As the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic continues its spread across the world, hospitals are running through their limited supply of face masks and other protective equipment. The CDC is expected to announce a new policy urging Americans to wear cloth masks in an effort to prevent further spread of the coronavirus and “flatten the curve”. Wearing a facemask helps to slow the spread of coronavirus by stopping the wearer from touching their own mouth and nose, and by blocking inhalation of most airborne droplets that may contain the virus. With masks being a bit hard to come by right now, and buying them reduces the much-needed supply for health workers, there are more and more DIY mask instructions hitting the web to help those in need. Here are the top 10 do it yourself ways to make face masks- but remember, social distancing and staying home is the safest! For all our resources and articles to make your social distancing home a little easier and more fun, click here.
Quick Cut T-shirt: No Sewing Needed!
- Start by cutting 7-8 inches off of the bottom.
- Cut out, leaving about 6-7 inches from the end.
- Tie the top strings around your neck, then tie the bottom strings over your head.
Or watch the video tutorial for a slight variation!
Dollar Tree Face Mask: No Sewing Needed!
- Materials Needed:
- 20” x 21” 100% cotton craft fabric
- Fabric glue
- Hot glue
- 2 Rubber bands
- Iron
- Belinda’s DIY offers an easy no-sew face mask with items she purchased at Dollar Tree. This is a quick, low-cost mask you can make for yourself to stay safe when going out and about! Follow along to her 7-minute tutorial video.
Bandana, Coffee Filter, & Rubber Bands: No Sewing Needed!
- Fold a coffee filter in half so that the top is lined up. Cut off the bottom of the coffee filter.
- Place the coffee filter in the center of the bandana, then fold the top and bottom of the bandana over the coffee filter (should be in thirds).
- Place rubber bands or hair ties around the folded bandana about 6 inches apart.
- Fold in the sides of the bandana and tuck the edges in.
- Put the bandana over your mouth and stretch the rubber bands over your ears.
Here is a video tutorial of how to fold the bandana (NOTE* Video does not use a coffee filter)
Olson Mask: Sewing Needed
- Materials Needed:
- ¼ yard of cotton weave fabric
- All-Purpose thread
- 2 Hair ties
- Scissors
- Sew Can She provided easy to follow instructions for this mask here, and she also included photos for reference. There is also an instructional video for sewing the Olson Mask.
Pocket and Nose Wire Sleeve Mask: Sewing Required
- Materials Needed:
- 13” x 7” cotton fabric (MAIN)
- 12” x 7” cotton or flannel fabric (LINING)
- 2” wide 6” long Bias Tape
- 6” Nose Wire
- 16” Elastic cord (for ear loops)
- Craft Passion has the templates available in printer-format and Cricut format as well. There are child, regular, and large sizes available. You can find the written instructions here. The instructional video on Youtube also contains the pattern link in the description.
Pleated Face Mask: Sewing Required
- Materials Needed:
- 8” x 14” piece of fabric
- 2 strips of 1 ¾” x 6” fabric
- 2 pieces of ¼” width elastic measuring 6 ½“ long
- Ruler
- Fabric marking tool
- Pins
- Scissors
- Button Counter has step by step written instructions that include photos of each step. She mentions different tips and tricks to help those who are new to sewing. You can access the instructions here.
- Medical Face Mask with Filter Pocket: Sewing Required
- Supplies Needed:
- 15” x 8.5” cotton fabric
- ¼ – ⅛” elastic
- Scissors
- Iron
- Raising Nobles provides an easy to follow DIY video tutorial on making a face mask with a filter pocket. She links all the supplies needed in her video description. You can also find the full written instructions here.
- Supplies Needed:
No Elastic Face Mask: Sewing Required
- Materials Needed:
- Men’s dress-shirt (Cotton-Jacquard Fabric)
- Paper 24” x 10”
- Scissors
- Needle and Thread.
- Susan Elias Couture offers a simple solution to creating a DIY facemask. Her mask is made of only one part (single pattern), no elastic needed. You can follow along with her tutorial video below!
3-Layer Face Mask: Sewing Required
- Materials Needed:
- 2 cotton fabric squares
- 1 fleece square
- Thread and needle
- Scissors
- Elastic
- pattern
- Danie and Danny have found a simple 3-layer mask that is hand sewn, so no sewing machine is required. The pattern can be found here. They also include helpful information about CDC views on homemade masks and the methodology behind the function of cloth masks.
Bra Face Mask: No Sewing Needed!
- Materials Needed:
- 1 Bra
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun (with glue)
- Elastic (or bra straps)
- Brilliant Craft Ideas has made an easy-to-follow tutorial video on how to make a mask out of things you have in your own home! With no sewing needed, this is a quick and easy way to make a protective face mask for when you need to go out into public.
How to Make Homemade Hand Sanitizer
Materials:
- ¾ cup of Rubbing Alcohol or Isopropyl with a 99% alcohol content
- ¼ cup of Aloe Vera gel
- 10 drops of Tea Tree oil, Lavender oil, or Lemon juice
Instructions:
- Pour all ingredients into a bowl
- Mix with a spoon until items are blended
- Once items are blended, beat with a whisk to turn the sanitizer into a gel
- Pour ingredients into an empty bottle and label it “hand sanitizer” for safety.
*Tip: When wanting to make an effective hand sanitizer, stick to a 2:1 ratio of alcohol to aloe vera. This keeps the alcohol content to approximately 60% which is the minimum amount needed to kill most germs according to the CDC.
