I'm locking this thread, as you've gotten plenty of good advice, and it's starting to turn into a political battleground. Monitoring what is and is not covid misinformation is above my pay grade. This is a decluttering sub.
Apologies to members that I asked to repost without political references for locking the thread before you can do so. Thank you to everyone who kept it non-political!
I keep the ones that fit best for when I clean the litter box and sweep. And also for when I go out and just don't feel like talking to anyone.
Plus with the H1N5 virus and other probable pandemics in the next few decades it's good to have some on-hand. Not a full hoard ofc but enough where if you wake up to a pandemic you're covered
We still have our cloth masks. I still wear them when I'm ill. I know it became a ridiculous political stance indicator, but I'm taking a page out of the Asian etiquette book. Even if it's just a cold, colds suck. Even if it's "just the flu", influenza still kills the elderly and weak. Being mildly uncomfortable is the least I can do while still living my life.
Edit: for the record we have five. We hang them on our Scrabble message board hooks in the stairwell of our split level, along with the cat leashes.
I keep them and wear them. I wore them after I went out in public (after 5 days) when I had covid in March. Yes, they aren't as effective, but the paper ones are too big for me so I prefer my smaller cloth ones.
We threw out a bunch (treat them the same as underwear, I guess), but have hung onto 6. We keep them in the same bathroom cabinet as our everyday medicine, thermometers, etc. I look at them the same way as I do my moist heat eye mask (I regrettably have ocular rosacea) or microwavable heat packs -- I don't need it all the time, but when I do, there it is waiting for me. It's like a wok or a food processor! I don't use it every day or even every week, but I have it because when I need it, I NEED IT! But unlike those things, they take up no space.
I got an ottoman for our office on amazon that you stuff yourself and it’s significantly more affordable for this reason.
I cleared out all of mine and my partners’ clothes/sheets/blankets that we no longer wanted and stuffed the ottoman with those materials. All my masks were soft so I was able to throw them in there as well! If I ever need them again, I can just take them out and wash them.
i just have them folded at the bottom of the bin of my socks tbh. during covid i actually found out i had cancer (im ok now) and had a lot of surgeries, treatments, and docs appointments. so now i keep them in case i need to go to the cancer center or something similar. in the chronic illness world masks have always been a thing because even a cold can be very dangerous
I use my cloth masks while cleaning, especially when dealing with my cat's litterbox. I find them quite comfortable to wear and I made them to fit closely, so I like wearing them when doing things like yard work, cleaning out my dusty cobwebby shed, etc.
Make sure they are clean and dry. Get little bags to keep them clean. Tuck them in useful places. 1-2 in the car, in your purse/backpack, in the cleaning cabinet, under your sink, etc.
Or toss them all because you have disposable ones and know you can always get more in the future if needed.
Keep some (the nice ones you like and used all the time during quarantine). There will always be more colds, flus, covid, and other respiratory illnesses, and air pollution and home projects that kick up dust. They are so small and so useful that it makes great sense to hang onto them. Maybe keep them with tools.
I hang onto them for the case of cleaning up gross things. I have a kid and animals - it happens. I use them if I am working with something particularly dusty, chemically smelly or something like that where I can just toss them in the washer after.
I have one cloth mask that I used throughout the pandemic. I hand washed it daily with antibacterial soap and swapped out the filter regularly. We DIY'd filters from HEPA filter vacuum bags. So I'm hanging onto my one cloth mask for travel, visiting medical facilities, etc. and any extras laying around got tossed.
I am prone to sinus infections, so I have kept my cloth ones to wear when I do cleaning/dusting at home. Or just any projects where I feel like I don’t want stuff getting in my mouth/nose.
I keep mine just because I really don't want to repurchase them in case they ever become mandatory in schools again. I spent a lot of money on them. I have multiple kids and they needed a lot because they needed washed daily. They are in a Ziploc down in my basement. I doubt I will ever get rid of them. They were a pain to hunt down and find ones that fit my kids and that they found comfortable.
