The Coronaviary

Today was going to be Mask Day. Not the wearing of a mask, rather the making of a mask. I’ve witnessed enthusiastic and prolific sewers of masks scattered across the landscape of my internet feeds. A cottage industry has popped up in this country churning out an assortment of bright colors, funky designs, re-purposed cool t-shirts, even a Melitta coffee filter version.

I love sewing but none of this has inspired me. I used to love finding a unique pattern and unusual fabric to make a new outfit. But a cloth surgical mask? … not cute. I’d have to dig through my stash of sewing supplies buried in the back of the closet, find a pattern online, reacquaint myself with the workings of my sewing machine, etc. All very tedious. I don’t think so – it can wait. And anyway, there was no urgency to have a mask since we a) basically never leave the house and b) none of the experts can agree whether this is useful or not.

Now it seems that the ‘experts’ are getting behind the wear a mask campaign. I guess I’d better join the band of merry mask makers. Enthusiasm is still lacking, but I willed myself into the closet this morning and started pulling out boxes to see what I had on hand.

With the ‘Sew Easy’ pattern displayed on my smartphone I checked off all the materials needed. In my treasure trove of saved-just-in-case-you-need-it sewing supplies I found everything on the list – even pipe cleaners for the nose bridge fitting. At the family fitting session at lunch there were some complaints about the stretchy-ness of the elastic on my prototype. Well, ok, so maybe that elastic in the packet with a 75 cents label was a bit on the old side, so I replaced it with some I found in another packet costing 90 cents, and we were good to go. [Out of curiosity, I looked up the current price online and see that it now costs $4.99 – oops, I guess I’ve been saving that for quite some time.] There was also some grumbling about it being too loose around the sides and the pleats not being as tight as they should be. I can tell these are going to be picky customers.

The second product to roll off the production line was much improved. The elastic was tight, the gaping on the sides was remedied and the pleats were might tighter. It even has a pouch for a filter insert. It’s the Cadillac of masks, IMHO, I was chuffed. Then there was some questioning about the smell of the fabric. It smelled a bit ‘old’, maybe musty. Where had the material come from? Honestly, I’m not sure. If I had to guess, it came from the same place as that 75 cent elastic. Maybe they won’t read this. I’m going to put a dab of lavender oil on each one. 

And now, on closer inspection, I’ve been informed that one side is longer than the other. Yep, a bit fussy. These people!

Four more cut out and ready to go. It’s becoming a matter of pride. I’m going to get it right. Even if I miss my daily appointment with my blog tomorrow, I will conquer this mask thing.