Hiding behind my mask

There is so much coverage in the media about the Covit-19 that I personally would now really hear something positive. Following the news, some countries have eased up on the restrictions and opened up businesses and parks.  However, in Germany, who opened up yesterday, as an example, it is now mandatory to wear a facemask in public. This might not be a bad idea if we follow suit by opening more and more businesses here in North America. I have been wearing a dusk mask and latex gloves when grocery shopping. We also have a few N-95 masks but those I would like to hold onto and not wear until I really feel threatened to be infected. 

I have been wondering what material to use if I want to sew our own facemasks. Of course we want them to be pretty, but that is totally unimportant if the material turns out to be unsuitable and useless by letting those darn viruses through. 

Benno read on the Internet an article written by the US Army as they have tested numerous materials and found that using four-ply microfibre cloth to be the best for a facemask. Included is a link "best material for a face mask"

So we researched and found that Canadian Tire (a famous Canadian chain store) sells a microfiber cloth for glass cleaning by the name of “Frank” that is really tightly woven and smooth. It comes in a two-piece package, is turquois/green colored and costs $3.99. Walmart is also selling a microfibre cloth from Scotch-Brite, a 3M product that is $4.25 for a single piece in light blue color.

So I ordered the Frank product at Canadian Tire online and used the store-pickup option. The 3M product I got by going into Walmart, but had to search the store a bit before finding it. I figure if we don’t like wearing these masks I can always use them what they were intended for, cleaning my windows! 

Today I sewed two masks for starters. I folded the shorter side of the cloth in half but had to cut off a bit from the sides as it was to long and made three pleats. For the elastic pieces for the ears I had to experiment a little because the suggested length of 6.5 inches was too long. Benno’s mask is a little bit bigger than mine but has the format recommended in the instructions I found on the Internet. 

My mask is slightly shorter and the folds are larger so the side is narrower. I also inserted a metal nosepiece in mine by using a double strip from twist ties that are included when you purchase trash bags. It works great and so far I am happy with the outcome. The real test will be when I go shopping again wearing my 2-ply mask.

Today turned out to be a sunny day with temps at 17C/62 so no complaints. Just wishing we would have more of these balmy days. Benno added a tablet holder to his CJI Mavic Mini drone remote controller and tested the new gadget out by sending the drone high up above our property. He can now angle his iPad Mini better with this holder and see was the drone camera sees and attach a sun hood to it when needed. He finds it so much better than using the smartphone as a monitor. 

As you can see we need more warm weather to green things up around here. 

the bare spots need grass seed

view of our property and Lake Erie

part of a Lake Erie beach next to Wheatley Harbour

Hoping everyone is staying safe and healthy and thanks for dropping by.