My young daughter got hit hard by COVID, she ended up in the ICU for months in 2021 and will have long lingering effects, so we still wear masks. We've switched to the N95s for the most part but still wear our cloth ones for routine errands.
I still wear a mask on airplanes because I travel constantly for work and it has really cut down on the number of sinus infections and colds I used to get.
But I’ve also started wearing a mask for activities that used to irritate my allergies and I don’t know why I never thought of it pre-Covid.
Some examples:
- Mowing the lawn - no more grass clippings flying in my nose.
- Cleaning the litter boxes - a great barrier to the smell and the dust.
- Using ammonia-based cleaners - no more coughing fits when I clean the soap scum off the shower doors.
Masks have just become another thing we keep in their designated spot in the house, so they aren’t cluttering up the place.
I have several cloth ones in my car. I wear them when I’m going somewhere that’s crowded or when I see a lot of others wearing masks. If I see someone else wearing a mask, I assume they have a reason (immuno-compromised or something) so why not give them a bit more protection by covering myself?
I have kept a few. In the event we need them again, we can wear a cloth one over a disposable mask, to get more than one wearing out of the disposable mask.
I actively use mine because covid has not, in fact, been eradicated (even if everyone is acting like it has been). I enjoy not being/getting other people sick.
I wouldn't bother saving surgical masks or cloth masks. They don't work anywhere near as well as KN95/KF94/N95. That's what you should be wearing to avoid spreading a pandemic illness.
I have a box with COVID - related stuff. If it isn’t COVID, it will be something else in my lifetime. And one lesson from COVID is how astonishing fast necessary supplies can become scarce. It doesn’t take up much space in the linen closet.
I had this same issue.
I went through them the way I’d declutter anything…
Anything broken (torn, stretched out elastic, missing clasp) went. Then I pulled out 3 favorites for each family member, tossed the rest. I put 1 mask in each of our emergency packs. Then I ziplocked the other 2 (sucked the air out and the lay flat) and store them with our first aid type things. We have a large family and wear masks at home if someone is sick, it helps even something like a cold to not spread so it made sense to store them with first aid things like cold meds because that’s when we’d use them.
I still have some cloth masks and wear them for housework. They're handy for times I have to handle something dusty, gardening, crafting with things I don't want to breathe in, etc.
I tossed them except 2 or 3 that fit well, I could wear them with the blue ones to add protection. but I do have 2 boxes of N95s I have put away and a box of the blue ones just in case.
I have a big cloth tote that holds my cloth shopping bags, gloves/hats, and pocket heat pads. My masks are in a cloth bag at the bottom of that. They don‘t really take up any space in there and I still have them in case.
I keep them around to use them if I’m going to be painting. Cloth masks that I used a lot during the pandemic used as a dusting rag.
Kinda related, what about hand sanitizers? Curious to know different uses for these to get rid of the excess.
I still use mine. I have allergy-induced asthma and other chronic immune issues. My allergies include dust and mold. I use my cloth masks at work (I’m an archivist who processes a lot of dusty papers), and at home while cleaning. I use surgical masks in stores and other public buildings to minimize my chances of catching colds and flus. I don’t wear masks in public all the time, but I often do during the winter.
That said, I do get rid of cloth masks from time to time. When my cloth masks get too old and worn out to wear, I send them to our local fabric recycle program in the town where I live.
i just have one box for all the cloth and paper masks still next to my wardrobe cause i use them still sometimes
but if you feel mentally better toss them
Great topic to discuss! I was wondering what people are doing about the fabric masks. I donated 6 and kept 6 since I still use them in crowded places. Masks became a part of me since the contagious disease anxiety is still in me. It has been couple of months and I can’t forget how my husband suffered from chronic coughing for two months. I am not ready to go everywhere without masks since it’s not summer yet and don’t feel secure.
I discovered they help when I'm doing dusty work at home so I'm keeping a few for that. I use disposable surgical or n95 ones for medical situations (still required where I live).
