Rollingstone have an article dated 05 October 2020 all about the Duckbill Style of mask. The breathablity and comfort of this flat face-mask is fully acknowleged in the article making me feel less alone in my designer world.
Full COVID lockdown hit Dublin in March 2020, I was already moving my soft-furnishings workshop back into my home office. It was clear that my business was not strong enough to survive this.
Like the wagons of the Wild West, my industrial sewing machines arranged in a circle, my business in moth-balls, the only thing to do was make myself and close friends some masks.. I'm a Soft-Furnishings Designer by trade with a long background in garment making, so I naturally went about designing one.
And yes, I Googled to see the latest.
There were many How-To videos. Most were from the point of view of the Unsung Domestic Seamstress already busy making supplies of reuseable masks. One video I liked was by a front line worker wearing a duckbill mask (I think made my his partner.) He was wearing it in his kitchen while cooking sausages and advising on the merit of the duckbill mask over the pleated mask - I was convinced.
Being all alone in lockdown, my designers' toile was made for myself, this was going to be a Haut-Couture-Mask - it was going to fit. I felt stongly that it must be reuseable and fit-for-purpose.The Mask must be easily available to put while taking local walks, as a courtesy to other pedestians.
A functioning facecovering, where I could breath comfortably meant that the fabric must not touch my nostrils or my mouth so the Duckbill Style was the answer for me. The flat, duckbill, using a single row of elastic easily solved the problem of carrying the mask. It hangs very comfortably away from the chin area down on the upper chest. Because it folds flat on itself, it is not touching off the skin at the throat or any other surface when not in use.
Cotton has been suggested by many sources as good for a 'face-covering' but I wanted to add in some linen because it has some amazing natural properties: Linen is Anti-bacterial, has a High Air Permedability, and is Highly Absorbent. It's a perfect natural fibre to wear next to the skin. It works to keep you and your mask fresh.
The linen union in these masks is 65% linen and 35% cotton.
I had some new labeling for the AsIs. Range of Interior Accessories so it made sense to use these in the prototype, especially as these are Designer Masks.The label makes a useful extra tab to adjust the mask.
Note: Dated 13th October 2020: These masks (as modeled by my Garden Ornament) will be available Online soon, in 3no. sizes. Colour: Smart Black.
Isabella Codd (Creative Director/ Designer.)