To wear a cloth mask or not to wear a cloth mask? That is the question plaguing many of us.

Seeing regions around the world like Asia and Europe wearing face masks, if you’re like me, you’re asking, “how do I do my bit to protect others?”

Should we all practice respiratory protection by wearing face coverings in public?

In this DIY no-sew cloth mask article, I will share a few recommendations the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently put out regarding the use of face coverings and considerations when going outside.

Lastly, I will share a tutorial on how simple and easy it is to make a homemade face-mask in less than one minute using just two items sitting around the house.

Use of Face Coverings

The CDC recently recommended the wearing of cloth face masks in public, not N-95 masks.

N-95 masks should be reserved for healthcare professionals at the frontlines battling COVID-19.

There is a considerable shortage of PPE (personal protective equipment), surgical masks, gloves, and gowns so much that healthcare workers may have to go against what they learned at medical school and re-use face masks if they don’t receive resupply soon.

N-95 masks were never made to be re-used, but to be disposed of to prevent the spreading of germs after seeing a patient.

The practice of re-using masks not only puts healthcare workers at risk for contracting the virus but unknowingly spreading the virus to patients.

If you have a stash of N-95 masks, practice global citizenship, and donate them to your local hospital.

You can visit your state’s emergency management website for locations and drop-off times.

These front line healthcare workers are caregivers not only for the public, but also their families (spouses, parents, and children).

For more detailed information from the CDC, please visit their website here.

To Wear a Face Mask or Not to Wear a Face Mask?

So what does the germ mask face-covering recommendation mean to you? Should you wear a face-cover in public? Is this a conspiracy theory?

For weeks, I struggled with answering this question until I watched a couple of online town halls and listened to the medical experts give a different point of view that made sense.

Both the World Health Organization (WHO), CDC, and various countries around the world have made a complete U-turn about the use of cloth masks in the community.

Growing evidence has shown that some individuals infected with the coronavirus may not show symptoms and can unknowingly infect others.

Hong Kong, not a newbie virus outbreaks, lived through SARS in 2003. Wearing a mask in public is normal in Hong Kong.

If a person is ill or has allergies, its customary and respectful to wear a mask.

For many of us, this is a weird new normal. We have to do our best to get through this temporary inconvenience one day at a time with calm and patience.

Seeing the speed at which the coronavirus has spread around the world and the devastation left behind after the COVID-19 tsunami is enough to know staying at home and practicing social distancing can stop the spread and save lives.

That is easier said than done. Many of us still have to go to work, attend doctor’s appointments, and run errands outside and find it challenging to practice social distancing, but that doesn’t mean our current environment is not adaptable.

Protect the Vulnerable & Prevent the Exposure

I have an elderly parent with asthma, diabetes, and other chronic conditions.

She is tech-savvy enough to order groceries online and have them delivered.

A social butterfly who loves to chat away with the shoppers, I don’t think I will ever get her to stop socializing and being friendly (and why would I want to), but she knows she can help herself and those who show up at her front door by wearing a face mask.

While the CDC recommends Americans wear a face cover in public, it is voluntary.

Medical professionals are learning that individuals who get COVID-19 may not show typical virus symptoms.

According to the CDC, 25% of Americans (one in four) have COVID-19 and don’t know it.

Ways to get the virus is being near someone who is coughing, sneezing, or breathing.

Let me ask you this. Do you know 100% if you have COVID-19, have been exposed, or unknowingly bringing the disease into your community?

Are you exhibiting symptoms, but due to test shortages, availability, and age, can’t get tested to confirm if you indeed have the coronavirus?

If you’re sick, taking care of someone, or asymptomatic (someone who is infected by the disease, but doesn’t show symptoms) wearing a face covering can mitigate transmitting the virus without knowing a person is spreading the virus.

In other words, keep your droplets to yourself.

When it comes to the coronavirus, “what happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas.”

DIY Face Mask at Home

If you’re trying to get your hands on homemade face masks from online shops, prices can vary from $5 to over $20.

Some shops are so behind in taking and processing orders that it can take weeks to receive a mask.

What’s a person to do? Go DIY and make a cloth mask!

Using items around your home, a cotton bandana, scarf, dish towel, or t-shirt, and a couple of hair binders, you can make a homemade face mask faster than ordering a mask online in less than one minute.

If you’re like me, you have some of these things collecting dust somewhere.

Hair binders can be substituted with rubber bands.

The next time you buy groceries, ask for a couple of rubber bands at the check out counter or save the rubber bands from grocery delivery produce like asparagus.

I found a two-minute video online and decided to give the hack a try by repurposing a bandanna I bought when I visited one of the Galapagos Islands, San Cristobal, a couple of years ago I have never worn.

A homemade mask can be a temporary solution until your online cloth mask order from Etsy arrives.

Check out this video from the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams on how to make your own face covering.

Of course, if you don’t like the thought of using a dish towel, bandanna, or t-shirt to make a face covering or feel like it’s too bulky, you can learn how to make an improvised paper towel mask.

Click here to view the one-minute tutorial from Esco Life Science.

If you’re looking for ways to help healthcare workers, own a sewing machine, and are into arts and crafts, check out my post, DIY Face Masks For Healthcare Workers.

Keep your friends and family safe with social distancing and wash your hands for 20 seconds. Eat healthily to boost your immune system.

We’re all in this together!