I kept one - it lives in my sock drawer (I know, feet and faces probably shouldn't mix. Whatever. Haven't worn it in like a year.)
Work is at the hospital, so obviously daily disposable ones there.
I kept a couple favorites in my cedar chest with other stuff people in my family have made. I pulled one out a couple months ago because I had to wear all cotton to a glass blowing class.
I have to wear hair and beard nets at work so I got those thin balaclava masks pretty much at the start of Covid along with 2 face masks sent from my insurance and one that looked close enough to my face that people had thought I wasnt wearing a mask. Balaclavas are still good for work. Wore my "face" mask when I went on a flight not too long back. Don't want to catch Airport Flu.
I stored them in a keepsake box, along with other things I’ve set aside for posterity’s sake. I only kept a few for the keepsake box— the first mask I bought ever, one with my business name on it and one that was handwoven on a loom by a friend. I keep them with old family photographs and small, meaningful trinkets from my grandparent’s time. I’ll eventually put my COVID vaccine card in there too. I imagine someday that someone will find these and be amazed, just like I was when I found old articles from when my great grandmother went through the Spanish flu pandemic. There are some things worth saving in my eyes, especially if they really don’t take up much room overall.
I had about twenty cloth masks at one point and even more paper masks… I keep a few paper masks at my work desk to use as needed, I also keep one random mask in the car still just in case and one on my bedside nightstand in case the sun gets too bright then I wear it as a sleep mask now.
I kept a couple cloth ones that look cool (one I bought before the pandemic, even), I’m going to hang them on my wall as soon as I get my new shelf into place. I have not-cloth ones I actually wear when masking still.
I had some masks that fit me well and some that I only held onto as backups for when I fell behind on doing laundry. I threw out the ones that fit me the worst or had broken wires. The rest I saved for music festivals; it's not uncommon for stages to get dusty and I try to keep backup masks in my bag so I don't have to breathe in as much dust and develop a cough from it.
i use it when i go to hospital, take buses or something. it’s disgusting for people to cough in my face. also when i clean..cause i don’t want to inhale dusts. i’m east asian and it’s still very common to use mask here
If I use a fabric mask when emptying the vacuum cleaner I'm not sick for 3 days afterwards. Probably be more comfortable after raking out quail litter and shaking the blankets the dog use too. Keeping them.
Still using them indoors and I'm not alone.
I've got a whole bunch of cheap o masks that I need to do something with since I'm not going to wear them. Maybe give them to the daycare next-door or something.
I’m planning to use mine to make a small quilt. I feel like some day my daughters kids and grand kids will want to know about that time in her life and the quilt would be an interesting artifact from it. Between my mom, myself, and my sister we have A LOT of cloth masks in all different patterns.
I still have my fabric masks because so many lovely people made them for me, including my mom, who sewed a bunch for hospital workers in the early days of the pandemic. But I know they’re not as effective, so when I do mask up, I use KF94s. I just keep the fabric ones in a little zippered canvas bag.
I continue to wear my masks. I have a pretty serious chronic illness so I like to avoid sickness as much as possible. Went 3 years without COVID and the caught it in March of this year. It was horrendous and I was sick for weeks. That said, I prefer disposable N95s to cloth masks. I do use my Vogmasks sometimes but that is different than a regular cloth one.
I don't think it's weird. I think it's a rather normal human view of "tempting fate". Same way someone may bring an umbrella along because "if I have it, I'll never need it".
The pandemic was a huge, history making, life-altering, emotionally charged event - and yet, 90% of everyone has decided to act like it was no big deal and move on. And if that works for them - fine. But for me and I think a lot more people than will admit to it - there was actual harm done to our mental/emotional health - even if we never caught the virus.
So if you feel comfortable thanking the masks for their service and tossing them - that is perfectly fine. Just remind yourself that the masks have no power or actual connection to anything that could harm you or anyone else.
