This Reader Creates Frugal Period Packs to Donate to Local Schools
Help girls be ready for Aunt Flow!
Hip2Save reader, Kayla, is empowering girls by taking the anxiety and fear out of the first period! With the help of her local community, she’s creating cute and frugal Period Packs to donate to local schools.
What an awesome and thoughtful idea… period!
I have recently started collecting empty IPSY/cosmetic bags from women all over my local community and began putting together emergency period readiness packs that I will be donating to our local and surrounding school districts.
In each IPSY bag I am including two panty liners, two tampons, two pads, hand sanitizers, feminine wipes, a lip balm, and a small affirmation card.
Many young girls have to call home when they have their ‘friend’ show up unannounced. By putting together these cute and fun bags, I am hoping this is a quick and discreet solution to a sometimes embarrassing situation.
I also hope by sharing with you, you will post this and other communities can put these packs together for their local schools! It is such a fun way to reuse cosmetic bags and pay it forward in the community!
This is such a practical & thoughtful idea! ❤️
Thank you, Kayla, for sharing your DIY Period Pack with us!
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Hello Kayla this is amazing can you please donate one to my daughter please email me thanks
Kayla this is Jennifer M left the first comment about getting one for my daughter please email me jenniferdmartintrucking@aol.com thanks
My grandaughter Brayli is trying to do this for her community in San Antonio Texas
Please text her mother any any helpful hints you have to share with them
Thanks Gma
918-232-6885 Tricia
I have always wanted to do this!
What a thoughtful idea!
That is an awesome idea! How nice.
What a fantastic idea! I love it when people use their resources to help others.
This is great 👍
This is really so sweet! Being a teen or preteen is so very hard. This kind of thing with a card and lip balm would have turned the whole day around. Good for you for being so kind and supporting girls!
How cool! What a kind thing to do.
Kayla, I love this! I have a ton of Ipsy bags that I don’t know what to do with. Would love to send them your way to help out if you’d like. Please send me an email ajcqpon@gmail.com
My daughter is putting these together too for girls in foster care as part of her Girl Scout Silver Award project. We still need bags if you have any to donate, please 🙂
Holly please email me! Would love to send it your way!
My daughter is doing this too with her Girl Scout troop. They are adding these period packs to the backpacks they are putting together for teens in foster care.
Such a wonderful idea.
How sweet and thoughtful!
This is great! At my daughter’s school they leave emergency supplies in the bathrooms for others to use.
That is so great! A girl shouldn’t have to go through the embarrassment of telling her (possibly male) teacher and ask again at the school office!
What a kind thing to do. I always save mine to donate during tornado and flood relief. One time I won baby food (I entered to win a gift card LOL) and I donated it to tornado relief. I save all my expired coupons or ones that I won’t use and mail them to military communities overseas. There are always ways to help people even if you are short on funds. I used to collect beanie babies at the bins for a nursing home. I was told by staff that they loved being able to hold them especially the ones that were having memory problems. I donate food to shelters too. dog food and cat food at Kroger the last few weeks was cheap so I bought some and donated them. Congratulations on everybody that is helping people in our group.
Do you just drop these off to the schools or have to contact them ahead of time?
We are currently in the process of doing this with our local Junior League!!
I work in a high school. I’m going to do this for the nurses office. Such a fantastic idea!
Thank you all for your kind words And thank you for sharing, Collin! This just made my week!
I will gladly accept any donations!
Kjohnsonstubbs@gmail.com
Kayla 🙂
Great work Kayla! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
I saw this on Pinterest years ago and made some for when my daughter started 5th grade! I had her always carry one in her backpack, and made 5 more with my extra Ipsy bags to send in to her teacher- she loved the idea and all the bags were used/given out by the end of the school year. When I broke it down, it was less than $1 per bag to make a a girls stressful day a little easier!
This is great! I work in elementary schools, and there are a lot of 5th and 6th grade girls that would appreciate these, especially since many are caught off guard and so aren’t prepared. I know I wasn’t! The kids have a lot on their plate as it is, so this is a nice gesture that makes things a bit easier.
Why would you put tampons in there? I think it is a mother’s decision to make on whether or not her daughter should use tampons. That is such a personal decision. Also, don’t you think they should have their mother explain how to use a tampon? Giving a young girl with no experience a tampon is a bad idea.
Many people prepare ahead of time and know how to use tampons. Some girls may be wearing underwear where a pad won’t work. Some are grossed out about sitting in a pile of blood (pad). It is great to empower young girls to make decisions about THEIR BODY. Stop with your judgement and treating this as if it is wrong.
A young girl that just starts her period(8-14 age range) does not have the cognitive capacity to make a truly informed decision on whether or not to wear a tampon. That is just ridiculous. Also, what kind of mother gives a girl 8-14 thongs or any other tiny undies? Mothers please buy your child age appropriate underwear.
What about 8-14 year olds that are on the swim team?
Skipping a day of swim isn’t going to harm them.
