"Every person in Texas shall wear a face covering over the nose and mouth when inside a commercial entity or other building or space open to the public, or when in an outdoor public space, wherever it is not feasible to maintain six feet of social distancing from another person not in the same household." Exceptions apply. Read the governor's executive order
here.
With the
statewide mask mandate currently in place and – although not required – many parents voluntarily and out of precaution wanting their kids under the age of 10 to wear a mask, the demand for kids face masks is high.
Local businesses, tailors and just simple people who can sew, stepped up and volunteered to make masks for healthcare workers or started to sell customized masks for adults and kids.
Marianne, a stay-at-home mom of three kids (4, 3 and 15 months) from Cedar Park, sews for fun all the time (costumes, linens, alterations, etc). Here's how she started her face mask business The Grateful Thread.
"When COVID first hit around March/April, I saw a lot of my nurse friends trying to find anyone who could sew some and decided that it was a perfect time to put my hobby to good use! I donated a few batches to some friends in different states around the country, and made a few sales within my circle of family and friends, but never thought it would really lead anywhere. Around that time, my husband’s job started struggling and while he didn’t get let go, he did take a significant pay cut. I figured, it couldn’t hurt to try and add to our income, so I created a Google form and posted it to my Facebook, not really expecting much. As it turned out, the masks really took off and as a result, I worked to expand both the size range and styles to suit as many people as I could. I ended up needing to find a better way to stay organized and take orders, which led me to creating my current website, and since then I’ve been mommying by day and sewing at night after I put the kids to bed! It’s tough sometimes, but I take a lot of pride in my work and put in a lot of effort, so seeing people so happy with my product is very rewarding."
We love our masks from The Grateful Thread! We got three kids and two adults masks, reversible, with filter pocket and filter, nose channel and nose wire, and elastic sliders for the kids.
Here's some more information about The Grateful Thread masks:
Sizes
Marianne's masks come in the following sizes:
Kids 2-5
Kids 6-12
Adult M/L
Adult XL
Fabric
Masks are made out of 100% cotton and cotton muslin.
Marianne offers a wider variety of fabrics, incl. patterns, solids, and shiny fabrics.
Reversible masks allow you to select two types of fabrics. The kids loved that they could pick out two patterns!
See currently available fabrics below. Please note: fabrics may be limited and are subject to change.
Patterns
Solids
Shiny
Limited amount left
Closure Types
There are four closure types:
Elastic behind the ears
Elastic behind the head
Elastic open ended
Ties
Behind the ear elastic is made from woven polyester and polypropylene rubber. The other closures are made from t-shirt elastic.
Marianne recommends the following:
Behind the ear elastic is good for situations where you need your hair to be accessible, or want easy removal.
Closed elastic is non-adjustable, but very secure.
Ties and open elastic are adjustable, and recommended for children's masks.
We went with elastics behind the ears since they seem to be the easiest to put on and take off, especially for our kids.
If the elastic ever breaks, it can be replaced pretty easily (Marianne has a helpful guide for that) or Marianne will do it free of charge.
Filter Pocket + Nose Channel Options
Masks come with optional filter pocket, nose channel, and/or elastic sliders.
The filter pocket allows you to insert a filter. Filters will be available as an add-on soon.
The nose channel allows you to insert a wire to help shape the mask over the bridge of your nose for a better seal. Nose bridge wires are available as an add-on.
The elastic sliders allows you to adjust the elastic to your liking. Free of charge.
We opted for both the filter pocket and the nose channel. The nose wire really helps to keep the masks in place and avoid a gap on the nose. The filter pocket and filter are an extra safety precaution we wanted to have. The filter and the nose wire are easy to insert in and remove from the mask.
Washing + Drying
The masks are washable. Here are the washing and drying instructions.
Note: make sure to remove the filter and the nose wire before washing!
Shipping or Pick-up
Shipping is available across the US for a flat rate of $5 per order— most orders ship in less than a week and arrive 1-3 days from shipping date. Local pick-up is available in Cedar Park, TX.
Contact + Order Information
Website: thegratefulthreadstore.com
Facebook: facebook.com/TheGratefulThreadStore
Email: TheGratefulThreadHelp@gmail.com
Phone: (512) 660-8170
Get 20% off your whole order with promo code “LGPA20”!
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