Face Mask V1 ear loop elastic source

[Rob_L]

be careful with nylon headband 'elastic' if you press your masks while sewing...i've melted that type of material when ironing

re: 't-shirt' yarn loops...i've had good luck using single-knit fabric that has a small percentage of spandex in it.

Good point about needing to be careful with ironing to avoid melting anything with nylon or other synthetics, kansha! I'll let my wife know about using single-knit fabric with spandex.

Rob

Rob

[Rob_L]

Rob_L the availability of the cord on Amazon US seems to vary by shipping address. When I clicked on the link Amazon defaulted to my UK address and told me it was not available. When I typed in a US Zip code it was suddenly available.

Yes, Cristina, I think that's probably what was happening for me as well, since we are in Canada. It must be restricted to US addresses.

Rob

[Rob_L]

My local fabric store sells 1/6" banded stretch elastic, that is the best thing I've found in person to make an ear loop. I initially made my own V1 masks with the odd and ends of elastic I already had, mostly flat elastic, and this is more comfortable. I'm not sure how it compares to what was on the masks in May, but sharing in case this is of interest to you, either the name or the photos of the item. Good luck!

https://shop.moderndomesticpdx.com/1...yd-bundle.html

Thanks @Lixpdx - hard to tell from the photo but it does look like it may be softer than the typical 1/8" round elastic cord that we've been able to find at the fabric store. I'll pass that along to my wife and see what she thinks about it.

Rob

[Rob_L]

My local fabric store managed to stock great quantities of really soft 1/8” elastic for $0.70/yard CAD and I’ve had great luck with it when using the TB mask patterns. Feedback from friends and family who got masks from me has also been good.

Most fabric stores in my area are also taking orders over the phone and having it available for pickup, so even if you aren’t a fan of going into your store it can’t hurt to call and ask what they have on hand that they’re recommending for making masks.


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Thanks ClicketySnap - my wife has looked at the 1/8" elastic in the local fabric store but isn't happy with it for earloops. Some of the masks (not the Tom Bihn ones) use that type and they're nowhere near as comfortable as the earloops on the TB masks.

Rob

[Rob_L]

The exact material we use isn't generally available as far as we know, but material at your local fabric shop that'd be used to make dance tights or yoga pants should be pretty similar. Stretchy, durable, and soft

Thanks Darcy - I'll let her know. So it would need to be cut into strips, is that correct?

Rob

[ClicketySnap]

My local fabric store managed to stock great quantities of really soft 1/8” elastic for $0.70/yard CAD and I’ve had great luck with it when using the TB mask patterns. Feedback from friends and family who got masks from me has also been good.

Most fabric stores in my area are also taking orders over the phone and having it available for pickup, so even if you aren’t a fan of going into your store it can’t hurt to call and ask what they have on hand that they’re recommending for making masks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Darcy]

The exact material we use isn't generally available as far as we know, but material at your local fabric shop that'd be used to make dance tights or yoga pants should be pretty similar. Stretchy, durable, and soft

[kansha]

Hi K9TB - Thanks for the advice about nylon hairband material vs cotton t-shirt yarn. I'll show the Etsy link to my wife to see what she thinks.

Rob

be careful with nylon headband 'elastic' if you press your masks while sewing...i've melted that type of material when ironing

re: 't-shirt' yarn loops...i've had good luck using single-knit fabric that has a small percentage of spandex in it.

[Lizpdx]

My local fabric store sells 1/6" banded stretch elastic, that is the best thing I've found in person to make an ear loop. I initially made my own V1 masks with the odd and ends of elastic I already had, mostly flat elastic, and this is more comfortable. I'm not sure how it compares to what was on the masks in May, but sharing in case this is of interest to you, either the name or the photos of the item. Good luck!

https://shop.moderndomesticpdx.com/1-6-banded-stretch-elastic-black-5yd-bundle.html

[Cristina]

Rob_L the availability of the cord on Amazon US seems to vary by shipping address. When I clicked on the link Amazon defaulted to my UK address and told me it was not available. When I typed in a US Zip code it was suddenly available.

[Rob_L]

The most I've been able to figure out is that you are looking for nylon. Baby headbands are often made of nylon, and have a similar stretchiness. They also "curl' like the TB ear straps. I've ordered these. They don't seem like they are as sturdy as the TB ones, but they are stretchy and comfortable.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DianaRoseNylon?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=549481786

Beware of T shirt yarn. It's often cotton, and while it's soft and rolls or curls toward the center so it looks similar, it's not stretchy so it doesn't function the same.

Hi K9TB - Thanks for the advice about nylon hairband material vs cotton t-shirt yarn. I'll show the Etsy link to my wife to see what she thinks.

Rob

[K9TB]

The most I've been able to figure out is that you are looking for nylon. Baby headbands are often made of nylon, and have a similar stretchiness. They also "curl' like the TB ear straps. I've ordered these. They don't seem like they are as sturdy as the TB ones, but they are stretchy and comfortable.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DianaRoseNylon?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=549481786

Beware of T shirt yarn. It's often cotton, and while it's soft and rolls or curls toward the center so it looks similar, it's not stretchy so it doesn't function the same.

[moriond]

Hi Rob_L,

The people who were talking about T-shirt yarn were referring to the fact that you can find YouTube videos on how to make this from T-shirts. When you cut and stretch the fabric segments, they curl up to provide a comfortable alternative to elastic. If I were trying to buy something like this, I’d probably look for an Etsy store that sells products under a search term like “t-shirt yarn for masks”.

Here’s a sample result from an Etsy store:
3mm 1/8" Soft Elastic Mask Handmade Strap White Earloop Cord Ear Tie Rope String for Mask Sewing


If you look at the images on the left side of the page, there’s a video that shows the different color cords for earloops and a demo of their texture when stretched.

Alternatively, you can try sending a query to Customer Support.

Thanks moriond - I did watch the video tutorial, as well as the one on tips for speeding up production. Both are helpful, although they don't provide any info on the elastic used. I did see the link to the t-shirt yarn, but it's apparently no longer available. I tried searching the forum but haven't hit on the right combination of search terms to narrow down the posts enough - the few that looked promising so far didn't offer any clues to the source of the elastic, and the majority of results returned had nothing to do with masks. I will try sifting through the later parts of the thread on making surgical-style mask to see if there's anything about the ear loops.

Rob L

I found that the Amazon link dgrls gave worked for me.

HTH

moriond

Thanks for the suggestion, dgrls - unfortunately it's no longer available, according to Amazon.

Rob L

[dgrls]

Rob, when I put it in my Amazon cart, it shows available and would be delivered (to Colorado) by this Friday. So strange that it showed unavailable to you.

[Rob_L]

This is what I use. It’s not exactly the same, but quite similar. Very stretchy and comfortable.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Thanks for the suggestion, dgrls - unfortunately it's no longer available, according to Amazon.

Rob L