Chloe, my daughter, has been very interested in sewing and in late February, my mom started to teach her how to sew and they made a tote bag together. Chloe had been asking me to get out my sewing machine, but I kept telling her that I would do it when we had more time, or that she could sew with her Nana again!
Starting in mid-March, we had a lot more time on our hands! With schools closed and activities cancelled due to the threat of the spread of the Coronavirus, we were home and had extra time. I saw a few articles about sewing fabric face masks and thought it was an easy enough project for both of us (I am not a very experienced sewer), and one that could make a difference.
Chloe was very aware of what was happening in the world. One night while going to bed, she looked up at me and said, “The world is kind of a scary place right now, isn’t it?” I found myself worrying, too; I was constantly thinking about our kids and our extended family, and wondering if the news about the virus was ever going to get better.
What better way to take our minds off of it than with a project! We watched a YouTube video on mask making several times, ordered the materials online, got out the sewing machine and were ready to go. Chloe pre-cut a lot of the fabric and elastic and did some of the sewing along the straight lines. I did the tucks (pleats) and sewed the shorter sides of the masks.
As we got more comfortable with making the masks, I found myself getting up early to make one or two before the kids woke up and staying up late finishing a few of them. Before long, we had made over 30 masks. We donated several of them to the Artman Home in Ambler and gave some to friends and family. We’re waiting on an order of more elastic to arrive so that we can make more. It’s a fun way to keep busy, feel productive, and to hopefully help to stop the spread of the virus!