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04/15/2020 07:00 AMFay Abrahamsson is a former staff writer and current realtor living in Killingworth.
Around mid-March, I received an email (the first of many about the COVID-19 virus) from Catherine Iino, the first selectman of Killingworth, in response to inquiries by residents who asked, “How can I help during this Coronavirus pandemic?”
She wrote that those who could sew and had materials on hand could help by making masks. They could be dropped off in a bin at town hall, and town staff would take care of distributing the masks to local healthcare organizations and workers.
So I got started sewing. Soon, I realized I was getting short on elastic, so I put the word out to friends and they came through. One new friend in particular gave me yards and yards of beautiful cotton fabric. To date, I’ve sewn about 80 masks!
The need for masks has since grown.
In addition to providing masks to healthcare organizations and workers, for whom they can be a matter of life and death, more people are making their own because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended people use some kind of cloth covering or face mask when they have to go out on essential trips.
These cloth face masks are not a substitute for other safety measures, including staying home to stay safe, and keeping a proper social distance of six feet or more when going out, but they are intended to be an additional layer of protection, protecting others from you, in case you are sick, without symptoms but able to spread the virus to others. It is meant to be a protection for outgoing germs.
As for the best material, HEPA furnace filters and vacuum bag cleaners do a good job of filtering out germs, but can be hard to breathe through, and they have to have layers of protective fabric on either side, so that small fibers don’t migrate into the lungs. Layers of 600-count pillowcases and flannel pajamas are suitable fabrics, along with coffee filters, according to a recent article in The New York Times.
Even simple cotton fabric can provide some protection. To test your fabric, hold it up to bright light. The less light that filters through, the better. You want to strike a balance between having a thick fabric, with having one that is also breathable enough so that it is comfortable to wear.
Making the masks is fairly easy. There are no complicated patterns to download and print and most folks would have the supplies on hand. One of the easiest parts is you do not need large pieces of fabric. If you have a box of fabric scraps of all colors and patterns, as long as they are 7” x 9”, they will work.
Supplies needed: a sewing machine, cotton fabric at least 7” x 9”, elastic (1/4” or ½” is ideal, larger sizes can be cut in half lengthwise), fabric scissors, pins, thread, and an iron.
Here are the how-to’s:
• First, gather your cotton fabric and machine wash it in warm/hot water and dry it in the clothes dryer. This is so it will be pre-shrunk. Iron it so it is flat.
• For one mask, cut out two pieces of fabric, each 7” by 9” and two pieces of elastic 7” long each.
• Take one piece of fabric with the good side facing up, and pin one end of the elastic on the short side of the fabric about 1” in from the edge, with the elastic laying across the fabric, not outside the fabric. Pin the other end of the same piece of elastic on the same short end side, 1” in. The elastic will form a sideways “U” and will lay on top of the fabric. Repeat with the other piece of elastic on the other short side of the fabric. Looking at your piece, you should have the right side facing you, with two sideways “U” pieces of elastic on opposite ends.
• Pin the other piece of fabric, right side down, on top of your piece.
• Sew around the outside edge of your piece, keeping an opening between where the elastic is pinned on one side. This is to allow the piece to be turned inside out. Use your reverse stitch at the start and end of your sewing to secure the stitching.
• With a pair of sharp fabric scissors, snip the triangle of fabric at the four corners of the sewn piece. Be careful to not cut where you stitched! This is to reduce the fabric bulk in that area when you turn it inside out.
• Turn your piece inside out. With your finger or with a capped pen, gently poke out the corners. With an iron, press the piece flat, avoiding touching the elastic with the iron (elastic does not like a hot iron).
• Turn in and pin, if necessary, the opening, and press.
• Holding the piece horizontally, make two folds going in the same direction. Pin.
• Back to the sewing machine, sew just the short edges, sewing the folds down and at the same time, closing the opening on one end.
• Trim your thread and your face mask is complete!