UPDATE: Huge thanks to our amazing community who have reported to have made over 22,541 masks as of 4/24/20. The need is still here. Follow the steps below to get useful masks to those in need in your own community.
Your sewing skills are needed
Thousands of hospitals, nursing homes, first responders and clinics are requesting face masks. There is an essential need—now more than ever. Demand is outstripping supply.
We need your help! We have a community goal to produce 10,000 masks—that’s just ten masks each from 1,000 of us (update: goal increased to 20,000!). Add to the tally and inspire others by posting a picture with #CreateRoomForGood, letting us know how many you've made. We'll post updates here and on social media to let you know how close we are to reaching our goal.
We've done a lot of research and pulled together resources for a simple 4-step guide to make masks that will help and get them to people in need.
4 Easy Steps To Get Useful Masks To Those In Need
1. Find your local need
Search this database - Type in the name of your state or community to find one of hundreds of hospitals, clinics and elderly care facilities requesting masks. The drop-off instructions or contacts are also listed. Or you can just drop masks at your local Joann’s store and they will deliver them to those in need. Thank you Joann! Find your local Joann store here.
Members of our community have requested masks to fulfill a specific need in their area. Please reach out to them if you have masks to donate:
Debbie - druppert24@gmail.com
Callie - calbrue@gmail.com
Ashley - rsc.ah@aldersbridge.org
2. Get the materials
Free kit - Joann’s is offering a free face mask building kit for in store/curbside pickup. Each kit is enough for four masks. Find your local Joann store here.
From your own supply - Here's what you'll need to make one mask. (Instructions below)
- 2 pieces of 6”x9” cotton fabric. Research shows 100% cotton fabric works best, but any cotton materials will be acceptable.
- 2 pieces of 7 inch long ¼ inch wide elastic band. If you do not have access to elastic, you can sew on fabric straps.
3. Follow these simple instructions
We recommend the following tutorials. They show how to sew masks that comply with strict Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
Make a mask with elastic straps - Video / PDF Instructions
Make a mask with fabric ties - Video / PDF Instructions
Each mask should take between 10-20 minutes. There’s no need to wash the masks. They’ll be sanitized by the receiving facility, received with much gratitude!
4. Invite others to help!
Help us reach our community goal of 20,000 masks. Share a link to these instructions with your friends and family. Let's motivate each other. Post a picture with #CreateRoomForGood and tell us how many masks you have made. We'll post updates here and on social media to let you know how close we are to reaching our goal.
Four local women recently stepped up to address an immediate need in our own community. Read the story here.
Download this infographic to share with your friends and family.
FAQ
Q: I heard that hospitals/medical professionals only need N95 masks, not fabric masks.
A: Not true. Many hospitals and other care facilities are in desperate need of these masks you can make. Sources: cnn.com / cdc.gov / joann.com
Q: Are you sure these masks will be helpful?
A: These masks can not guarantee protection from Covid-19 or any other virus. However, the tutorials we recommend show how to sew masks to comply with strict Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. They are following patterns used in other medical settings and we specify (and Joann’s is supplying for free) fabrics and materials that are recommended for these items. In many cases, front-line caregivers put these masks over the N95 medical masks to prolong their utility.
Q: How can we make sure these masks get to people who need them?
A: This link we shared lists direct contacts for hundreds of local facilities that are requesting these masks. And provides contact info or drop off locations for those facilities to receive the masks you make.