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| face masks, half made with hair elastics |
For a while I couldn't get any elastic, and made a few masks with ties but I didn't like those. Then I was using hair elastics and that worked okay, but were hard for my sewing machine to stitch through and I broke a few needles. Thanks to my friend Gail who generously shared her elastic with me, I can now keep up with the demand for more masks.
I made 25 masks for the crew at my daughter's job since they couldn't source any masks to purchase, and I have made many for family and friends, elderly parents of my friends, and anyone who asks me.
I was relieved that my efforts to help my sister with her ear pain were successful. I sewed some surgical caps with buttons on the side to hang the N95 masks on. Her ears are much happier and she doesn't need as much pain medicine to get through a shift. Yes, they wear 2 masks and a face shield to go into COVID patient rooms.I like this story about a young man who developed ear guards on his 3D printer... creative genius! It would be awesome if all hospitals, nursing homes and funeral homes had a big supply of those.
And I must say that I feel very thankful to live in a town where the gratitude of the people is more visible than the anger and agitation that is occurring in other places in the world.
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| Thankfulness of a neighbourhood family |
And although I miss my regular life and my friends very much, I'm content to stay safe at home, sew face masks every day, and await the advice of the experts about what we're going to do next to get through this pandemic as quickly and as safely as possible.
I could relate to SO much of this post, Kathy!
ReplyDeleteAnd I got a kick out of the weekend travel ideas. :)
Oh, those mini arrowhead blocks always call to me!!
I too have been sewing masks, but not nearly as many as you have been. I raided my mother's sewing box and came up with some extra elastic. I only have a little bit though so I am just sewing for family and the occasional friend who can't find masks and finds out that I can sew them. Toilet paper has yet to return to our shelves, but thankfully I had a decent enough supply. Pasta and rice are scarce too and lately beef. Based on the frigid weather we will be experiencing here this weekend, I think my weekend travel will be to a cozy chair with a good book. Enjoy your quilt studio jaunt! LOL
ReplyDeleteYour map for weekend travel gave me and my husband a chuckle this morning. Stay well!
ReplyDeleteSEW glad you were able to get some elastic. Such a great gift to be able to send mask out to family and friends.
ReplyDeleteMy machine didn't handle face mask very well and I changed off between two machines - like you needles broke - going through the pleats were the problems on mine - I should have tried one of the mask patterns that didn't have them - but I felt the negative energy too and I felt drained by the end of the day when making them.
ReplyDeleteThey say it is only work if you would rather be doing something else, and that's where I got to with my mask-sewing adventure a few weeks back. 97 masks in I called it quits because I was anxious to quilt again (and I didn't want the mask sewing to be a forever project). But, when I saw the gratitude from the senior's home, my husband's co-workers and close friends for supplying them with masks it put everything back into perspective. It's important to help where you can because not everyone can help themselves.
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way about not wanting to sew masks in my beloved studio. Then I changed my way of thinking to I'm doing them to save lives... it's a good thing.
ReplyDeletethe way I see it, everyone wishes they didn't need them, but it won't kill us to wear them and it might kill us NOT to wear them, but some people will never get it.
LeeAnna
So many of us have felt the same way about the masks - both sewing them and also wearing them. I love the picture of your daughter and co-workers with their masks. Does she work in an aquarium? (That would be neat!) Also the help you gave your sister - so wonderful! I love the greens for your Unity border as well - fresh and spring-like.
ReplyDeleteI totally resisted making masks too--it was depressing that in the 21st century they were not available. So far I have only made 3 just for my family. We are really staying home, so we don't use them much. I resisted going along with Unity Quilt because I already have so many UFOs and WIPs (of course, I am downloading the patterns). I think we all feel so helpless, I did sign up to make a twin sized quilt for a foster child. I dropped it off to my quilter's porch yesterday. I am tidying up my sewing room now and going to make some more blocks for all those WIPs.
ReplyDeleteYou have really embraced making masks. How wonderful that you can support your daughter and her colleagues this way. I really feel for our medical providers, for what they are going through every day. It is maddening that they can't have an abundance of the proper equipment. I've just put all my mask stuff away, but it's ready to bring out again if need be. Ha ha... the apartment map. That's about the size of ours, or maybe ours is smaller - no joke!
ReplyDeleteLove the photo of the ppl wearing their masks in the shark tank! Your green blocks are coming along nicely. Have fun working on the HST for the Unity QA. It was mindless sewing for me. Sometimes we just need days like that. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sewing the masks. I understand your initial reluctance. Since our mobile life makes it difficult to find places to donate masks, I'm grateful to folks like you who can find people who truly need them.
ReplyDeleteI am still resisting the mask making thing. Thank fully here in NZ we seem to have kept the virus at bay, for now.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your greens.
How refreshing to read a positive post. Thank you for the cheerful vibes.
ReplyDeleteMasks are all the rage now! I'm surprised my matchy-matchy sister doesn't have one to match each of her outfits like her shoes,purse and jewelry. Come to think of it maybe she does since I haven't seen her in awhile. I haven't been out of the house since early March and that's okay with this hermit. TP is in stock here now too but meat is starting to be rationed.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the map laugh!
And sew on!
that map is a hoot!
ReplyDeleteI actually spend time in the FR on weekends and SR on weekdays
great mask production!
Your masks are wonderful. I was reluctant to sew masks at first, since they were not really what was needed for medical professionals. But now that we all need them, I'm on board. It's actually fun to pick out pretty or cute fabrics. Your fabrics are amazing!
ReplyDeleteI think we've all been desensitized to wearing masks, and that's a good thing. I can see myself wearing them on walks during pollen season, without fear of looking like a weirdo, and more people will wear them during flu season. But making big batches of masks can seem like such drudgery, it's good to plan some time for restorative quilting.
ReplyDeleteYou made some very fun masks. I've made a few for family, friends and the college girl's research group. I have discovered old t-shirt strips do work very nicely as ear loops for the masks. Hopefully we won't need to make many more masks.
ReplyDeleteAfter making over 250 masks, I'm now making them as leaders/enders. I don't even notice what I'm stitching on, since it's become such a routine. I've been luck and have been able to order elastic several times.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea of "Courage" on your Unity quilt. Have fun with BH, what colors are you using?
ReplyDelete