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My Awakening:
Tampon Cases Are Awesome

For several years in my early twenties I didn't use any menstrual products at all. When I switched brands of birth control pills and my bleeding got heavier again, I had a surprisingly awkward time adjusting to carrying around my cup, tampons or what have you.

I would just forget to keep menstrual products handy, because I'd stopped thinking of periods as requiring any preparation or special measures. I'd also completely forgotten (and forsaken) all the discrete moves I'd honed in high school, for smuggling menstrual products into the bathroom in public. I'd even lost my “I can feel myself bleeding freely and I guess I'd better do something about that” reflex.

And so it was that in my second round with menstrual products, cute cases dedicated to protecting, organizing and transporting period gear started to really, really appeal to me. Previously they'd seemed unnecessary, and not worth the bother of procuring or creating. This time around, tampon cases suddenly struck me as the essential solution to all my newfound menstrual awkwardness.

Features, Benefits, Advantages

My first tampon case was an ugly zippered pouch, black with gold embroidery, that I stuffed with tampons in high school. The main benefits I was seeking were to prevent tampons from unexpectedly spilling out of my backpack or getting lost, and to keep my tampon stash in one unit that I could easily transfer between bags. Because the case was ugly and clearly showed the outline of its contents (at least, I thought so), it wasn't good for much more than basic stashing.

In my menstrual renaissance, I found that a cuter, tougher, dedicated tampon case had many extra advantages. Most importantly to me, it was fun to use and that helped me remember to use period gear. That is probably not a widely relevant advantage, but I'm sure that adding fun to menstrual products would have some equally important impact for most women.

Also, by the time of this renaissance I had been writing about my vagina on the internet for about five years, and could hardly submit to actively camouflaging my menstrual activity in public, say by disguising my tampons inside fake lipstick tubes or eyeglass cases. Still, most menstrual products are just ugly. A case can be flamboyant!

Cases To Make and To Buy

If I were to annoint a grand-champion of tampon cases, it would be Vinnie. His products are sturdy and colourful and his marketing is positive, but with an important dash of ridiculousness that I appreciate. (“Women have been keeping track of their periods for centuries, but they never had a GIANT Roller Coaster Period Chart until now!”)

However, these days you can buy a period case for nearly any taste (pinup girls, brushed metal, mess-proof for used cloth pads, crush-proof with optional stickers... even Oprah is in on the fun).

I'm crafty and cheap (well, sort of poor actually), and custom cases are easy to make. I alternate between using the Lucky Vulva coinpurse from the Arts & Crafts issue, and a basic, generic little case. I scheme regularly about appliques, felting, pockets, silk screening and custom features. So many possibilities!

For further inspiration, Knitty offers a free knitting pattern for a period case (inexplicably in the adults-only Sex issue), which makes excellent use of twisted i-cord and fancy buttons. The Craftster handbag forums can give you any further ideas or instruction you may require about the construction of an awesome tampon case.

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