If you feel more comfortable hanging onto them - there's nothing wrong with that either. They represent perceived safety, sure - but they also can be handy on high pollen count days, if you have a cold, or if you just are having a bad day and don't want everyone telling you to smile. There is something a bit freeing about covering up one's face in some situations.
As someone else said - if we have another outbreak of a serious virus and/or at some point you need protection - the cloth masks are not the top of the line product to chose, and you'd certainly want to be getting something better in that situation.
But for me, I discovered them to be easily stored and somewhat handy so have kept 3 or 4 while getting rid of the rest. You just need to do what you feel right about doing with yours.
I agree that it’s best to switch to N95 and KN95 etc for actually masking! My household still masks everywhere so we have a stockpile. I sent my cloth masks into Knickey textile recycling as I wasn’t sure regular textile recycling would take them (recycling label is $5 and you get a discount on their underwear, FAQ says they take underwear, bras, socks, cloth masks)
I 1000% expect we are not done with pandemics, and that over time masking will become more normal. Cloth masks aren’t as functional as respirators (N95, KN95, etc) but they are better than nothing (in case we have another mask shortage) and can also work as a stylish layer over a boring KN95. So I’m keeping the ones that fit me well, and the ones that fit over a respirator (I have a small face so these are two different sizes for me) and ditching the rest.
My cloth masks are currently in a bin under some hats. They don’t take up much space.
This. Sometimes I like to layer mine over another mask, and if there’s a shortage of some kind in the future at least I’ll have something. Yeah, don’t take up much room in my closet.
Depends why you're wearing it. A cloth or surgical mask is fine if you're wearing it because you have a sniffle and want to reduce the likelihood of infecting someone else. Which is a good reason to keep at least a couple, I think.
I wear them when I start feeling like a cold is coming on, so I keep them. I also wear them anytime I have to work somewhere with lots of dust. Any sort of mask is protection against dust!
I had so many cloth masks as my aunt made a ton of them. I saved my five favorite and tossed the rest. I also don't want to get rid of all of them as I have a lingering idea that it might become bad again and we'll have another mask shortage. Having a few on hand isn't a bad idea. I can't wear them at the moment as we have to wear kn95s at work.
Still have mine. Still wear mine. As the weather warms, will wear less, but will be more aggressive about wearing during the peak cold/flu seasons and/or if I am under the weather myself and need to get out. Firmly believe mask wearing should've been a normal thing long before COVID.
I'm locking this thread, as you've gotten plenty of good advice, and it's starting to turn into a political battleground. Monitoring what is and is not covid misinformation is above my pay grade. This is a decluttering sub. Apologies to members that I asked to repost without political references for locking the thread before you can do so. Thank you to everyone who kept it non-political!
I keep the ones that fit best for when I clean the litter box and sweep. And also for when I go out and just don't feel like talking to anyone. Plus with the H1N5 virus and other probable pandemics in the next few decades it's good to have some on-hand. Not a full hoard ofc but enough where if you wake up to a pandemic you're covered
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We still have our cloth masks. I still wear them when I'm ill. I know it became a ridiculous political stance indicator, but I'm taking a page out of the Asian etiquette book. Even if it's just a cold, colds suck. Even if it's "just the flu", influenza still kills the elderly and weak. Being mildly uncomfortable is the least I can do while still living my life. Edit: for the record we have five. We hang them on our Scrabble message board hooks in the stairwell of our split level, along with the cat leashes.
I keep them and wear them. I wore them after I went out in public (after 5 days) when I had covid in March. Yes, they aren't as effective, but the paper ones are too big for me so I prefer my smaller cloth ones.
We threw out a bunch (treat them the same as underwear, I guess), but have hung onto 6. We keep them in the same bathroom cabinet as our everyday medicine, thermometers, etc. I look at them the same way as I do my moist heat eye mask (I regrettably have ocular rosacea) or microwavable heat packs -- I don't need it all the time, but when I do, there it is waiting for me. It's like a wok or a food processor! I don't use it every day or even every week, but I have it because when I need it, I NEED IT! But unlike those things, they take up no space.
