Lorraine Yury's doctor recommended she temporarily stop working her job with child and family services during the COVID outbreak, due to her underlying health issues. But two of her family members with asthma still have to go into work.

With their safety in mind, she has begun crafting homemade masks.

Lorraine has plenty of sewing experience, and now with some free time on her hands, is making protective homemade face masks for her family and friends. After doing some research, she decided to start producing double-sided, 100% cotton masks.

Health Canada are warning that handmade face masks have their limitations; they may not provide complete protection against virus-sized particles, and may provide a false sense of security. 

However there are some encouraging signs that homemade masks can serve as an effective reminder to keep you from touching your face. They’re also becoming more popular with the public as the medical-grade masks used in hospitals are running in short supply.

This follows news out of the United States, where the CDC is recommending Americans wear cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.

Lorraine plans to keep sewing her masks, and hopes to donate some to people in our community that are at a high risk developing severe complications if they were to contract COVID-19.

For more advice and resources on how to best protect yourself and your community, visit the Government of Canada COVID-19 website.