The Thinx Reusable Tampon Applicator Is the First of Its Kind
By Elizabeth Denton. Photos: Courtesy of Brand.
Think about how many tampons you go through each month. That's a lot of plastic applicators being thrown in the trash. Even tiny things—like tampons, add up. Enter the Thinx reusable tampon applicator. According to the EPA, plastics make up 12 percent of solid waste, and only eight percent gets recycled. Real talk: how many people really recycle their applicators? Almost no one. That's one reason why Thinx, the brand that makes period panties, invented the first ever reusable applicator. "The fact that an estimated seven billion tampon applicators end up in a landfill is too much to bear, [especially] since I now have a little bun in the oven!" says co-founder/CEO Miki Agrawal.
The Thinx reusable tampon applicator is made from medical-grade silicone, and comes with a little cap on it that kind of looks like lipstick. Sure, there are applicator-less tampons on the market, but many find those uncomfortable to use. I did a quick poll around the office (we're close like that at Allure), and found chief complaints included: messiness, awkwardness (the positions you need to get in!), and general annoyance of having to stick your finger high enough to get the tiny cotton all up in there. With Thinx's version, you just use it like a plastic applicator, wash it off, and throw it back in your bag. It basically saves you the struggle, and the Earth, too. You can use it with any applicator-less tampons, or with Thinx's new 100 percent cotton tampons. (They come in the cutest little box, seen below.) The reusable applicator will be out mid-March, and the tampons will be out January 31, both on shethinx.com.
This story originally appeared on Allure.
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