FINALLY: Our Foam Face Mask Template & Tutorial!

Orlando is one of the worst hot spots for Covid right now, which means John and I are still self-quarantining as much as possible - and unbelievably grateful that we're able to work from home. It's definitely not fun anymore, but also a small price to pay to keep our neighbors safe.

And if we have to venture out in public, then we wear face masks.

Of course, being us, we set out to make a better, more comfortable DIY mask option for ourselves.


I'm sure you've noticed most masks aren't super comfortable. The ears straps can hurt, and all that fabric touching your face can feel sweaty and smothering, especially in this summer heat.

So we started working from an N-95 template, which holds the fabric away from your face. After several weeks of adjusting the template to fit and look better, here's what we came up with:

Of course I made it bright pink. WHAT.

 

It's a little beak-ish from the side - or muzzle-ish? Maybe I should paint a dog nose on one, ha.

In case the pink is throwing you, here's John's current favorite: 

Nanananananananananana... BATMAN

The foam frame holds the cotton filters away from your face, so only the very edges of this mask touch your face. It seals below the jawline (at least on me), so it doesn't move around as much or need re-adjustment every time you talk or scrunch your nose. The hidden nose wire helps seal the mask under your eyes and reduces glasses fog.

The metal grommets allow the single elastic strap to slide and tighten easily, while the double-strap design is both comfy and easy to put on and take off. To temporarily remove the mask you can pull the top strap over your head and slide the mask down to rest on your chest, which keeps it clean and close-at-hand. (That's John favorite feature; no more handling a contaminated mask while he's driving.)

Before I share the template with you guys, here comes the giant fine print: Wear these masks at your own risk. I am not a medical professional, and these are certainly not medical grade. And while you can wash these with soap and water or wipe/spritz them with alcohol, I still recommend waiting at least 3 days between wearings. So if you want to wear one of these every day, make at least 4 and cycle through.

There are some optional extra steps that can make these masks even more effective, like doubling up the cotton filters and sealing the foam with Mod Podge as well as heat. So please feel free to tinker and improve upon our design!

Now, LET'S MAKE A MASK.

You will need:

- our free template 

- 2mm craft foam in your choice of color (1 sheet per adult mask)

-  contact cement* & q-tips to apply it

-  filter fabric (I'm using cotton, but I've read there are a variety of options out there)

- a paperclip (one per mask)

- 1/8 inch elastic cord, 30 inches per mask

- scissors, craft blade

- hot glue gun & glue sticks

-  iron & ironing board

[*The contact cement I'm using is less than $8 on Amazon, and contains enough to make 1,000 masks, easy. If you've never used contact cement before, prepare to be amazed. This stuff is miraculous on craft foam. Just be sure to use it in a well-ventilated area!]

OPTIONAL EXTRAS (but recommended)

- Aluminum foil

 - white craft glue

- Metal eyelets/grommets to feed the elastic through

- Metal crimps for the elastic cord & a lobster claw

- Mod Podge to seal the foam

First, download and print out our template:

 We've also made a child's size, which is 30% smaller. Feel free to shrink or enlarge the template as needed.

 - Trace the paper template onto your foam using a sharp pencil or something pointy, since the foam marks easily:

Learn from my mistakes: Do NOT use a pen or marker on the foam; it soaks in like a sponge and will stain your hands. It also tends to show in your final product.

Cut out the mask and paperclip cover, but leave the filter holes in for now. Also mark the elastic holes with a toothpick for later.

Seal the foam by quickly dragging a hot iron over it. (I set my iron to "Wool," which works great.) You'll instantly see the foam change texture and become shiny as you do this. Seal both sides.

To make your mask look like leather - which I recommend, since craft foam texture is yucky - crumple up a sheet of tin foil and quickly iron over it.

Add as much or as little texture as you like with the foil. You can see I went pretty heavy on this one, just because I think it looks cool. 

Once you're happy with your mask texture, cut out the filter holes. You can use scissors, but I find a blade is a little easier:

Use the cut-out filter pieces to trace out the shapes onto your filter fabric:

Add an inch allowance all the way 'round, so you have a border to glue down.

Cut out your fabric eggs. If you plan to double up your fabric, cut 2 sets of these.

 Plug in your hot glue gun:

(I am stupidly happy with that silicone honeycomb pad, y'all. It cost me $4 on Amazon, and now my hot glue gun doesn't slide down the table every time I put it down! Ahh, the little things...)

(Also there's a tiny bit of green moss stuck to my gun from the Labyrinth Eyeball moss, and it looks like snot. You don't really need this information, but now you have it anyway. You're welcome.)

You want your filters to be tight, so hot glue down one end of the fabric first, then stretch and smooth it with your fingers to glue the rest of the way around.

Oh yeah, and make sure you're gluing these on the BACK side of your mask. I textured both sides of mine just to practice, so it didn't matter on mine.

Open up your paperclip and shape it like this:

 I fold in the ends so it won't poke through the foam.  Tack it down with a tiny dab of hot glue.

Now add a whole bunch of hot glue over the paperclip, and cover it with your foam paperclip cover:

Don't press it down too hard, or it will malform the front of the mask.

 Our paperclip cover errs on the large side, so feel free to trim it to fit:

- Fold over the side flaps, and punch 2 small holes in each side:

For those who own a Crop-A-Dile: I'm using the smaller of the two hole punches.

Hot glue the flaps down, and now the back of your mask should look something like this:

This is optional, but at this point I like to add a thin bead of white glue all the way around the filter fabric to keep it from fraying:

Just add a thin line of glue and smooth it with your finger.

While that dries, lets make the elastic.

I make my elastic straps removable, so each person I give a mask to only needs one strap no matter how many masks they have. This conserves elastic and makes it a little easier to store the masks.

