

The pads are sewn together really well and are nicely quilted. The interior of the Ultimate Overnight/Postpartum Pads is two layers of Zorb absorbent cellulose material (commonly used in all-in-one diapers as well). The interior of the Postpartum/Heavy Pads is one layer of Zorb and one layer of bamboo fleece or cotton french terry. Normal Pads have one layer of Zorb. Pantyliners have only the two layers of fabric and are for very light flow or spotting.



The reverse side of the pads was a soft fleece. With the help of the wings, it held in place well against my underpants without shifting.

Size selections

I'll give you an idea of the different sizes MotherMoonPads offers, so you can gauge what might be appropriate for your flow.



Above is a Normal Pad at 10" next to a 12" Postpartum/Heavy Pad. Denelle also sells 8" Pantyliners if you want something for lighter flow days or everyday freshness (such as during pregnancy for, ahem, multiple reasons).



Here is the Normal Pad up against the much more substantial 12.5" Ultimate Overnight/Postpartum Pad. You can see, besides the extra absorbency, that the Ultimate flares out at the top and bottom to offer extra coverage, making it a good choice for nighttime when gravity can make things…um…a little sloppy. It's also a good choice for immediately postpartum when flow is at its heaviest.

My take

Well, I am sold on using cloth postpartum. I had some disposables anyway, because they were part of my birthing kit, but I was glad to get into cloth once I could.

These MotherMoonPads were soft and fit well. The Ultimate Postpartum Pads are definitely bulkier than feels stylish, but I wasn't feeling fashionable any old how, looking four months pregnant still and hobbling around with a newborn. Since you'd likely be wearing the largest size only at night or around the house, it's not a problem. They were less bulky than some other large postpartum pads I tried, and definitely less so than the disposables. The regular Postpartum Pad actually has a pretty trim fit, which is pleasant.

I had to have a few stitches from pushing so fast, but these pads were gentle on my recovering lady bits. I never felt any pulling or sticking.

One thing I did notice with these pads was that I had to change them more frequently. If I didn't, I would sometimes begin to leak through to my underwear — since there's no waterproofing material on the back, once the pad's absorbed its fill, that's it. However, MotherMoonPads recommends changing a postpartum pad every 2-3 hours, and that's probably on target with how often I needed to in those early days. [ETA from Denelle: "The fleece is not water proof like PUL, but it does serve as a moisture barrier. I'm sorry that you experienced some leaking through with yours. I find that if you change your pads often enough, that won't happen."] Denelle suggests that a good postpartum stash would include 3-6 of the Postpartum (optional if you're using disposable to start with), 3 of the Ultimate size (for overnight or the early days), and 6 of the Heavy Flow. For a normal period, she says most women will go through 4-6 pads a day of their preferred absorbency, so you can figure out how many cloth pads you'd need based on how often you want to do laundry. One thing that's great about cloth pads is they're machine washable and can be machine dried or rather quickly line dried.

The all-in-one design was nice for just throwing on a pad when I needed one. These are easy pads for a switch from disposables, because they're very user-friendly, and reminiscent of disposables with the convenient wings.

I liked that the pads washed well. I would soak or rinse them in cold water immediately after use to help the blood come out, then spray with some Bac-Out. Then I could just throw them in with my next load, and I never had a problem with it. I washed mine with other color loads so I can't promise what would happen with a white load, but the colors in mine never transferred. The stains came out, too, as far as I could see. The pads can be safely machine washed and dried (no softener, though — I recommend wool dryer balls). I didn't notice any shrinking or wrinkling. They were ready to go again!

A big thank you to MotherMoonPads for making those postpartum days a little more comfortable and convenient!

BUY IT!

You can purchase MotherMoonPads online at MotherMoonPads.com through Denelle's Hyena Cart shop.

Here's the pricing on the variety of sizes available:

• 8" wingless pantyliners — $2.75
• 8" pantyliners with wings — $4.75
• Normal 10" pads — $7.75.
• Heavy 10" pads — $9.00
• Heavy 12" pads — $9.25
• Postpartum 12" mama cloth pad — $11.25
• Ultimate overnight or postpartum 12.5" mama cloth pad — $13.00

These prices are very good for cloth pads! Keep in mind that cloth pads are reusable for years.

If you're buying 10 or more individual pads, you can receive a 10% InstaStash discount.

MotherMoonPads is also offering our readers a special discount!

Enter the code "hobomama"
to take 10% off an order of any size!

MotherMoonPads ships internationally.

WIN IT!

For your own chance to win a MotherMoonPads sampler pack, enter by leaving a comment and using our new Rafflecopter system below.

Contest is open worldwide.

MANDATORY ENTRY: Visit MotherMoonPads.com and tell us your favorite pad or print! You must enter your name and email address in the Rafflecopter entry system for your entry to count, after leaving a comment on the blog post.

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This is a joint giveaway with Hobo Mama Reviews and Natural Parents Network. You may enter at one site only, and we'll be recording IP addresses to ensure that there are no duplicate entries. That said, please do visit and enjoy both sites!

BONUS ENTRIES:
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