Simple instructions for making a face mask from a 27" bandanna.

1. How to make a face
mask from a 27-inch
bandanna
Richard Gardner
August 2020

2. We hike a lot at first light to keep ourselves and our dog Sir
Isaac Newton healthy on lightly used trails. We need a face
mask which is easy to put on, easy to maintain and effective
in case we see another person who we cannot easily get at
least 30 feet from like can happen in places on the
Appalachian Trail where the sight-lines are often short and
trail is narrow.

3. Most of the face mask designs we saw at the beginning of the
pandemic required people to sew, which many people like me
cannot do. They were also ineffective because of their single
layer design.
We tried a variety of materials and designs. The over-the-ear
design had serious flaws as did the standard 22” bandanna
and the muffler style.

4. What we decided on uses a 27” bandana diagonally folded
from opposite corners. We can put it around our necks when
near a parking lot or pinch point in a trail where we need to be
careful. If we run into people, we can raise it swiftly, protecting
other people and to a lesser degree, ourselves.
Fortunately, our dog Sir Isaac Newton usually warns us when
people are nearby.

5. This design is easy to make without sewing and gives 4 layers
of protection.
For hiking this design works as we can grab it swiftly from our
day packs and put it on within seconds. It can be kept in a car
console or glove box ready to use for activities which may
require a mask for less than five minutes such as getting gas.
It is cheap and easy to wash with a load of clothes or in a
sink.

6. This mask in not as effective as an N95 nor does it try to be.
It is simply our response to help keep us and other people safe
in a horrifying situation which did not need to happen.

7. 27 inches

8. Fold opposite corners to the
middle

9. Fold one side again to the middle

10. Fold the other side over the first side

11. Tie around the head

12. Option: Heather sews a rectangle around the bandanna to keep the
bandanna permanently folded and adds a wire for the nose piece to
prevent glasses from fogging.