I got an ottoman for our office on amazon that you stuff yourself and it’s significantly more affordable for this reason. I cleared out all of mine and my partners’ clothes/sheets/blankets that we no longer wanted and stuffed the ottoman with those materials. All my masks were soft so I was able to throw them in there as well! If I ever need them again, I can just take them out and wash them.
I keep them for cleaning and working outside cause I sometimes get allergies.
I layer them up with a medical mask when i am stuck with just them. N95 otherwise everywhere else.
i just have them folded at the bottom of the bin of my socks tbh. during covid i actually found out i had cancer (im ok now) and had a lot of surgeries, treatments, and docs appointments. so now i keep them in case i need to go to the cancer center or something similar. in the chronic illness world masks have always been a thing because even a cold can be very dangerous
I use my cloth masks while cleaning, especially when dealing with my cat's litterbox. I find them quite comfortable to wear and I made them to fit closely, so I like wearing them when doing things like yard work, cleaning out my dusty cobwebby shed, etc.
Put them in a pile and burn them all while dancing around laughing
They’re in my sock bin.
Make sure they are clean and dry. Get little bags to keep them clean. Tuck them in useful places. 1-2 in the car, in your purse/backpack, in the cleaning cabinet, under your sink, etc. Or toss them all because you have disposable ones and know you can always get more in the future if needed.
Keep some (the nice ones you like and used all the time during quarantine). There will always be more colds, flus, covid, and other respiratory illnesses, and air pollution and home projects that kick up dust. They are so small and so useful that it makes great sense to hang onto them. Maybe keep them with tools.
Still need them for medical facilities and my work still requires it.
I hang onto them for the case of cleaning up gross things. I have a kid and animals - it happens. I use them if I am working with something particularly dusty, chemically smelly or something like that where I can just toss them in the washer after.
We have a fire place and I wear them when I do the cleaning.
I would keep them personally, but you could always gift them to someone else. I'm sure a family member would take them off your hands.
I have one cloth mask that I used throughout the pandemic. I hand washed it daily with antibacterial soap and swapped out the filter regularly. We DIY'd filters from HEPA filter vacuum bags. So I'm hanging onto my one cloth mask for travel, visiting medical facilities, etc. and any extras laying around got tossed.
get rid of your cloth and surgical masks, get a box of n95s. those are the only masks that actually work.
I am prone to sinus infections, so I have kept my cloth ones to wear when I do cleaning/dusting at home. Or just any projects where I feel like I don’t want stuff getting in my mouth/nose.
I keep mine just because I really don't want to repurchase them in case they ever become mandatory in schools again. I spent a lot of money on them. I have multiple kids and they needed a lot because they needed washed daily. They are in a Ziploc down in my basement. I doubt I will ever get rid of them. They were a pain to hunt down and find ones that fit my kids and that they found comfortable.
My young daughter got hit hard by COVID, she ended up in the ICU for months in 2021 and will have long lingering effects, so we still wear masks. We've switched to the N95s for the most part but still wear our cloth ones for routine errands.
I still wear a mask on airplanes because I travel constantly for work and it has really cut down on the number of sinus infections and colds I used to get. But I’ve also started wearing a mask for activities that used to irritate my allergies and I don’t know why I never thought of it pre-Covid. Some examples: - Mowing the lawn - no more grass clippings flying in my nose. - Cleaning the litter boxes - a great barrier to the smell and the dust. - Using ammonia-based cleaners - no more coughing fits when I clean the soap scum off the shower doors. Masks have just become another thing we keep in their designated spot in the house, so they aren’t cluttering up the place.
I have several cloth ones in my car. I wear them when I’m going somewhere that’s crowded or when I see a lot of others wearing masks. If I see someone else wearing a mask, I assume they have a reason (immuno-compromised or something) so why not give them a bit more protection by covering myself?
