How to Make a CoVID-19 Reusable Washable Homemade Mask

I have really been inspired by rewatching the movie “Superman I.” (In fact, I wrote about it along with nine other ideas I bet you’ve never heard of on how to deal with this pandemic. You can read it here.) I have been trying to think of way to be a “Superman” during this pandemic, but it’s not easy!

My husband and I have really been trying to think of something we can do to help while maintaining good social distancing protocols. He suggested that we start calling everyone on our contact list to check in on them. I thought that was a great idea. It keeps infections from spreading, but it shows people you care.

I, on the other hand, had this really ambitious idea to make a ton of face masks. They don’t seem too hard to make, and I thought I could crank out 40-50 in a couple of hours.

Well, I was definitely wrong about my ambitions. It took me all day Saturday to crank out a paltry dozen. Like, literally all day!

Seriously, each one takes me about 30 minutes. And I work fast! It took at least an hour to cut all my fabric and then another six hours to make the twelve I made. So, I decided that since it’s not feasible for me to make masks for everyone I know and love. And since sitting at my machine for hours on end kills my back. And since I have to tear up my work-from-home office every time I want to get to my sewing machine, and then put it back together for work the next day. And especially when everyone else seems just to be reading books, watching movies, and “Netflix and Chill”-ing. And since people tend to ask me to make them things that they never end up using. 

I thought: Why am I going to kill myself making a million masks???

I decided that we would distribute the ones I made among our neighbors. Besides, this cuts down on the social contact of driving around to deliver masks to everyone. And it creates a sense of community around your home. 

If we all made masks or bought toilet paper or delivered groceries to the three to five people we live around, this whole pandemic would be a lot nicer and more manageable. Plus, this sort of help is a lot more sustainable versus trying to make a million masks for everyone you know!

Then, I decided I would write a mask tutorial for everyone else. You really need to learn how to sew, and you’ve got a ton of time on your hands if you’re not working. Here’s another reason it’s better for you to make your own masks: Liability. No one knows who has this CoVID-19 and who doesn’t. What happens if I make you a mask and then you get coronavirus from me? I’m not gonna play that game. Incidentally, if you are ordering a homemade mask from anyone, you need to make sure that you wash it and let it thoroughly dry before you wear it. However, if you make it yourself from your own fabric, you don’t have to worry about that at all!

So, I’m just going to warn you. This isn’t the easiest tutorial out there. I am just going to show you my process, in case you are interested. My method uses bias tape, because I wanted to use what I have already and I have a lot of bias tape. If you don’t know what bias tape is, then clearly, you need to look for a different tutorial. (Google: “Easy mask tutorial”) I will say that my version can be washed and tumble dried. (Although, line dry is better as tumble drying can strip the filtering of the fabric over time.)

On the bright side: Even if you are a terrible sewer and are really sloppy, that’s fine! These don’t have to be perfect. They just have to be functional, so give yourself some grace.

Here’s what I used: A Ralph Lauren bed sheet, white cotton, baby blanket flannel, chenille wire (pipe cleaners), and bias tape.

So I read from another tutorial that an 8”x8” square is good for adults and 7”x6” is good for children. I cut the fabric accordingly.

Originally, I made these three-ply—wanting to be as safe as possible. However, I think as long as you have a good quality cotton and a layer of flannel, you should be okay. All the sources I read said these were the best fabrics to use. You do have to actually breathe through them! So, maybe don’t make too many layers.

Note: When wearing face masks, you need to limit your movement. Because they constrict your air flow, you will get winded if you try to run or move too quickly with one on.

So fold the top down approximately 1 1/2” and pin it.

Make another fold and pin that too. I’m sorry. I don’t use exact measurements. I just eyeball it and make it look like this each time.

Then, I pinned some bias tape to the edge.

After I sewed that down, I folded the bias tape in half. (Most bias tape comes prefolded, so you probably won’t have to do this.)

Then, I folded the edge of the tape to the middle crease I’d just made.

Then, I flipped the bias tape around the mask’s edge and pinned it in place.

I stitched in the ditch, but you could also top stitch if you want. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

So this is what both edges looked like bound in the bias tape.

Now, I had to sew in a little pocket at the top to put in the chenille wire. (This is so you can adjust the mask over your nose.) Start the pocket about 1 1/2” from the side edge. Sew down about 3/4” and then across and back up. Look at the picture after this one to see what that looks like. 

This is what the little pocket looks like when you are done.

