Curved Mask Instructions
1. Cut out Curved Mask paper pattern pieces.
2. Starting with the lining fabric (plain unbleached muslin), place fabric right side down on cutting table. If your fabric has a selvage, line that up with the edge of the table, otherwise pick a straight line to line up with the edge of the table. Use push pins to hold the corners in place. Then place the pattern right side up near the left edge of the fabric and line up the grainline arrow parallel to the selvage or edge (using a ruler as pictured or a tape measure). Hold in place with two pattern weights.
3. Trace around the pattern piece, using your ruler to hold the pattern down as well as to give you a clean smooth line.
Curved Mask Instructions
4. Then mark the ticks and lines with small ticks radiating out from their location on the pattern piece. Carefully lift up the pattern piece and transfer those ticks into the body of the mask. Then connect the fold line along the side using your ruler.
5. Flip the pattern piece over, right-side-down, and line up the grainline arrow with the selvage as previously done. Then repeat the tracing and marking that you did with the first side.
6. Slide your shear in from one side and start cutting out the mask pieces on the exterior line. As you cut, slide the shear forward to pick up where you left off creating smooth clean cuts. (Do not lift up the fabric off the table as you cut).
Curved Mask Instructions
8. Place the lining pieces right-side-together (wrong-side-out) with the curved center front seam to the right. Pin together with the pins pointing away from you (head of the pin towards you). Then pin together the fashion fabric in the same way.
9. To stitch the center front seam, line up that center front curve edge with the right outside edge of the presser foot. This will help you stitch about ¼” in from the edge. Stitch that center front seam with a small backstitch on each end.
10. Because that center front seam is a slight convex curve, clip accordingly. The press flat at the iron. Then slide it onto a ham with the wrong side out. Press the seam allowance to the right. Then flip right side out and press (make sure that seam allowance is towards the left then). Repeat with the other layer. 11. Place both layers of the mask right-sides-together and line up that center front seam.
Curved Mask Instructions
12. Start pinning the top and bottom edges by matching up that center front seam with a perpendicular pin. Orient the mask so that it is sideways. Working your way out from that center pin, matching up the notches, edges, and fold lines. If that small seam allowance (raw edge) is to the right your pins should point away from your (so that they are easiest to remove as you stitch. Rotate the mask around to the other side and repeat the steps of pinning it together with the pins pointing away from you (as
pictured below).
13. Stitch the two seams as you have stitched before with the center front seam, matching up the right raw edge lines up with the right outside edge of the presser foot.
14. Ever so slightly grade down (trim down) the muslin seam allowance slightly shorter than the fashion fabrics original seam allowance. The top and bottom of your mask have slight convex and concave curves. Clip those seam allowances accordingly.
15. Reach your hand inside the mask from one side and turn right side out. Roll your fingers alone the bottom edge so that you can see about a 1/16” of the fashion fabric peeking through on the wrong
Curved Mask Instructions
side. Press the bottom edge of the mask. Then smooth up to the top edge and you should have 1/-16-1/8” of the fashion fabric peeking around the back; press using a ham.
16. Top stitch the top and bottom edges of the mask – lining up the edge of the mask with the outside edge of the presser foot (this will hold the two layers together as well as creating a channel for the nose wire).
a. Optional – Top stitch along the center front seams to hold the seam allowances in place. If the seams have shifted, align them and maybe place a pin or two matching up the seam ditch on the inside of the mask. Then line up the center front seam with the inside of the presser foot and stitch from the lower edge up to the upper edge stitch on both sides of the center front seam. (Take care not to pass the upper edge stitch because
this will be where the nose wire will live.)
17. Turn the nose wire so that the writing faces up. Looking at the inside of the mask, slide the wire (words towards the lining) in between the lining and those top seam allowances. Once centered, give a slight bend in the middle.
18. At the iron with the lining side up, fold the two side ends into the wrong side on that 1” fold line. Then
open up that folded end; fold the raw edge to meet that 1” fold (meaning you are folding in ½”). Press. Then refold both the ½” and 1” folds (so you have a double fold hem). Press.
19. Pin in place with the hem (casing) to the right and the pins pointing away from you.
20. Carefully edge stitch the inside fold to hold the casing in place. The goal is that you are 1/8” or closer to that fold as your stitch. (You may find it helpful to line up the inside fold along the inside edge of the presser foot. The space between the needle and that edge is 1/8”.)
21.
Using the safety pin (you may have a safety from your ziplock bag of closures and small parts from your samples, if not ask for one), to pin through one of the ends of the t-shirt yarn. Insert the safety pin in one of the sideCurved Mask Instructions
casings from the bottom and out the top. Then pull it through some of the way and insert it in the other side on at the top and then out the bottom.
22. You will then be able to tie the tails together in a knot. This will allow you to have the mask held around the neck and back of the head. To check the fit, place that top section of the yarn around the back of your head, slide the mask up in place and adjust the nose wire as needed. If the tie is too loose, tight the tie behind your neck.
Note: If you do not like the fit of the around the head strap and would prefer ear loops, clip the t-shirt yarn in the middle so that half of the yarn goes with each side casing. Then measure out 7 inches of yarn for each side and trim away the extra. Tie the ends together into two separate ear loops.
