I have now been in quarantine for 9 weeks.  I have tried to keep busy and stay healthy.  After the first week, it became apparent that I would need to buy some masks.  I ordered some, but they were going to take a while to ship.

In the meantime, I found a video on YouTube that showed how to make a no-sew mask from an old T-shirt.  I figured I would give it a try so I would have something to use until my mask order arrived.

I watched the video several times, and cut up my T-shirt exactly the way the woman in the video did hers.  It basically just involved cutting around a middle piece of the fabric and making straps that you could tie around your head.

When I finished my cuts and held my mask up, I was proud that it looked a lot like the woman’s from the video.  Then I tried to put it on, and it just didn’t sit right.  It came up too high on my face and partially covered my eyes.

I had forgotten that with BPES, my face is shaped differently and my eyes and ears are situated on my head differently than most people’s.  So even though I had followed the instructions, this type of mask just wasn’t going to work for me.

Fortunately, the masks that I ordered were a different style (This was a happy accident.  The reason I got them was that they could be shipped the fastest compared to other companies).  They are from Custom Ink, and instead of tying at the back of the head, they have slits cut into the fabric that you hook over your ear, and there is enough flexibility in the fabric for me to pull down the mask in the front, so it does not cover my eyes like the homemade one did.

It’s funny how on a day to day basis, usually BPES doesn’t really affect my life, and then something unexpected comes along and surprises me.  But I’m always open to learning and adapting, and I’m grateful I found a mask style that will work for me.  Especially since it seems like mask wearing will be the new norm for the foreseeable future.