SUPPLIES & TOOLS:
- 1/3yd dark toned lightweight denim fabric
- 1/8yd light toned lightweight denim fabric (or 6"x 18" piece)
- 1/4yd flannel (or 7"x 12" piece)
- Medium-weight non-woven fusible interfacing (7"x 12" piece)
- 12mm bias tape maker
- Thread for construction & topstitching
- Basic sewing supplies
- Fitted cloth mask pattern
DIRECTIONS:
-
To make the patchwork fabric:
- 1/4"" seam allowance used.
- Cut three 1 3/4"x 18" strips of the light color denim and three 1 3/4"x 18" strips of the dark color denim. Using a 1/4" seam allowance, stitch each of the strips together, alternating the light and dark denim. After each piece has been sewn together, press the seams to one side.
- Cut dark denim fabric on the bias in two 1 1/2" wide 36" long strips. If you do not have the length to create 36" strips, connect pieces together using a diagonal seam to minimize bulk.
- Feed the fabric strip into the wide end of the 12mm bias tape maker, pulling it through the narrow end with a pin if necessary. As the fabric comes through the narrow end, iron the folded edges into place. After ironing folds into the entire length of the strips, fold each of the strips in half, creating single fold bias tape.
- Cut out the mask pattern to the size you need. Fold the fusible interfacing in half and cut out the shape of the mask pattern, creating two pieces. Do the same thing with the flannel, creating two flannel pieces.
- Now take the patchwork denim piece and fold it in half, right sides together. Take care to match the seams so each half of the patchwork is lined up perfectly. Now place the pattern piece over top of the patchwork at a 45º angle, making sure the stripes are centered under the pattern, then cut out the shape of the pattern, creating two patchwork pieces.
- After cutting out the patchwork pieces, use an iron to fuse the interfacing onto the wrong side of the patchwork pieces. This is an added step to help the filtering capabilities of the mask, but can be omitted if you do not have interfacing.
- Along the curved edge, pin the patchwork mask pieces right side together, taking care to only pin along the edges, so the face portion of the mask isn't pierced. Then stitch along the curved edge only using 3/8" seam allowance. Trim the excess fabric from the hem to leave only 1/8" fabric remaining. Flip the mask right-side-out and press the center seam to one side.
- Repeat the previous step with the flannel fabric.
- Now place the flannel mask piece over the patchwork mask piece, right sides together. Pin around the top and bottom edge, again being careful to pin only along the edges. Stitch along the top and bottom, using a 3/8" seam allowance. Now flip the mask right side out and press. Use your chosen topstitching thread to topstitch along the top edge and bottom edge of the mask, keeping your stitches no farther than 1/8" from the edge of the mask.
- At this point, you will have two raw edges to your mask in the area close to the ears. Trim 1/4" from both of those edges to make them neat and ready for bias tape.
- Now open your bias tape and cover each of your raw edges with a bias tape strip, pinning the bias tape closed into place. When placing the bias tape, position it so that only 16" of the tape is hanging off the bottom of your mask, leaving a longer length for the top. This is because you will need longer strings to tie around the top of the head, and less length for the base of the neck.
- The last step is to stitch closed the bias tape along its length, stitching it onto the mask in the process.
To make the bias tape:
To construct the mask:
3/8" seam allowance used.
Craft Hack Tips and Tricks:
- Purchase coordinating bias tape to save yourself time, or batch-make bias tape so it will be ready to use whenever you need it.
Please read and follow all manufacturers' instructions for all tools and materials used. Provide adult supervision if children participate in this project. Masks are not intended for hospital or medical use and are not OSHA certified. Please follow CDC guidelines for use of masks.