Making 200 masks : love in a time of covid-19

At this point, I’ve made over 200 non-surgical cotton face masks…

That’s 13 metres of cotton fabric, 17 metres of nose wire, 45 metres of elastic, 108 metres of fabric ties, and about 66 hours. This has been a labour of love.

If you had asked me early in 2020 what my business plans were for the year, I probably would have said lots of markets, pop-up shops, and retail opportunities. Like many small business owners, my plans for the year changed drastically with the outbreak of COVID-19.  Toronto shut its doors about a week after I had set up my new retail spot at Arts Market. I was devastated. I definitely wondered what all this would mean for my business, but mostly I wondered “how can I help?”.

That’s when I discovered the need for non-medical fabric mask donations and the organizations and initiatives leading the charge. I donated my first dozen masks to the Michael Garron Hospital Foundation, and it felt good. Then I decided to sign up and commit to making 100 masks for RAW Canada’s Making Masks Initiative. I had just over a week to meet the deadline and I did little else until all 100 were complete.

In order to keep supporting my community more sustainably, I decided to offer masks for sale, donating one additional mask for each mask purchased. Thanks to your support, I have been able to donate an additional 45 masks to those in need! Masks are still available for purchase here.

– Natalie
www.ardentearthstore.ca
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