Observant Mom, as a mom, worry about ‘observing’ your own kids’ and let other moms (along with their childrens’ input) do the same. Shame on you.
That is exactly what I am calling for. For a mother and her daughter to make that decision on whether or not the daughter should use tampons when she first gets her period. I’m just saying giving a tampon to a kid that is not informed of the chemicals in the tampon is a bad idea. Or… what if one of these pouches is given to a young girl who has a mother that doesn’t want her to use tampons. Then what? The school nurse or teacher in giving girls the pouch are basically deciding to allow the girl to wear a tampon.
I can’t imagine how someone can take such an amazing post and turn it into something negative. If you look carefully there is a choice of pad and tampon.
This post should inspire us to do something positive for our society instead of trying to put a Good Samaritan down.
I wasn’t putting anyone down. I applaud her actions, but I was simply pointing out that tampons should maybe be left out of the pouches.
It didn’t say it was strictly for girls who just got their periods for the first time. Maybe they’ve used tampons before and their cycle isn’t regular and they get an unwelcome surprise that they weren’t prepared for? Stop the judgement, lady. No one said they had to use all six sanitary items at once!
You’re trying to create a scenario where having tampons would be okay. The truth is that most kids that age are not informed enough as to what is actually in a tampon chemical-wise so they cannot and should not be making that decision on their own. I understand that it is their body, but that doesn’t quite make it their decision to make. That would be like saying a kid that age should be able to choose whether or not they want to drink. Ridiculous! It is for a mother to talk to her daughter and decide together what she should use. Giving a tampon to a child that has no idea about them or how to use them is a bad idea all around.
I think some of your word choice is coming off a bit more severely than you intend (I hope).
A girl being in possession of a tampon is not inherently harmful. Parents should be having some basic discussions with their daughters well before they’re likely to have their first period. If a parent is that opposed to tampons then that should have been part of that conversation.
If it’s her first period, chances are she’s not going to rush to try the tampon, especially at school. High schools go up to age 18. Some of the recipients of these bags could have been having periods for almost 10 years and forgot/misplaced/ran out of supplies that are hard to acquire at school. I can think of a lot of school activities where a tampon would be a lot more practical than a pad. I can also think of days that I’ve needed to wear both at once.
This is a thoughtful, generous thing to do and I applaud the people in the post and comments that are willing to make someone’s day a little less stressful.
My daughter already carries something similar, I think I’ll ask her if she wants to carry a spare pouch in case a friend needs it.
Using an analogy to equate using a tampon to underage drinking is devoid of logical, legal, and scientific merit.
Props to the kind and generous people who donate these kits—I’m sure they are utilized and appreciated.
You’re not following the conversation as well as you think you are. Someone said girls should be allowed to make their own decision as to which to use because it is their body. I think logically that could be compared to drinking. If the argument is that it’s their body then they should be able to drink because they will only harm their body if they go too far. I’m not saying I’m for underaged drinking, but going by their logic the argument stands.
Way to kill the positive mood around here, observant mom.
I’m not killing anything. I’m just giving an opposing view to handing out tampons to young girls that more than likely are not informed on how to use them. I actually said I applaud what they are doing. Giving out pads is a great thing. Tampons not so much.
This is someone who is doing something nice for the community. We should be applauding her for that. What are you doing?
It’s funny that you assume that just because I have a somewhat opposing view on this that I don’t do anything for the community. Since when does having an opinion equate with someone not doing a thing for the community. Please do elaborate on how you came to that conclusion. I did not attack any one person here specifically, I simply gave my opinion, yet you’re personally attacking me. That says a lot more about you than it does me. Have a blessed day.
Firstly, I think this entire series of comments contradicts the current trend of empowerment in young ladies/women. It should NOT be the Mother’s decision to decide for the girl. It IS the Mother’s responsibility to educate her and have real conversations about what to expect.
When I was 11 years old I decided to use tampons of my own accord. I suffered rashes from pads and was VERY uncomfortable in ways my mother never understood. She SUPPORTED my decision, as it should be.
As a mother of a teenage girl myself, I have seen her friends in and out for years. Some use pads, some use tampons. It is their choice based on their comfort, as it should be. At this time, my daughter chooses to use a menstrual cup. Her decision for her comfort.
One commenter mentioned swim team – this is a daily commitment in most cases, this young lady wouldn’t just be “skipping a day of swim.” This could be detrimental to an entire week of training and push her back competitively.
I think you are putting far too little faith in the cognitive ability of 8 to 14 year old girls and it is rather sad. There are risks to everything in life. Educate your children and move on.
This is a fabulous idea! I did this on a lower level, having a mixed bag of things my daughter kept in her locker for herself and friends. When I get the chance to gather my unused Ipsy bags and those of my daughter, I would love to send them to the cause. Great work, Kayla!! 😀
This is someone who is doing something nice for the community. We should be applauding her for that. What are you doing?
You rock! This is a thoughtful, terrific idea! 🙌❤️
Hi! I am a school nurse for a school with 99% of the population is below the poverty line. We would really appreciate any donations if available! Thank you!