Masks are here to stay, at least for the time being. In order to enter a building you have to be masked up. To spend time with friends, mask up. Pretty much in any situation when you are interacting with other people, you have to don a mask. In Chicago, we will be faced with new restrictions for the foreseeable future. 

But what if masks could be fun?

I mean, we express ourselves through fashion as a society. It is your favorite band T-shirt, funked out socks or expressive buttons - your personal “flair” that makes a statement. So, it isn’t a big leap to imagine that our new statement (at least for a while) is a mask.

We have to give ourselves a break, when the mandates first started in March, everything was a little chaotic and “good enough” fit the bill at that moment. Personally, I pulled out my sewing machine and scrap bag, downloaded a pattern off the internet and went to town, concerned more with function rather than look. In the beginning it was about function and speed. The desperation to get something on the market caused a race to the bottom for cheap prices and whatever could be found that would function. Friends were making face shields from plastic notebook sheets and monkeyed head bands and digging out every bandana in the closet as disposable options were hard to find. But as the months have gone on, we have creatively evolved. 

Etsy sales began to go through the roof as artisans were taking advantage of the need for something a little fun. According to Etsy’s Q2 earnings report, the company helped sell $346 MILLION worth of masks during the pandemic, accounting for 14% of all sales across small sellers on the platform. 4 million people came to Etsy for masks alone and buying nothing else. My mom wasn’t the only one building glamorous masks. When I thought I would soon be going to see clients, I ordered masks made of silk scarves to give me some fashion and feel. 

Ryan Moor from Allmade and Ryonet said from early on, “Masks will be around for a while, and the promotional channel will be a good place to move them. While my hope is to see more fashionable masks that are high quality, comfortable, longer lasting and consciously made.”

The promotional products industry is such a great world for this product. There is really no reason any organization shouldn’t consider masks as an essential part of a program or project. If a small business gives a mask to their customers, they can showcase unique branding and enforce safety measures.

The mask can also become another “badge of honor” to support that favorite team or event. My own husband who has competed in various events including marathons and triathlons in real life before they were shut down, scheduled a virtual Ironman event. When I asked him why he was doing it one of the reason was because he could earn points towards a dye sublimated IronMan mask.

Why not have fun with it?  How about seasonally appropriate and possibly the most brilliant addition to your mask collection?  THE UGLY SWEATER MASK!

While scrolling through my PromoPulse feed, I saw a post featuring fun “ugly sweaters” patterns from Peerless, and I thought to myself, that is taking something so blah and making it so fun! When talking to Charity Gibson of Peerless, she explained that “ demand has evolved and people want masks that are even more feature rich and designed for fashion, comfort, and everything else in-between.” They brought interesting designs with the functionality of comfort such as adjustable ear loops, wire nose bridge, nose and chin darts, full color, moisture wicking and so much more. 

Steve Rone from Snugz who at PPAI Expo showed me their awesome line of dye sub fabrics was quick to showcase an amazing depth of full color designs. When asking what kind of designs were hot he said, “full color, for sure!”  Many of the banner images are supplied by Snugz Usa.

Masks can evolve into something fun. For Halloween, my mom made my daughter and me matching masks which matched her sparkly witch costume. For baseball, she had a purple mask that matched her uniform. Vicki has a mask made by Over & Over out of a vintage kimono that is absolutely beautiful and is exactly what would be perfect for her. Northern Illinois University, my alma mater, had a fund raiser selling masks that featured the fierce husky mouth. One of my favorite bands sells one featuring their Distrubed teeth and the proceeds go to support their staff who are unable to work due to safety restrictions. Even watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, each group had masks that fit with their costumes like the Rockettes with their Toy Soldier signature red cheeks!

There are so many ways to express yourself. Let’s embrace the fashion side and see where it goes!

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