Over a 100 UK doctors "increasingly alarmed at official inaction over the need for the public to wear home-made face masks", wrote an open letter to the Times on 18 April advocating that ordinary people should make their own non-medical grade face masks. They recommend the masks4all facemask, first created by a Czech campaign group. Masks4All emphasizes that the masks are intended to protect other people from any infection that you may be carrying rather than the other way round, that they should be worn in addition to following all the other required measures, and that it is essential to use and clean them correctly.
But the mask itself is very easy to make - as I found - ok to wear (more breathable than some) and fits well. They recommend 2 or more layers of poly/cotton which resists water droplets better than cotton, as well as a possible filter layer. There are three sizes - adult, and children of 10 and 4. My husband found the adult one a bit too small, but a cm or so could be added at the bottom to make it longer. I used a pipecleaner (folded over and the two parts twisted together) as a nose-grip (suggested in Clara's design) rather than the one they suggest, and preferred elastics that hook round the ears rather than round the head.Thanks to Sarah Owen of Owen's Food Store for the recommendation!
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