Just the other day I received word that I have been approved for a 3 month voluntarily leave of absence. This temporary leave allows me to both help the company I work for mitigate furloughs, and keeps me a bit safer to be at home, social distancing. I am very thankful for the opportunity, but naturally, like many of you I’m sure, I find that I still like to have a bit of structure and productivity to my days.
I heard about the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the medical community, and how many of these institutions are actively asking, begging even, that those with sewing skills heed a call to action, in sewing handmade non surgical masks for the medical professionals. “Perfect!”, I thought. I have plenty of time on my hands, and I have the sewing skills to help. The only problem? My sewing machine was in another state. I watched the news about how bad the shortage is becoming and I felt sad that here I was with the skills to help, but without my sewing machine with me.
So I had an idea, I found the post on Facebook from the local TV channel here in Fort Myers, FL about the call for masks, and I asked if there was anyone who had a sewing machine they no longer wanted so I could sew. To my delight, I was quickly contacted by a lady who offered me a free sewing machine, and today she dropped it off at my gate, so I could socially distance in picking it up! How absolutely lovely!
I found a free mask pattern called the FU Mask , and it is available by clicking here. You can print it on a standard piece of computer paper, and also there is a video with instructions.
I found this pattern to be a nice design, simple to understand, and a great solution for when you do not have access to elastic. I cannot find elastic anywhere! This mask ties on, and has a contoured seam to fit on the face. It is a bit more time consuming than the pleated mask with elastic ears, but I think it is still better than nothing! The most time consuming, (and thread consuming) part it to created the long tie strings.
While these masks are not medical grade, they are still needed at this point in time, and being requested by the medical community. They can be worn in certain situations to free up N-95 masks for more critical situations. I decided to send mine to a nursing home in need, and from what I hear, sending a local nursing home your masks will be a sure bet, that they will be well received. I hope you enjoy this tip, happy sewing!
covid 19no elastic masksnon medical maskssewing masks