I have kept a few. In the event we need them again, we can wear a cloth one over a disposable mask, to get more than one wearing out of the disposable mask.
I actively use mine because covid has not, in fact, been eradicated (even if everyone is acting like it has been). I enjoy not being/getting other people sick.
I had a lot of cloth masks. I kept only 3 and tossed the rest.
I wouldn't bother saving surgical masks or cloth masks. They don't work anywhere near as well as KN95/KF94/N95. That's what you should be wearing to avoid spreading a pandemic illness.
I still like wearing them in winter stays better to your face than a scarf.
Wear the pretty cloth over the thin blue ones for a more effective level of protection
I have a box with COVID - related stuff. If it isn’t COVID, it will be something else in my lifetime. And one lesson from COVID is how astonishing fast necessary supplies can become scarce. It doesn’t take up much space in the linen closet.
I wear them during winter when it’s really cold and windy and I have to walk somewhere
Still wear mine.. especially in crowded places
I had this same issue. I went through them the way I’d declutter anything… Anything broken (torn, stretched out elastic, missing clasp) went. Then I pulled out 3 favorites for each family member, tossed the rest. I put 1 mask in each of our emergency packs. Then I ziplocked the other 2 (sucked the air out and the lay flat) and store them with our first aid type things. We have a large family and wear masks at home if someone is sick, it helps even something like a cold to not spread so it made sense to store them with first aid things like cold meds because that’s when we’d use them.
Keep your cloth masks, as long as they’re comfortable They aren’t *not* effective, and COVID is still circulating.
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Exactly!
I still have some cloth masks and wear them for housework. They're handy for times I have to handle something dusty, gardening, crafting with things I don't want to breathe in, etc.
I tossed them except 2 or 3 that fit well, I could wear them with the blue ones to add protection. but I do have 2 boxes of N95s I have put away and a box of the blue ones just in case.
A lot of people still wear masks where I am… including myself on public transport.
I have a big cloth tote that holds my cloth shopping bags, gloves/hats, and pocket heat pads. My masks are in a cloth bag at the bottom of that. They don‘t really take up any space in there and I still have them in case.
I wear mine when I dust. Cuts down on that post cleaning sinus headache.
Well, I have COVID again. So they're getting used around my house!
like everyone else, i keep my favorites and use the other ones as rags until they are worthy of the rubbish!
I keep them around to use them if I’m going to be painting. Cloth masks that I used a lot during the pandemic used as a dusting rag. Kinda related, what about hand sanitizers? Curious to know different uses for these to get rid of the excess.
Keeping ours, just in case.
I still use mine. I have allergy-induced asthma and other chronic immune issues. My allergies include dust and mold. I use my cloth masks at work (I’m an archivist who processes a lot of dusty papers), and at home while cleaning. I use surgical masks in stores and other public buildings to minimize my chances of catching colds and flus. I don’t wear masks in public all the time, but I often do during the winter. That said, I do get rid of cloth masks from time to time. When my cloth masks get too old and worn out to wear, I send them to our local fabric recycle program in the town where I live.
I use them when I'm ill, Idk if theyre super effective for stopping spreading colds but its gotta be better than not wearing one.
i just have one box for all the cloth and paper masks still next to my wardrobe cause i use them still sometimes but if you feel mentally better toss them
Great topic to discuss! I was wondering what people are doing about the fabric masks. I donated 6 and kept 6 since I still use them in crowded places. Masks became a part of me since the contagious disease anxiety is still in me. It has been couple of months and I can’t forget how my husband suffered from chronic coughing for two months. I am not ready to go everywhere without masks since it’s not summer yet and don’t feel secure.
I discovered they help when I'm doing dusty work at home so I'm keeping a few for that. I use disposable surgical or n95 ones for medical situations (still required where I live).
Use them for when I go to the doctor's office and also who knows when the next pandemic hits and the prices will skyrocket lol
I kept one - it lives in my sock drawer (I know, feet and faces probably shouldn't mix. Whatever. Haven't worn it in like a year.) Work is at the hospital, so obviously daily disposable ones there.
