Types of Fabrics for Cloth Menstrual Pads

If you're considering using cloth menstrual pads, then you've probably come across a lot of different brands and styles of pads. It can all be overwhelming, especially when it comes to all those different fabrics pads are made out of. Here is a list of the most commonly used fabrics that cloth menstrual pads are made out of. Hopefully this will help you in deciding which combination of fabric is best for you.

Waterproofing

PUL
PUL is one of the most popular fabric when it comes to waterproofing cloth pads. PUL is polyurethane laminate, which is more or less laminated fabric. It's very thin and comes in lots of colors or prints. Usually when PUL is used in pads, it's either the bottom of the pad or hidden inside.

Nylon
Nylon is sometimes also used. It's not usually a popular choice as it can tend to have a crunchy, noisy sound when moved around.

Fleece
Another water resistant fabric is fleece. Fleece is made out of polyester and comes in many forms. Fleece is widely available and comes in fun prints and colors. It's very soft and perfect for the bottom of a pad.

Outer Layer - The outer layer is usually the top layer, which is the fabric that directly touches your skin when wearing a cloth menstrual pad.

Flannel
This is the most common and popular choice in cloth menstrual pads. Flannel is very soft and gets softer with each wash. It is 100% cotton and the highest quality is usually quilter's cotton. Although flannel is the top choice with most women, it has a tendency to stain more.

Flat/Woven Cotton
This type of cotton is also known as calico. It's not as soft as flannel, but it's very lightweight and comes in tons of different prints and adds a lot of character or stylish aspects to your pads.

Organics
If you have very sensitive skin you might want to consider organic fabric. There's different varieties of organic fabrics such as: hemp, bamboo and cotton. It can come in fleece, knits or velour. These fabrics wear well although they are expensive and can be hard to find. They are also usually only available in solid colors but can be found in hand dyed patterns as well.

Absorbant Core - This is the inside of the pad that will absorb and soak up the liquid.

Terry Cloth
Terry cloth is also known as "toweling" and is 100% cotton. It's very absorbant but can tend to be very thick and bulky. However terry cloth is very readily available and found in a lot of pads.

Flannel & organics
Flannel and organic fabrics are also used as absorbant cores. The same benefits as the outer layer also relates to the absorbant cores.

Batting
Cotton batting is another fabric used as part of the absorbant core in pads. It's very lightweight, absorbant and comfortable when used in cloth pads.