Looking for information on How to Make a Face Mask at Home? I’ve got all the details on How to Make a No-Sew Face Mask Using a T-Shirt and Hair Ties. This Easy Face Mask Pattern can be made with things you already have at home!
The CDC now recommends you wear a Cloth Face Mask when going out in public and while it isn’t a strong enough filter to protect you from getting a virus, it can be helpful in slowing the spread of those infected. I know it has been really hard lately to find masks in stock and even finding homemade ones in stock online is challenging so I thought I would share a quick way you can make your own No-Sew Face Mask using an Old T-Shirt, Bandanna, or any piece of fabric you have at home! Remember, the tighter the fabric the better! So look for a tightly woven fabric that is 100% cotton, something that will breathe easily!
IMPORTANT: Fabric masks will not protect you against getting a virus, and I am not suggesting that it will! But the CDC is recommending them to help slow the spread of the virus from those who are already infected.
What do you need to Make a Homemade Face Mask?
To make a homemade face mask you need a tightly woven fabric, T-shirt, or Bandanna, 2 Hair Ties or Rubber Bands, and 2 Safety Pins.
How to Make a No-Sew Face Mask using a T-Shirt
Step 1: Start by cutting off the neck and sleeves of an old Shirt or Tank Top.
Step 2: Cut up the sides removing the seams from each side of the shirt.
My fabric was about 16″ x 18″ total after being cut, you can adjust this size if you need a larger or smaller face mask.
Step 3: Fold your fabric in thirds horizontally
Step 4: Add one hair tie to each end of the fabric so that it looks like a bow-tie.
Step 5: Fold the Fabric in thirds vertically tucking the raw edges into the finished edge. (Note: If you are using plain fabric or don’t have the shirt hem edge to work with both edges are going to be raw and it doesn’t matter at that point which end you tuck inside the other)
Step 6: Safety pin the fabric that is tucked inside the end of the other side from the middle of the face mask using 2 Safety Pins. Make sure you go through all 6 layers. This will make sure the fabric doesn’t come apart when you are stretching it to fit around your ears.
Now your face mask is ready to wear! Just loop the hair ties around your ears. You can easily wash the fabric and refold it to wear again!
How to Make a Face Mask with a Filter
One of the questions I’ve already gotten several times is How to Make a Face Mask with a Filter. You can use an Air Filter like you would buy for your home and remove it from the cardboard packaging. You will end up with a sheet of filter material that you can then cut to fit inside your mask. Just fold your fabric around the filter in step 3 before adding the hair ties.
Here’s a link to all the Air Filters on Target
I was told the same thing about AC filters so I have been using sterex brand bordered gauze dressing pads between the fabric layers. We did a similar thing when we needed masks to breathe during the California fires. It works well with t-shirt fabric and its pretty comfortable. Stay Well.
It looks like your shirts are a very light fabric. Are they 100% cotton? I have tried with T-shirts and you can barely breathe through them. Suggestions? Thanks!
AC FILTERS HAVE FIBERGLASS IN THEM THIS IS A BIG NO