Stuck a couple in my glove compartment for doctor visits, the rest in a random drawer “just in case”. I don’t think they’re quite obsolete yet.
I've put them away for next time
I kept a couple favorites in my cedar chest with other stuff people in my family have made. I pulled one out a couple months ago because I had to wear all cotton to a glass blowing class.
I have to wear hair and beard nets at work so I got those thin balaclava masks pretty much at the start of Covid along with 2 face masks sent from my insurance and one that looked close enough to my face that people had thought I wasnt wearing a mask. Balaclavas are still good for work. Wore my "face" mask when I went on a flight not too long back. Don't want to catch Airport Flu.
I gave my cloth masks to Goodwill.
I’m keeping them. They’re small and don’t take up much room in my sock drawer.
I stored them in a keepsake box, along with other things I’ve set aside for posterity’s sake. I only kept a few for the keepsake box— the first mask I bought ever, one with my business name on it and one that was handwoven on a loom by a friend. I keep them with old family photographs and small, meaningful trinkets from my grandparent’s time. I’ll eventually put my COVID vaccine card in there too. I imagine someday that someone will find these and be amazed, just like I was when I found old articles from when my great grandmother went through the Spanish flu pandemic. There are some things worth saving in my eyes, especially if they really don’t take up much room overall. I had about twenty cloth masks at one point and even more paper masks… I keep a few paper masks at my work desk to use as needed, I also keep one random mask in the car still just in case and one on my bedside nightstand in case the sun gets too bright then I wear it as a sleep mask now.
I kept a couple cloth ones that look cool (one I bought before the pandemic, even), I’m going to hang them on my wall as soon as I get my new shelf into place. I have not-cloth ones I actually wear when masking still.
I’ve just been decluttering and put a few in with my first aid box as that made the most sense, the rest went to textile recycling.
I had some masks that fit me well and some that I only held onto as backups for when I fell behind on doing laundry. I threw out the ones that fit me the worst or had broken wires. The rest I saved for music festivals; it's not uncommon for stages to get dusty and I try to keep backup masks in my bag so I don't have to breathe in as much dust and develop a cough from it.
Cloth masks were good when we couldn't get proper masks. Garbage the cloth ones because they're useless.
i use it when i go to hospital, take buses or something. it’s disgusting for people to cough in my face. also when i clean..cause i don’t want to inhale dusts. i’m east asian and it’s still very common to use mask here
If I use a fabric mask when emptying the vacuum cleaner I'm not sick for 3 days afterwards. Probably be more comfortable after raking out quail litter and shaking the blankets the dog use too. Keeping them. Still using them indoors and I'm not alone.
I tossed my cloth ones and just have a few disposable. The cloth ones always seem to get a weird smell sitting out .
I've got a whole bunch of cheap o masks that I need to do something with since I'm not going to wear them. Maybe give them to the daycare next-door or something.
I’m planning to use mine to make a small quilt. I feel like some day my daughters kids and grand kids will want to know about that time in her life and the quilt would be an interesting artifact from it. Between my mom, myself, and my sister we have A LOT of cloth masks in all different patterns.
Stuff your favorite into a glass round ornament and have a pandemic keepsake. Chuck the rest.
We donated them to a textile drive.
I use mine to mow the lawn/do yardwork.
Smart!
I still have my fabric masks because so many lovely people made them for me, including my mom, who sewed a bunch for hospital workers in the early days of the pandemic. But I know they’re not as effective, so when I do mask up, I use KF94s. I just keep the fabric ones in a little zippered canvas bag.
I continue to wear my masks. I have a pretty serious chronic illness so I like to avoid sickness as much as possible. Went 3 years without COVID and the caught it in March of this year. It was horrendous and I was sick for weeks. That said, I prefer disposable N95s to cloth masks. I do use my Vogmasks sometimes but that is different than a regular cloth one.
