If you’ve been to a grocery store or anywhere in the last week, you’ve likely seen people wearing homemade face masks. Although the CDC has informed the public that these homemade face masks are not considered PPE (personal protective equipment), because their protective capabilities are unknown and have not been tested, wearing one of these masks will protect you better than no mask at all.
Many people all over the country are dedicating their newly found free time and sewing skills to make fabric face masks to donate to hospitals and clinics where there is a shortage of PPE. One such group is “Sew You Care.”
“Sew You Care” is a public Facebook group created by a good friend of mine in the Louisiana cosplay community named Jessy Gillespie. When the crisis hit, Jessy wanted to do something to help protect the community she loved, so she started this group to urge others to dedicate their time to make masks to ship out to those places where there is a shortage. At this time the group has amassed over 4,000 members… one of which is me!
I found this great mask pattern on A&A Sewing Center’s Facebook page, and found out that the owners of the Broussard shop have also been working hard to produce masks to help with the shortage. You can download that pattern HERE – and watch my video tutorial above!
You will need:
- Cotton Fabric
- Medium Weight Interfacing (lightweight and featherweight will probably work too)
- Elastic Cord
- Scissors (fabric scissors are best so you can cut through at least 4 layers of fabric to speed up the process.)
- Iron ( pref. with steam setting or iron over a damp washcloth)
- Straight pins
- Sewing Machine or Needle and Thread
Before you start mask making, please pre-wash and iron your fabric! This is not only to ensure cleanliness, but also prevents the mask from becoming distorted in the wash later. Also, don’t feel left out if you don’t have a sewing machine, these masks can be hand sewn too, although it will take more time. Once you have a few masks for you and your loved ones, consider donating your time and masks to “Sew You Care”!