unpaid advertisement – wear a mask, please!

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Ever since COVID-19 began to spread, I’ve been in contact with my cousin who lives in the San Francisco area. From the beginning on I was alarmed when she told me how many people were catching the virus in her vicinity. As soon as the postal service between the USA and Austria reopened, I sent a parcel with masks I had made for her family and people she believed where in need of one. It is forbidden to send surgical masks from Austria, but not “home made” ones the man at the post office counter assured me. So I thought I was on the safe side. Sadly, my package never arrived. I only found out a few days ago. However, I hope that if it has been stolen the thief is making good use of the masks I made!

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SEWING FABRIC FACE MASKS

Since Easter I must have sewn roughly 150 face masks here. It was a learning by doing process. In the beginning I started with left over material and Hermès ribbon I had at home, due to shut down of the stores and not having rubber bands. I even learned how to service my great heavy duty Singer sewing machine during quarantine!

My masks have been given to friends, family and colleagues, once I started going back to work. The hygiene standards in the company I work for were and still are tremendously high and well communicated to all employees. We have been given face masks and face shields for those who prefer the latter. We supply masks to customers in case they don’t have one – for their and for our own safety.

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IS LOOSENING UP THE COVID-19 BARRIERS TOO EARLY?

I say YES! After months of being stuck at home for my own safety and the safety of those around me, I feel the barriers a re loosening too quickly.

I booked a flight from Austria to Germany, to be able to spend some time with my family. When I boarded and de-boarded the plane last week, I could only shake my head. Yes, everybody was wearing a face mask, but the majority of people were pushing and shoving to get into the aircraft. As if the plane was going to fly without them?! Later, upon arrival, people where leaving the seats before the airplane had been connected with the finger. I just sat and stared at some of them, wondering what was going on in their minds? What happened to KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE? 

Just because the cases of COVID-19 diseases have gone down in Austria and Germany, because politicians have acted quickly and by means that have helped their populations enormously, it does not mean that virus is gone!

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DAILY ROUTINE…

When I travel by public transport, I put a fabric mask on my face before I leave the house. This way I can’t forget and it’s all in place, nothing bothering me or fogging up my glasses. It is the law in Austria that one has to wear a face mask when using the bus, sub-way or tram. I see more and more people without a mask these days, which I find scary. it’s especially the younger people who refrain from using one. Do they think they can’t be infected by the virus? I don’t know. Sometimes looking at them and pointing to my own mask helps – they’ve just forgotten to use it. Sometimes it doesn’t.

I keep paper face masks in zip lock bags in my purse, so that I can hand one out if I see somebody needs one, like homeless people who are asking for the odd Euro to buy food and drink. I’d like to point out that homeless people are facing the toughest of times, so please be aware and help if you can.

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…DON’T STOP!

When I heard the news a couple of hours ago I was shocked: 50,000 – in words: fifty thousand – people in the United States of America have been infected with COVID-19 in one single day! There was an American doctor on TV telling a journalist that the situation was as bad as in Italy a few weeks ago. They had something like 10 young people who were in dire need of a ventilator. However, the hospital only had 3 and the doctor had to make the tragic decision of whom to give one to. He said it had been the hardest day of his life. Understandable.

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SO WHY ARE PEOPLE REFRAINING FROM WEARING A MASK? 

I honestly don’t know. And I don’t want to speculate. But I think Jennifer Aniston here could have not phrased it better:

 

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Jennifer Aniston: Quote “This simple and effective recommendation is being politicized at the expense of peoples’ lives. And it really shouldn’t be a debate 🙏🏼 ⠀
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If you care about human life, please… just #wearadamnmask 😷 and encourage those around you to do the same ❤️ ”

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HOW DO YOU WEAR A FABRIC FACE MASK SAFELY?

After the news I checked out the homepage of the World Health Organization, WHO, who explain how to wear a fabric face mask safely. I thought perhaps this knowledge will help you or encourage you to wear a mask?

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If you’re interested in reading about the present situation of COVID 19 all around the world, here’s the link to the Situation Report by the World Health Organisation as of 2nd July 2020.

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HOW TO WEAR A SURGICAL MASK PROPERLY

If you don’t have a fabric mask or prefer wearing a surgical mask, here’s how to properly use and re-use a mask.

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STOP YOUR GLASSES FROM FOGGING UP

Dr. George Yang has made a couple of YouTube videos. I found this one on how to wear surgical masks properly without fogging up your glasses very helpful. Maybe you do, too?

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COVID-19 won’t just go away! It is important that each and everyone of us pays close attention to the situation. We all need to do our share to stop flatten the curve. The basic rules are:

• wash your hands regularly and properly (sing “Happy Birthday” twice while washing your hands)
• disinfect them if you don’t have soap and water handy
• keep a safe distance of 6 feet / 1,5 meters to other people
• WEAR A MASK

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A MASK – A STYLISH ACCESSORY?

Yes, I believe a mask can be a stylish accessory. If we have to use them, we might as well make the most of them. I’ve sewn roughly 10 different masks for myself, so that I can mix and match them with my wardrobe. These cherry masks were initially for my daughter’s birthday. I played around the the material and made slightly lighter ones for summer. Thus I’ve added a little pouch for storing them. This way I always have a clean mask in my bag.

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The are also masks I made for the gents. I bought fabric and also up-cycled men’s shirts, like on the above picture: the mask and matching pouch are made from the arm of a shirt. Do you have any idea where the button hole comes from – which part of the shirt it was?

Please, protect yourself and others from the spread of COVID-19 by wearing a face mask!

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🙂      Stay healthy and #wearadamnmask – stay home if you can and have a HAPPY day!       🙂

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P.S.: den deutschen Text werde ich später hinzufügen!

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