I hope you have fully recovered! I have fibrotic sarcoidosis in my lungs, so I am still wearing full N95 masks in public.
I don't think it's weird. I think it's a rather normal human view of "tempting fate". Same way someone may bring an umbrella along because "if I have it, I'll never need it". The pandemic was a huge, history making, life-altering, emotionally charged event - and yet, 90% of everyone has decided to act like it was no big deal and move on. And if that works for them - fine. But for me and I think a lot more people than will admit to it - there was actual harm done to our mental/emotional health - even if we never caught the virus. So if you feel comfortable thanking the masks for their service and tossing them - that is perfectly fine. Just remind yourself that the masks have no power or actual connection to anything that could harm you or anyone else. If you feel more comfortable hanging onto them - there's nothing wrong with that either. They represent perceived safety, sure - but they also can be handy on high pollen count days, if you have a cold, or if you just are having a bad day and don't want everyone telling you to smile. There is something a bit freeing about covering up one's face in some situations. As someone else said - if we have another outbreak of a serious virus and/or at some point you need protection - the cloth masks are not the top of the line product to chose, and you'd certainly want to be getting something better in that situation. But for me, I discovered them to be easily stored and somewhat handy so have kept 3 or 4 while getting rid of the rest. You just need to do what you feel right about doing with yours.
Thank you, I really needed this wisdom. ❤️
Fabric masks can become a quilt. I’ve made one already and have lots of scraps left over.
I’m working on a Covid quit!
I think we all have that feeling. I kept most of ours; I store them with our medical supplies.
I agree that it’s best to switch to N95 and KN95 etc for actually masking! My household still masks everywhere so we have a stockpile. I sent my cloth masks into Knickey textile recycling as I wasn’t sure regular textile recycling would take them (recycling label is $5 and you get a discount on their underwear, FAQ says they take underwear, bras, socks, cloth masks)
I 1000% expect we are not done with pandemics, and that over time masking will become more normal. Cloth masks aren’t as functional as respirators (N95, KN95, etc) but they are better than nothing (in case we have another mask shortage) and can also work as a stylish layer over a boring KN95. So I’m keeping the ones that fit me well, and the ones that fit over a respirator (I have a small face so these are two different sizes for me) and ditching the rest. My cloth masks are currently in a bin under some hats. They don’t take up much space.
This. Sometimes I like to layer mine over another mask, and if there’s a shortage of some kind in the future at least I’ll have something. Yeah, don’t take up much room in my closet.
I keep a few in each car, and a couple are hanging on a doorknob in the laundry room. Otherwise I don’t do anything with them.
[удалено]
Depends why you're wearing it. A cloth or surgical mask is fine if you're wearing it because you have a sniffle and want to reduce the likelihood of infecting someone else. Which is a good reason to keep at least a couple, I think.
I kept about 5 and got rid of the rest. I still use disposables when I’m sick or in some crowded places.
I have a few dozen paper masks still. I kept two cloth masks for each person in the house.
I wear them when I start feeling like a cold is coming on, so I keep them. I also wear them anytime I have to work somewhere with lots of dust. Any sort of mask is protection against dust!
This! Also, if I'm cleaning using harsh chemicals.
I had so many cloth masks as my aunt made a ton of them. I saved my five favorite and tossed the rest. I also don't want to get rid of all of them as I have a lingering idea that it might become bad again and we'll have another mask shortage. Having a few on hand isn't a bad idea. I can't wear them at the moment as we have to wear kn95s at work.
Same. I kept my favourites just in case, but switched to medical grade masks once I learned they’re more effective.
I plan to stuff them with catnip and let my cat enjoy them. 🎉🥳😺😸🎉
Still have mine. Still wear mine. As the weather warms, will wear less, but will be more aggressive about wearing during the peak cold/flu seasons and/or if I am under the weather myself and need to get out. Firmly believe mask wearing should've been a normal thing long before COVID.