Then, I measured how much chenille wire I needed against the pocket.

My chenille wire is really thick and fuzzy for some reason. Most pipe cleaners are a lot thinner. You probably will never have to do this step to cut it down. However, I wanted to use what I already had versus running to the store.

After trimming the wire, I folded the ends over to keep them from poking out of the mask.

Then, I placed the wire into the pocket.

Then, I stitched it in place. Again this doesn’t have to look nice. You just want a simple stitch to keep the wire from popping out.

Sorry that the picture is sideways, but you can see the wire is in place.

Next, I cut two approximately 22” piece of the bias tape. I didn’t formally measure these pieces. I just  used my arm as a measurement.

Then, I folded both pieces in half and finger pressed a crease.

I matched the crease to the middle of the mask.

And then I pinned each piece—one to the top and one to the bottom of the mask.

After stitching them in place, I folded the bias tape in half lengthwise and finger pressed them.

Then, I folded the edges into the middle crease, beginning with the middle of the mask.

Then, I flipped it over the edge.

And I pinned it in place.

Then, I just worked my way from the middle out to the outer ends and pinned as I went.

This is the most difficult part, but once you get all your pins in, it’s straight shooting from here and you’re done!

The finished mask.

So I made the straps long so that they can be worn one of two ways.

This first way is tied around back.

But not all heads are created equal, and some people don’t like them tied behind their heads.

In that event, you can just tie the ties in loops like this and hang them off your ears. If you don’t like the bows, you can either make the straps shorter to begin with or you can cut them down once you get them how you want them.

Happy sewing!

The End!

Refashioning: A 70s Floral Dress into a Tailored Slit Dress (Over Skinny Jeans)

When I'm bored, I scour Pinterest for ideas.

So, lately, I've been getting looks like these in my main feed:

I dunno...I've seen the maxi-dress-over-pants look before, and largely ignored it. However, something about it intrigued me this time. So...I kept an eye out at Goodwill for a maxi dress to play with.

A few weeks later, I found this little 70s Flower Child number:

You can see it's way too big--even dragging on the floor. I hate ruffle sleeves on me. And the V-neck is way too low. 

Still, I really liked the print and the polyester jersey fabrication, so I paid my $1.00 and took it home!

If you would like to try this, you don't have to follow these exact directions, but maybe it'll give you some ideas!

First order of "bid-ness" was to cut the horrible sleeves off.

Now...realize this: When you want to shorten a dress, you actually have TWO options. Yes, you can hem it from the bottom--which is the usual way. But I know a much easier way--especially when the neckline is way too low.

This is what you do: You pinch an inch or so at the shoulder seam. Now...I realize that this is going to move the shoulder seam forward. In other words, it will no longer sit at the top of your shoulder. However, a forward-ed shoulder seam is sorta "in" right now, so I find this to be an adequate adjustment. I'm gonna show you a few pictures of this, because it's kind of hard to see in this print.

So then, all you do is cut off the excess. I use pinking shears.

Okay, so...I really wanted sleeves. Trying to finagle the ruffle sleeves into a more fitted sleeve was...not easy. The fabric was a really weird shape. Still, you gotta use what you got. I laid another shirt on top of the ruffle sleeves as a pattern.

So, next I eased and pinned the sleeves back onto the dress.

So you can see here how big the dress is; however, notice how much nicer the V-neck sits from before. 

So, the next step was pinning down the sides to take off the excess sizing.

I sewed the side seams all the way down from the armpit to the floor to keep the shape uniform. It's now beginning to look really nice! I could have stopped here...but it's getting colder, so I wanted longer sleeves.

Notice how much shorter the dress is now. I didn't hem it. This just goes to show you that if a dress is too big, try taking the length away from the top and the sides first. Then see how long it is. 

Don't ever hem as your first alteration!!!

I added a piece of faux leather jersey to give an edgy look. But notice that now it looks sorta incomplete.

So, I added a bit more of the floral fabric. I had precious little left from the ruffle sleeves, but it was just enough to create a more uniform finished-looking sleeve.

Okay...I could have stopped there...(and maybe some of you think I definitely should have!)...but I have a million dresses...and the purpose of buying this one was to put it over pants...

so....

I laid it down on the floor...

and cut a big ol' chunk out of the front!

Not gonna lie...I was like, "What have I just done???"

But then I took it to the sewing machine and finished the slit's seam.

Here's how it looks over jeans.

And because we all love "Before and After"s:

The End!