Cora Subscription Box Review – March 2016
Cora is a quarterly subscription that sends toxin-free, organic cotton tampons every month. Plus, for every monthly supply of Cora purchased, they send a monthly supply products to a girl in need.
Cora is committed to providing both healthier and toxin-free products to women, but also modernizing feminine care products into something that you don’t feel embarrassed about.
This box was sent to us for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
The Subscription Box: Cora
The Cost: $9/monthly for a 18 tampon bundle every 3 months, $12/monthly for a 36 tampon bundle every 3 months, $15/monthly for a 54 tampon bundle every 3 months, and $18/monthly for 72 tampon bundle every 3 months. They also offer 3-month billing options (save 10%) and annual billing options (save 20%).
The Products: toxin-free, organic cotton tampons
Ships to: US (for free!)
Check out the Period Subscription Box Directory and make sure to add Cora to your subscription list or wishlist!
Here’s the info card that came with my box, explaining the Cora movement. I love that they are helping supply tampons to girls in need in other countries and such, too! That’s awesome.
The flip side of the card also describes the items in the box.
“Stowaway” Tampon Cases
These stowaway cases are designed to hold 1 tampon each and get tossed in your purse, and handed off to a friend. I can also see these being great to leave in a women’s bathroom with a little encouraging note or something.
Premium Organic Cotton Tampons, Regular – 18 count
Premium Organic Cotton Tampons, Super – 18 count
I received a 36-tampon bundle, half regular and half super.
A peek inside. I think the patterned packaging is stylish!
Little Black Tampon Clutch
This is the little black clutch you get in your first delivery, along with the little black box (below). It’s sturdy and very well made. The inside is lined, too! I’m a fan of this.
Little Black Storage Box
This is the other item you get with your first shipment, and it’s nicely made, too! It’s great to store the tampons in your bathroom – much prettier than the typical drawer ripped-open boxes and bags. I wish there were 2 compartments or something so I could know more easily which tampons were regular and which were super. They’re marked, but it’d be faster with a separation. I still like this, though.
Here’s a shot of what the actual tampons look like for you. They expand, which saves space and is the kind of tampons I personally prefer, so I’m happy!
The Verdict: I really appreciate Cora’s mission of modernizing tampons and also providing feminine care products to girls in need. I think the products are designed and packaged well and the storage case and box are well-made. My only complaint is that they’re pricier than running to the drugstore to grab some tampons, but I also know they’re made with organic cotton, which isn’t as cheap to produce, so I know that affects the price. It’s something I didn’t think about before – all the pesticides and such that get sprayed on cotton crops end up in my tampons! Definitely makes me think organic cotton tampons might be pretty important.
What do you think about Cora?
Written by Haley Faye
So let’s say I get the 18 tampon subscription for $9/month. Each box costs $27??? Am I missing something? Who on earth is going to pay $27 for tampons?
The cotton *is* washed thoroughly before it’s made into tampons, you know. Organic cotton is usually fertilized with chicken c r a p, which is full of metals. Organic cotton also acquires whatever’s in the water, air, and soil.
The picture looks like the applicators are plastic. Plastic applicators and disposable sanitary pads end up as piles of garbage in developing nations, which do not have organized trash removal and burial like we do.
Check out Girls international, which distributes washable menstrual cycles supplies that don’t generate plastic trash. My quilt group has stitched some pads for them.
I don’t know what “toxins” Cora is talking about. Toxins are the natural animal-made products in bee sting and snake venom. I guess they mean “toxicants” (man-made chemicals).
I personally hate the “chemical-free” products that various companies now sell–even water is a chemical! Sadly, organic has become yet another meaningless advertising term… But thanks for girls int’l info–I will check them out! 🙂
Dea brings up good points. Organic does not necessarily mean chemical and pesticide free, but restricts the types of pesticides and chemicals used. Synthetic chemicals are not used, but natural chemicals can be (chemicals derived from natural sources instead of being synthetically made).
I wish these eco-friendly brands also consider their packaging. It seems like a lot of waste, especially if the packaging isn’t bio-degradeable. I
The waste was my first thought as well. I won’t buy any tampons that use plastic applicators because they’re so unnecessarily wasteful and it looks like they use the plastic instead of paper for the wrapper too. Then, of course, there’s the false idea that organic means no pesticides when organic often means more pesticides because they don’t work as well. Apparently, there are also a few synthetic chemicals that are approved for organic farming.
Cora sends them biodegradable pads, not these tampons, so the waste is not as much of a concern. And while reusable menstrual products are great in theory, in practice a lot of women don’t clean/store them properly because of the stigma about periods, so they end up getting infections.