So, here I was, minding my own business and, wham, out of nowhere (or actually out of China), this thing called the Corona Virus or Covid-19 rained down on the entire world.

Back in March, the world went crazy and people everywhere were scrambling to figure out just how dangerous and far reaching this new virus was. Officials were issuing orders left and right requiring everyone to stay at home and avoid contact with others in an effort to slow the infection rate and calm the storm.

These new mandates did not change much for me, as I work online and stay at home 99% of the time anyway. It did change Scott’s work a bit, as he now attends all his weekly meetings online and works on video production here at the house. This has actually been a nice adjustment for us, as we have always worked well around each other 24/7.

Grocery buying is the thing that changed the most for us. We do not go out to eat anymore. We didn’t do that much before anyway. We buy all our groceries through the various pick up services offered by the local retailers. I have to say, that I don’t think I will go back to “in store” shopping, even when this whole thing is calmed down. It is just way too convenient to have someone else do the shopping for me.

So, once we headed into April, there was so much information overload out there about how you could get this thing, etc., that seamstresses suddenly found themselves inundated with requests for facemasks. First the panic was for masks that would protect the wearer. Well, those turned out to be misinformed requests. As it turns out, the facemask will only give about 5% protection for the wearer. What it really does well, is protect EVERYONE else that the wearer comes into contact with (about 80%). So, if both the individuals involved in a meeting are wearing masks, well, you get the picture.

My entire month of April, 2020, was spent sewing masks. I have created 311 so far and still make them for those in my community that need them. It has been a great way to reduce the fabric stash that I have that was getting out of control and a fabulous way to serve. The mask making sewers out there have seen so many crazy shortages in the past two months. First it was the elastic that was out of stock, EVERYWHERE. Then fabrics were in short supply. Now it is thread, rotary cutters and blades, and even wire for the nose shaping of the masks. The wire I used was heavy gauge floral wire and even that is hard to find now. Luckily, the demand has gone down and those who have been sewing like mad can finally breathe a bit.