If you are a menstruating human in the 20 through 45 age range, you probably have been inundated with the Thinx period panty ads on Facebook and in your Google ads. They’re cutesy, sort of weird and also totally unavoidable.

I have successfully ignored these ads for years until I read a series of environmental articles about how we are filling up our country with trash that is killing animals and wetlands and plants. I also started to think about how much money I had spent on tampons over my 32 years on the planet, and the answer was pretty mind-blowing. With my head full of environmental guilt, I decided to go ahead and grab a few pairs of Thinx to see if their products were as great as they claim. I had read a lot of articles about their various marketing controversies but had only seen a handful of non-sponsored reviews.

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In some ways, I am the ideal Thinx customer. I have medium to light periods that are pretty regular, and I fit into their sizing easily. I’m also short-waisted, which we’ll talk about in a minute. I’m also fascinated with the intersection of lingerie and high-tech fabrics, which makes the price of these seem less crazy to me.

One thing that has always put me off all of the high-tech performance lingerie brands is the fabric content. Invariably, it all feels like weird swim fabric to me and doesn’t breathe well. Thinx now produces an organic cotton line, which seemed to have my name on it.

There has been a great deal of criticism regarding Thinx’s sizing, and I have to add to that: I’m a 3X in their panties. While I don’t care about the size on the tag, I am a reasonably standard US 14/16. What this means is that their claim to carry sizes up to 3X is not true. A standard 3X wouldn’t fit into the line at all. I’d love to see them expand to catering to larger plus sizes, who seem entirely excluded at this point. Their size chart is accurate, and if you follow it, your panties should fit. I mentioned being short-waisted, which is apparently relevant to this line. One friend, who used to be a lingerie blogger, tried them and couldn’t even get them to cover half of her butt and torso due to her long waist!

I bought three pairs from the organic cotton line, all of which were briefs. Thinx says that these hold up to two tampons of stuff and are their highest absorbing pair. When I go back, I’m definitely going to pick up some of the bikini cut panties which I think will work just as well for me most days. Thinx is an expensive prospect, especially if you need more than one pair a day. Even with the cycle set discounts offered, a seven-day supply could cost you $200. But this isn’t unique to Thinx. Most high-tech lingerie companies are selling panties at this price level.  And it does exclude people who don’t have a ton of disposable income who could benefit from Thinx.

If you don’t want to read all of the details, I’ll start with the critical part. I loved these, completely and totally. It was extra surprising to me because I hate pads. I’ve been setting weird alarms for years to change out tampons 24/7 because I refuse to wear those diaper-like monstrosities. Thankfully, Thinx were nothing like pads. They do feel just like regular underwear! In fact, my Thinx is more comfortable than most of my daily underwear, which felt like a treat during an otherwise stressful week. The four high-tech layers mean that the gusset wicks moisture away like a champ, so it’s not much different from wearing regular underwear. They don’t shift around at all but also don’t feel incredibly tight, which means you’re secure but also comfortable.

Washing them is easy and way less gross than I anticipated. All you have to do is rinse in cold water and then toss them in the washer like regular underwear. As long as you don’t use fabric softeners or heat, you’re good to go. It took about a day for a pair to air dry, which made it easy to alternate between three pairs. I didn’t wear any solid colored white clothing, but I did wear some white printed dresses. The grey Thinx disappeared under it nicely, although I wish they would use a more invisible band on instead of a black one.

Whether Thinx panties are a good deal, in the long run, depends on their longevity. But I can’t speak to that yet, and there aren’t many reviews out that do. If they do hold up for a year or two, they will have paid for themselves regarding cost per wear. I will be going back for more pairs in some other styles, especially if they release more limited edition colors. While Thinx isn’t as fashionable as other brands of period panties, their organic cotton line sets them apart. And they do work as tampon and pad replacements for people like me. More importantly, products like Thinx are a great demonstration of the future of fabric innovations and lingerie. If Thinx can do this, what other human issues can high-tech lingerie solve?

What about you? Have you tried Thinx or other period panty products? What it worth it?