Face Masks Handcrafted in Florida
ABOUT your Mask & PREVENTION
Masks are one part of Prevention
These masks are made from 100% cotton and are washable and reusable. I recommend washing before first use.
Please understand that these face masks are not a replacement for medical grade Personal Protective Equipment, and in circumstances where medical grade Personal Protective Equipment is recommended, you should consult a health care professional. The decision to use this mask is solely your own.
Please remember that use of face masks is not intended to replace other recommended measures to stop the community spread of COVID-19, such as social distancing, washing your hands and refraining from touching your face. Follow the latest advice of the CDC and your own health care professionals as to how best to keep yourself safe.
Wearing your mask
Handle with Care
Be careful to ensure the mask stays clean and sanitized while handling it and putting it on. Bring a paper bag with you in your car to store the mask when in between uses to protect it from contamination. Always grab the elastic to apply and remove, and remember which side touches your face.
I highly recommend washing your Mask after each use, you may wear it to run multiple errands but when you get home, throw it in the wash. Be sure to remove it via the elastic bands and avoid touching the front of the mask.
Sanitizing your mask
Hand Wash, Dry & Iron
To prevent wear & tear, I highly recommend Hand Washing to properly clean and sanitize your Masks.
Machine washing can be too abrasive and may cause the metal nosepiece to dislodge, create pulls in the fabric, and weaken the elastic straps.
Instead, Hand Wash with hot water, hypoallergenic detergent, and be sure to rinse thoroughly. Leftover detergent residue can cause skin irritation and odor.
You can then either air dry or use a blow dryer. It’s not necessary to iron the pleats back either, you can just iron the center of the mask flat, being sure to avoid the elastic. This will prevent the fabric from losing color on the edges of the pleat lines (especially on the custom printed masks!).
Oh, and as a reminder, the CDC still advises against drinking bleach or eating Tide Pods.
Sunlight and heat are reported to be effective in sanitizing so if you can leave the mask out to air dry in the sun, great!
- DO NOT iron the elastic straps, they will melt.
- I DO NOT recommend spraying the mask with any sanitizer or disinfectant as it could irritate your skin and cause you to inhale harmful chemical fumes.
- I DO recommend using a sensitive skin laundry detergent since the mask will be touching your face.
*DO NOT MICROWAVE THE MASK! THE NOSE PIECE IS MADE OF METAL*
Caring for your Mask
Don’t leave your Mask hangin’
Mask Care 101: Don’t leave your Mask hangin’... in the car. The intense sunlight & heat of ~120°+ can weaken the elastic causing the straps to become brittle & break over time. Also, don’t text and drive.
Holistic Prevention
Face Masks are only one piece of the puzzle
It is critical to emphasize that maintaining 6-feet social distancing remains important to slowing the spread of the virus. CDC recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies), especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.
CDC also advises the use of simple cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus and help people who may have the virus and do not know it from transmitting it to others. Cloth face coverings fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials at low cost can be used as an additional, voluntary public health measure.
Cloth face coverings should not be placed on young children under age 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious, incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance.
The cloth face coverings recommended are not surgical masks or N-95 respirators. Those are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and other medical first responders, as recommended by current CDC guidance.
hi there!
Hi friends! I am unable to complete mask orders at this time, so kindly send me an email and I will let you know when I will resume sewing. Thanks for your understanding! Stay safe & be well. 💚