Sep
8

Mask Up

by Sofia   -   in Random

I was asked by a reader to write about face masks. Obviously I don´t have any more knowledge about them than anyone reading online. I´m not an expert and this post is not taking any stance in if they are useful or not as there seems to be a debate. To me it does seem like common sense to at least try. In Finland we have a recommendation to use a mask in public places where you can not easily social distance from others or have to stay in the proximity to strangers for prolonged periods. Public transportation and busy grocery stores were examples. The recommendation is for kids over the age of 15 as it was feared that younger people might not know how to use the masks correctly and thus cause themselves more harm. My kids come home from school in a tram and even if they are under 15 we have taught them how to use their masks correctly and to wear them if there are plenty of others in the tram with them. Usually there are not at that time of day.

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I have made a mask station to our foyer from where we can easily grab a clean mask, a plastic bag to put it in after it´s been used and some facial tissue paper to fold inside a pocket in the fabric mask as a filter, some need these, some don´t. I first read that a coffee filter would be good but then some said it´s so hard to breath through you end up breathing ” around it” or take off your mask. Apparently if you take two facial tissues and fold them in half and slide in to the slot in the fabric mask it makes a good filter. But I must stress this is just something I have been researching online so I really don´t know what is best. You can obviously also use disposable masks but most of them are rather large on kids´faces. The fabric mask is not necessarily a more environmentally savvy choise, even if I thought so at the beginning, if you think you still need to add a filter and put it in a little plastic bag before you get it home. It also needs to be washed in a 60°c or boiled for 5 minutes. If you are not using a filter and would put it straight in the washing machine from your face it would most likely be a better choice. I just think they fit better on kids´faces and obviously they also look cute(er).

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I had ours made from a piece of leftover fabric of our table cloth as I read somewhere that tightly woven cotton that you can wash in hot water would be best. Ours have elastics that do lose their elasticity over time when washed in hot but as the mask should anyway be replaced after some time of use I hope they will last that long. You could always order ones with strings that you tie behind your head, but again, I find it might be a bit hard for the kids to use those so I´d rather they use the masks, than they are left unused because it was too difficult. Ours are in two layers of fabric, for more protection, and have a slot in the middle for the filter. I ordered mine here but as said, used my own fabric ( which you can do). I ordered a bunch and gave them as gifts too. We also ordered more masks for the girls here. The bigger size actually fits my face but the smaller size is great for the kids. These do not have a filter slot but are thicker. I like them too.

Here is a great simple video showing you how to wear and handle your mask wether it´s disposable or reusable.

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Let´s be considerate when in public spaces without being hysterical. Wearing a mask seems to be such a loss of ” freedom” for some but as I have travelled a lot in Japan and China for work I have come to know it as a thoughtful and considerate thing towards others, so I don´t personally see it as such. There, where people have a lot harder time to social distance, it is commonly known as good manners to wear a mask if you are feeling even a little under the weather as it helps you not to spread the virus to others. Even a common flu. I guess in a not so vastly populated Finland where it´s easier to social distance it has not been so needed, or maybe it still isn´t. But why not try it now to at least try to help the situation. Maybe it will help somehow. And maybe it will even stay as a custom like in Asian countries where you take a step in protecting others instead of thinking only of your own comfort. Where if you are sick you stay at home or use a mask as not to get others sick. And I am not taking a stance here regarding the Corona Virus situation as such. Some think we are all exaggerating, some think we don´t do enough. I will leave my personal point of view out of the conversation. I hope that one way or the other we could try to be kind and considerate towards each other no matter our stance. Maybe none of us really know how it will all go in the end and what we did right and what we did wrong.

Stay healthy and kind!

Lattemamma

p.s. Just so we are clear, I don´t judge one way or the other. This is just what we do and how I personally see it. I´m definitely not saying I am right and someone else is wrong. Who knows?

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6 comments on “ Mask Up „
tripptrapptrull, on September 8, 2020

Thank you for sharing info on where to find nice looking masks. They seem to be here with us for some time to come in one way or an other and plain white masks can be a bit boring in the long run. Why not then have a mask that matches the bag/coat/shoes/mood of the day.

We have a separate basket for the used masks in the laundry room as we pile up rather a few used ones per day. This way they are separate from the rest of the laundry, waiting to be washed, again.

Sofia, on September 14, 2020

tripptrapptrull thanks for the great idea about the separate laundry basket. We added a small one for the masks in the laundry space too.

Kati, on September 8, 2020

Onpa ihania maskeja! Olen käyttänyt kertakäyttöisiä, koska omasta mielestäni niissä on helpompi hengittää. Mutta nuo ovat niin kauniita, että ehkä annan kankaisille maskeille vielä mahdollisuuden!

Sofia, on September 14, 2020

Kati, nämä ovat myös niin yksilöllisiä juttuja. Itseäni ei maski ahdista yhtään, äitini mielestä sen pitäminen on haasteellista.

Katja, on September 9, 2020

Tärkeä ja ajankohtainen kirjoitus. Minulla on ostoslistalla kankaiset kestomaskit, mutta en ole vielä saanut hankittua. Olen käyttänyt kertakäyttömaskeja tähän asti työmatkoilla junassa ja bussissa. Ruuhka-aikaan junassa koen, että maski on tarpeen ja junassa kuulutetaankin maskisuosituksesta melko usein. Katsoin netistä, että Libertyllä on niin kauniita maskeja, mutta tilaus yhä tekemättä, en tiedä miksi tätä olen niin kauan harkinnut. Ehkäpä jotenkin toivon, että pian tämä korona-aika olisi jo ohi, mutta ei tässä auta kuin sopeutua. Maskia en koe erityisen ahdistavana, sillä työskentelin monta vuotta hammashoitajana ja totuin maskin käyttöön osana työasua.

Sofia, on September 14, 2020

Katja nyt sitten suloiset maskit tilaukseen!

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