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I learned to sew in March or April of 2020 (the days all run together now). Sure, I knit. I crochet. I used to do cross stitch. I took a beginner sewing class a few years back – I might have even had two of them over the years. Never went any further. I have an Elna 1010 that I bought while pregnant with my youngest – in 1997. I then had my great grandmother’s Singer sewing machine refurbished in May and am now using that make masks.
Isn’t Cora Etta pretty?
Once I realized masks were here to stay, I set about trying to make them. I tried different patterns and didn’t love any of them. I started with a rectangle that I strung a long piece of t-shirt yarn through.
I tried a couple of different cup-shaped masks and found them hard to sew and not the best for keeping the glasses clear. I even tried a pleated one.
Then I stumbled upon THE pattern. The first time I saw it, it was a video, all in Korean, of which I do not speak nor read. The pattern looked easy enough-ish but I needed more than a video with words I didn’t understand to figure out how to make it.
My sister posted a link to a video of the same mask by someone who speaking English and went over the pattern in detail. I made one – out of just muslin because I didn’t want to waste pretty fabric. It was a hit! Maggie wore it to work and declared it the winner!
I now have a fabric addiction. Which means you win! I am selling the masks I am making. They might not be perfectly sewn. The sleeve for the nose piece might be wonky. There might be a bit of extra thread visible where I forget the sewing machine was in reverse (or wasn’t and I needed to go back further). What they are? Comfortable and handmade.
My masks are 100% cotton fabric, with a layer of non-woven interfacing (I am now using Pellon 911 though some are Pellon 910, both classified as featherweight with 911 being about twice as thick!). I use 100% cotton muslin as the backing. I use 1/8″ elastic and use a silicone bead to make the ear loops adjustable. Adult masks come with a sewn-in sleeve for flexible nose piece (included).
These are the best masks I have worn and others say the same. My daughter was working retail and could easily wear them for her shift. She has now gone back to nursing school and spent a week before school started in all day make-up labs from spring semester and had no problem being in them for 8 hours.
Some colors are extremely limited as I only purchased fat quarters when I started on this journey. Other fabrics have more than a few available but will still be limited as the fabric may no longer be available.