The Messrs Bandana Mask Tutorial

I’m making and selling these bandana masks but if you have a sewing machine they are pretty easy to make yourself. Here’s how.

YOU WILL NEED:

A bandana or other cotton fabric (washed and dried to pre-shrink it)

A ball point pen ( most ball point ink will come out when the final product is washed)

I use a Pilot Frixion ballpoint pen because the ink disappears during the ironing step

Scissors, or a rotary cutter and cutting mat

A ruler

Sewing pins

An iron

Remember, home made masks may help you from spreading respiratory droplets, and keep you from touching your face, but they are not effective at protecting you from viruses.

Step 1: Press your bandana or fabric of choice. A flat wrinkle fee fabric will be easiest to work with. If you are using a fabric other than a bandana I would recommend a flat weave cotton. Anything knit, like tee-shirt fabric will be more difficult.

Step 2: Cut four strips 2 inches wide and as long as the bandana. It may help to fold the bandana in half to make it a manageable size. I use a rotary cutter, but you can mark your lines with a pen cut with scissors.

You should have four strips 2 inches wide and 19 inches long. These will be your ties.

Step 3: Measure a rectangle of fabric that is 9 inches by 14 inches, and cut it out. This will be the mask.

Step 4: On the BACK SIDE of your fabric mark a line 1 inch in from both long edges. This will be where you bring the edge of the fabric in to make a hem.

Step 5: With the right side of the fabric down, fold the long edge to meet the line you made. With a hot iron press that fold to make a 1/2 inch hem. Do the same on the other long edge.

With the sides folded and pressed your rectangle should now measure 14 inches by 8 inches and look like the above photo.

Step 6: Fold your rectangle in half with the RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER so that the 8 inch edges meet. Sew a 1/4 inch seem along this edge.

At this point your project should look like the above photo

Step 7: open and press your seem so it will lay flat . You can now turn the mask right side out and press it again so everything is nice and flat. Set this piece aside to work on the ties.

Step 8: To make nice finished ties take one of your 2 inch by 19 inch strips and fold it in half lengthwise. Press it with your iron to make a crease down the centre.

Open the strip again and fold the left edge to the centre crease and press it.

Fold the right edge to the centre crease and press it.

Fold the strip in half along the original centre crease (like a long taco) and press again. The tie should look like the example at the far right in the above photo with no exposed raw edges.

Repeat with the other three ties.

Step 9: Sew the open side of the tie shut as close to the edge as you can. 1/8 inch is ideal, but 1/4 inch will work if you’re not comfortable sewing that close. Set these aside.

Step 10: Take the rectangle you sewed that is now right side out, and orient it so the seem is at the bottom of the piece and the fold is at the top. On the left side of this rectangle make a mark 1.5 inches from the bottom seem. Make another 1 inch above the first mark (it will be 2.5 inches from the bottom). You will make four more marks. A mark at 3 inches, 4 inches, 4.5 inches and 5.5 inches from the bottom. There should be six marks that alternate 1 inch and 1/2 inch from each other.

Repeat these marks at the same measurements on the right side of the rectangle.

Step 11: Starting at the bottom again, fold all the layers of the fabric so that the first two marks on the left side meet. Pin the fold into place and do the same for the first two marks on the right.

Press the fold with a hot iron. This is your first pleat.

Repeat step 11 with the next two sets of marks and again with the last set to create three pleats. Press all the folds down.

Step 12: Insert the finished ties between the two layers of the mask at the four corners. Place the end of the ties as far in as the raw edge of the hem so that they will be securely in place when you sew the mask shut. Pin the ties in place.

Step 13: Sew the sides of the mask shut. Stitch 1/4 of an inch or less from the edge.

TIP: Sew with the pleats coming towards you like waves so that the foot doesn’t catch them but runs over them smoothly.

When finished your mask should be 8 inches wide and 3.5 inches high, with the centre expanding to 6.5 inches when fully open.

Machine wash hot and tumble dry. If you run an iron over it when it comes out of the dryer it will maintain its crips pleats , but this is not necessary.

Remember to wash your hands frequently and check with your local health authority for best guid lines throughout this pandemic. Wishing everyone the best of health.

April 11, 2020