To make the elastic removable, you'll need metal cord crimps that are small enough to fit through the metal eyelets on your mask, if you're using any. You'll also need a clasp like a lobster claw. (I linked the crimps I'm using here.)

You'll need about 30 inches of 1/8 inch elastic per mask. I'm currently a mask-making fiend, so I bought this 50-yard spool, which'll make 60 adult-sized straps.

Cut off your elastic, then melt the ends with a lighter to keep them from unraveling:

Melting elastic ends is so satisfying, am I right?

Add your cord crimps on each end, then add a small lobster claw:

 Ta-daaaa, one re-usable mask strap. Remember, you only need to make one of these per person, not per mask.

Now let's make the magic happen.

Dip your q-tip less than halfway into the contact cement; you only need a TINY amount. 

Carefully apply a thin layer of contact cement on both edges of the center mask seam:

Try not to get any cement on the face of the mask itself; it's shiny and will show. Keep the cement on the thin edges.

Let your first coat dry for a minute (the shine should disappear), then apply a 2nd thin coat of contact cement. Yep, you really do need two coats. Patience, padawan.

Let your second coat dry for another minute. Test it by tapping the edge with your finger: You want the cement to feel tacky but not wet.

Joining the two edges together will take a little practice, but I've found a great trick for getting the seam as smooth as possible:

First, you're going to be turning your mask inside out as you join the two edges together. So start with the front of the mask facing up on the table like this, and push the nose seam away from you as you go.

Slide the two seam edges together, starting at the nose. Only join half an inch at a time, then roll the mask forward so the seams are flat on the table again, and repeat, sliding the two edges together. Keeping the seam edges flat on the table will keep them level and prevent any ripples or bulges.

Once you've joined the two edges together, your mask will look like this:

See how it's inside out?

Leave your mask inside out for at least 5-10 minutes while the contact cement cures. Take this time to pinch the nose piece if you see any gaps.

After 5-10 minutes, flip your mask right side out:

Awww yeaeeeeah

Congratulations. It's a mask!

Your final step is to install the metal eyelet/grommets for the elastic strap. These are optional, but they make the mask more durable and tightening the strap easier.

Sadly I can't find these grommets on Amazon and I've used up my supply, so if anyone knows where I can buy some more, please let me know! They're backless and longer than scrapbooking grommets, but fit a Crop-A-Dile perfectly.

Last thing: Do not wear your mask right away. Let the contact cement cure and air out for a few days first, just to be extra safe. You don't want to be breathing in contact cement fumes!

These masks are infinitely customizable. If you want more air flow - or to show off more of your fabric print - you can make the filter holes larger, like this:

 

I just traced a drinking glass to get the larger shape.

You can also trim the jawline or nose peak to better fit your face.

And of course I couldn't resist decorating some. Hey, if you have to wear a mask anyway, why NOT make it fun?

If you plan to wash your masks in water, be sure to use Velcro to add any non-water-proof elements like these flowers. Also when you wash them, don't leave them soaking in water. Just scrub quickly with soap, rinse, and set out to dry.

John and I leave the house so rarely - and only wear our masks about 20 minutes each time - that we often just leave our masks to sit 3-4 days between uses, but you should use whatever sanitation method you think best. We have washed some with soap and water, and they held up just fine and dried in a few hours.

 

 I added a tiny amount of gold Rub N' Buff wax to this black mask, which gives it an aged, bronze-y feel. It's another one of my favorites.

Since I'm sure some of you are wondering: yes, you can paint your masks with water-based craft paint - but I don't know how well that will hold up to washing. You can also add a layer of Mod Podge over the completed mask to make it more water-resistant. (I've also added Mod Podge just to give it a nicer sheen.)

John surprised me with this one morning:

An R2 inspired mask! I see so much Disneybounding potential with these.

John even made you guys the template:

I made this next one for my mom, since she and my dad are Harley riders:

This is using one of our earlier templates, so you can see the eye cut-outs and jaw don't seal as well.

I've made nearly 40 masks so far, and I'm enjoying it so much I have no intention of stopping. Here's another current favorite I made for a friend:

 My friend's daughter is afraid of masks, so I made the two of them a couple of matched sets. I'm hoping the pretty colors and sparkles will help the little girl feel less afraid - and matching her mom's mask might help, too? Fingers crossed, anyway.

Again, PLEASE IMPROVE UPON OUR DESIGN. Tinker away, tell me how you'd make it better!

In fact here's one idea I'm too lazy to try myself: Make the fabric filters removeable with velcro, and serge the edges so you can throw them in the washing machine. That way you could have multiple filters and less masks, though you'd still want to sanitize the foam part. Eh?

 I know a bunch of you have been waiting for this tutorial, so thanks for being patient with me. I hope it was worth the wait!

*****

Edited To Add:

I'm sorry I didn't stress this enough in the post, gang, so let's try this again: YES YOU CAN WASH THESE MASKS. You can scrub them in the sink with soap and water, spray them with disinfectant and than rinse with water, wipe them down with Lysol wipes, etc, etc.


You can also use more layers of cotton fabric for the filters, or use better filter fabric all together. Again, please improve upon our design.




John and I spent the last few weeks working to offer this template and tutorial for free because we thought it might help someone, but obviously if you feel this design is somehow unsafe for your health, then please don't make one.

And just for a little perspective on where we're coming from: here in Florida roughly half our fellow residents refuse to wear a mask of any kind while the infection rate continues to skyrocket, so ANY form of face-covering is an improvement. So if I can provide a more comfortable mask option that maybe even looks kinda cool, and that entices someone to finally wear a mask? Then heck, that's what I'm going to do. :)

Be safe out there, my friends.