Beyond the masks – how one member of the #bmFamily💜💚 showed she cared

I started making face-covering masks when my sister showed me the ones she made for herself and our Mum.

My mum was scared like many other senior and vulnerable people. Being away from the security of her home, even grocery shopping (after weeks of lockdown) with other people seemed frightening.

My sister made two masks of every fabric style so that when she went out with our Mum they had matching ones. My mum found this funny, it lightened her mood, she said it made her feel ‘looked after’ and even braver!

I thought I can do that too!

It will be like putting my arms around the people I care about. I can send them a mask and protect them until I can see them again. My motivation was to look after the people that I love when I couldn’t be there for them. I felt useful too, I made something that they could use that would make them feel good. I tried to match the style of the fabric to their personality!

Making the Masks

I watched lots of mask-making tutorials. I was thrilled to find one I could make from start to finish in minutes. I bought some masks online that claimed that they were reusable. They turned out to be hard to wash and were not as sustainable as they claimed to be. I didn’t want to add to the waste mountain of disposables masks that I have seen littering our pavements.

As the shops were closed I researched materials online. To my surprise (as I am not a big online shopper) I became hooked on E-bay marketplace. The idea that I could browse lots of small UK shops and sellers in one platform was brilliant. I am now a proud owner of a 1977 Frister Rossman CUB3 sewing machine and I have even taught myself how to use it!

I started making the masks at home to post to friends and family. I waited eagerly for their call or text to let me know their masks had arrived. Hearing how happy they were gave me pleasure. I felt that I played a small part in keeping them safe. Showing the people I loved how much I cared about them was hard during lockdown. This was what I missed the most. Being the big sister or the caring friend – the masks meant I could go beyond kind words and a few laughs on a video call.

Make your own mask

Once I felt confident that my masks were good enough I made a ‘how-to’ powerpoint document to share with the whole #bmFamily💜💚. I am proud that my document is stored on the bm training platform. Now anyone can make a mask at home and get the same buzz I had. They can make something that keeps their loved ones safe AND with minimal impact on the environment. I like to think it’s a feel-good double whammy!

You can download my ‘How-to’ document here and don’t forget to post photos of your creations on our social media.