Homemade Masks by Vin & Omi
By BEL JACOBS
As the rest of us sit in lockdown, NHS workers in the UK have been speaking out against shortages of protective gear, with London paramedics being rationed to one face mask between two. And, while almost 12,000 retired NHS staff have agreed to come back to work to help tackle the crisis, at the same time, doctors are threatening to quit over fears of inadequate protective equipment.
This is what one nurse had to say: “There’s not enough masks, we’re not given special clothes to wear, patients are not being tested even when they have obvious symptoms. It must be spreading a lot among patients and staff and we’ll all end up sick at the same time. Proper infection control protocol not agreed upon therefore cannot be implemented. Management is appalling. The whole country does not have enough masks of the cheap flimsy kind or the stronger ones. They won’t give us masks with eye visors on them, even though corona can be transmitted into our eyes. The government are lying when they say they’re getting more ventilators made. There are not enough intensive care beds. We have a lot less per person than Italy has and look how badly they’re coping. Things are very serious. If you’re hoping the health care system will see us through, you’re absolutely mistaken. People and companies need to take protection into their own hands.”
Some labels are trying to help out. Prada is the latest big-name fashion brand to turn its production lines to meet needs arising from the coronavirus crisis, aiming to make 110,000 masks by 6 April. That sounds modest in comparison to Gucci, who claimed it would make more than 1m. Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga – both of which, like Gucci, are owned by Kering – will also begin manufacturing them. In Prague’s Academy of Arts, Architecture & Design’s studios, students have so far crafted hundreds of face masks.
The British Fashion Council last week asked those with “production capacity” to help with shortages. Vin & Omi, ethical design iconoclasts, have stepped up with this guide, published initially on Instagram stories, now available here. Get sewing. You’ve got time.
