What reusable masks are you wearing?

[getbak]

Originally Posted by bossy22

I bought the made in Canada masks from levelwear and they are good. I also got the spandex ones from levelwear, but they fit really small.

A word of warning about the Levelwear ones for anyone considering them, if you have a big head/face, they can be a problem.

I got the Made in Canada ones (Guard 1) and the elastics they use are flat and thin and not that soft or stretchy. If you have a larger face/head, the elastics get stretched to their limits and dig in to the back of your ear and it can get pretty painful after a few minutes. The mask itself is nice, so if you have a smaller face, it might not be as bad.

I also got their Made in China ones (Guard 2). The elastics on them have a little more give and stretch and they're thicker, so they don't dig into the back of your ear the same. Although, because they're thicker, they tend to pull your ears out more. These ones are made out of t-shirt cotton, so they feel nice, but they're cut a little small for a big face so they can feel like they're about to slip off if you're talking while wearing one (because they're 100% cotton, they may have shrunk in the wash too).


I ended up searching for some "big & tall" masks and found these ones: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B088CV63D6/

I got them last week and so far, they've been pretty good. The elastics are a lot softer and stretchier than the Levelwear Guard 1s and thinner than the Guard 2s. The masks themselves are a little bigger, so they don't feel like they're slipping off. The only thing they're missing is a wire or something to hold the nose in place.

[MoneyGuy]

I found a local woman who makes excellent masks for $5. I had her turn a car flag from my favourite football team into a mask as well as she made a nice Coca-Cola mask that I purchased.

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by Esoteric

I really like these - https://www.okeapparel.com/product/o...le-face-masks/

Very comfortable - the large are a good fit for my face.

I bought a couple from OKE. very comfortable.

[psyang]

If you're handy with a sewing machine, my wife has made a few masks using this video:



They seem to fit well. The video includes good tips on what to use for the nose piece, and for adjustable ear straps. Wouldn't be hard to substitute straps for ear pieces if you want to tie the mask instead of loop them around your ears. There are also instructions for sewing a pocket for a filter or not.

For filters, I read the following:

Peter Tsai, the materials scientist who invented the electrostatic charging technology that N95 masks — the highest-quality medical masks on the market — rely on, also believes that homemade masks are an important part of the United States’ battle against the coronavirus. He offered another material for DIY mask makers to consider: nonwoven fabrics.

Not all nonwoven fabrics are ideal for masks. Wet wipes are made of nonwoven fabric but are too porous, Tsai said. Vacuum bags are also generally made of nonwoven fabric but are not breathable.

Tsai recommended using car shop towels as mask material. The towels, available in rolls and often blue in color, would do a better job of filtering droplets than cloth, he said. The material is “very strong,” he said. “And it can be washed with soap and water and reused.” There are YouTube videos that offer tutorials on using this material.

[Muta]

I bought a couple masks off Threadless, one showing a 2020 dumpster on fire, and the other the "STAY ON TARGET" tracking system graphic from Luke's X-wing when he's about to blow up the Death Star.