A face mask tutorial . . .

 

Don't forget, today is the worldwide day of Prayer and Fasting for relief from the Covid-19 pandemic.  There is a great power to be found in our uniting together as a world to fight this horrible pandemic.   We can do this! 

 

My dear friend Lura is creating masks for people to wear and she has done a brilliant tutorial on facebook which she shared.  I am sharing it here for you.  These are her photos and her words.

 I’ve been using scraps ...mostly 100% cotton quilting fabrics and old sheets 

 

Cut fabric 15 inches by 8 inches. Fold the short ends together with right sides of fabric on the inside. Mark 2 inches from each end. Sew from each edge to that 2” mark. Back stitch to reinforce. 

  

Finger press the seam open. 

 

Sew that seam open down both sides. 

 

Fold the mask so the seam you just made is an inch from the top. 

 

Cut 2 pieces of elastic 7 inches long. Place the ends of the elastic at the top and bottom of each side of your mask and sew a 1/4 “ seam down both sides. I make a mark on the end of each elastic piece to be sure I don’t twist the elastic when I’m putting it inside the mask to sew it. 

 

After sewing the side seams turn the bag inside out . Put a pipe cleaner, floral wire or plastic bag twist ties under the top fold of the mask using the opening in the seam. 

 

Once the pipe cleaner is inside the top fold, stitch a line to make a casing closing at both ends so the pipe cleaner won’t slip out. 

 

Make 3 folds in the mask. Go up 1” and fold under 1/2 “.... do this 3 times. 

 

Press the pleats down. 

 

Start on one side of the mask and Sew the pleats down ....sew across the bottom of the mask and then up the other side to secure the pleats.  

 

Open up the pocket you have made to insert your filter. 

  

 Put the filter inside the pocket and smooth out the fabric. You can use several different things for filters.... vacuum bags, dry baby wipes, etc. I’m using embroidery machine stabilizer.  

  

 Pinch the pipe cleaner or wire to fit around your nose and you are all set to use your mask 😷 Good luck. Happy sewing 👍  

 

Thank you so much Lura for this very excellent tutorial! 

THE USE AND CARE OF FACE MASKS

People should be wearing cloth face coverings to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control said Friday. These homemade masks should cover the nose and mouth and be worn whenever you’re in a community setting, like going to the supermarket or pharmacy.

The CDC has a helpful guide for DIY-ing a mask with materials you’d have at home. While surgical masks and N95 respirators should be saved for healthcare workers, the idea is that a simple cloth covering could prevent asymptomatic people from spreading the disease in situations where it’s hard to maintain social distance.

“These are not intended to prevent you from getting the virus, they are intended to prevent other people from getting the virus from you, Dr. Howard Forman, professor of management, public health, economics and radiology at Yale University and Yale School of Medicine, tells CNBC Make It. “If everybody takes that recommendation carefully, then you are clearly benefiting from the collective.”
But securing a mask is just one piece of the puzzle: For masks to be effective, they must be worn properly. Here’s the right way to use a cloth face covering during the COVID-19 pandemic, plus common pitfalls that could affect your safety:

FOCUS ON THE FIT:

Face coverings should be snug, but still comfortable, and cover your whole nose and mouth, and extend underneath your chin, according to the CDC. You should be able to breathe normally, but the sides of the mask should fit close to your face. In truth, wearing a mask can be a little bit annoying, Forman says. Glasses-wearers may struggle with masks steaming up lenses, and it can make breathing somewhat uncomfortable or stuffy. (Kids under age 2 and people who have trouble breathing shouldn’t wear cloth face coverings, per the CDC.)

PUT IT ON CAREFULLY

Whether you’re using a homemade mask, scarf, bandana or surgical mask, “one of the most important steps before putting on or after taking off a face covering is to use appropriate hand hygiene, either by using hand sanitizer or washing your hands with soap and water."

The World Health Organization suggests that people first clean their hands before putting a mask on and check that there are no holes or tears in the fabric. When putting on your face covering, use the ties to place it on your face and cover your face and mouth snugly, making sure you can breathe easily, Walley adds. If your mask has a nose bridge, hold it in place, then loop the ear bands over your ears.

 A bandana, scarf or cloth covering should be applied with the same care.

And don’t touch the outside of the mask or cloth which could be contaminated.

DON'T TOUCH THE MASK WHILE WEARING IT

You shouldn’t be taking off, adjusting or moving your mask during your outing. “It is important to remember the outside of the mask is considered contaminated,” Dr. Susan Walley, professor at the University of Alabama School of Medicine, practicing at Children’s of Alabama.

A recent laboratory study found that the virus that causes COVID-19 could survive on a face mask for up to seven days. That means, if you must take off your mask for a quick breather, or an itch, it’s important to practice good hand hygiene after touching the face covering.

REMOVE IT CAREFULLY WHEN DONE

There’s some technique involved taking off a mask, especially if you’re a healthcare worker or taking care of someone who has COVID-19. The key is to avoid accidentally contaminating your hands or touching your face.

Be extra careful not to touch the front of your mask and your eyes, nose and mouth when removing your face covering, and wash your hands after handling your mask, according to the CDC.

Remember: Wearing a mask or cloth face covering doesn’t make you invincible. “There’s no question you could be getting viral particles on the outside of it.” The CDC recommends storing personal protective equipment in a paper bag, so you should do the same with your cloth face covering, Walley says.

WASH YOUR MASK OFTEN

Currently, there are no strict guidelines about washing and sanitizing cloth face coverings and masks. According to the CDC, machine-washing your mask is enough to disinfect your cloth face covering. You should wash it regularly, or after each time you wear it.

It’s okay to re-wear a cloth face covering so long as it’s not soiled, Dr. William Schaffner, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases in Bethesda, Maryland, told NBC’s “TODAY” on Monday.

Similarly, if you don’t have immediate access to laundry, it’s reasonable to wait until the face covering is visibly soiled to wash it, Walley says. Any clothing or accessories that you wear have the potential to be contaminated, but right now experts don’t believe that the mechanism of transmission is so extreme that you need to be washing or changing your clothes multiple times a day, he says. The same is true for cloth masks and face coverings.

 “If someone wanted to be aggressive and keep their clothes is as clean as they could be, I think they would want to do the same thing with a mask,” Forman says. For example, Dr. Daniel Griffin, an infectious diseases expert at Columbia University, told NPR you should wash your mask as often as you do your underwear. (To that end, you may want to have multiple masks so you can still stay protected while it’s in the wash.)

KEEP SOCIAL DISTANCING

Wearing a face covering is just one additional step that you can take to stop the spread of COVID-19, but it’s not a replacement for the other important prevention measures, such as washing your hands and social distancing. Like the other measures, it’s important to do your part. Anything that reduces transmission at this moment has enormous benefit to the public.

FACE MASKS ARE ONLY EFFECTIVE IF THEY ARE USED IN CONJUNCTION  WITH PROPER HAND WASHING MEASURES.

They may help to flatten the curve, but they cannot replace good hygiene and social distancing measures.

The best thing you can do for yourself and your family is to just stay home and to carfully consider and care for anything that you bring into your home by way of delivery.  ie. using gloves to bring it in and unwrapping the article. Put the article in a safe space for at least 24 hours. Wipe the article down with alcohol wipes and dispose of the gloves in a safe manner.

We are even doing this with any mail that comes into our home.

You can never be too careful in my opinion.   And even then it might not be enough, but it is better than nothing.  Have a great Friday and don't forget!

 

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And I do too!    

 

Pray Pray Pray!