Welcome to day twenty six of my 30 Days of Ayurveda series! Throughout these blogs and videos, I will be sharing some upbeat thoughts and wellness tips, as well as some Ayurvedic tricks and food recommendations to help you lead a balanced life.

So I’ve decided to get a little bit creative… I have some incredible fabric that I bought in Japan about 20 years ago. To be honest, it is a miracle that I still have it: in my household, our rule of thumb is if you haven’t touched something in two years, then there is a high probability that you don’t really need it in your life! Therefore, we usually pass on these items or donate them to charity for other people to enjoy. But the fabric has made it!

I decided to make a number of double layered, cotton face masks with my fabric. I printed a template and followed the instructions from this site.

Why bother wearing a cloth face covering?

Throughout the UK, face coverings are compulsory in many public settings. If you come to see me for an appointment, I will be kindly asking for you to come wearing a face covering. The theory is that through mass usage they may help to slow down the spread of the virus not that they will necessarily protect the wearer. We can consider wearing them to be a mass act of kindness.

However, it is also important that we get out  into wide open spaces like forests, woods and parks where we are not near people without a mask and enjoy fresh air. Fresh air especially near trees is vital for improving our immunity and should be enjoyed without a face covering on.

Why not a disposable one instead?

The great thing about making multiple masks is that they can be washed and reused time and time again. This is really significant because, if every person in the UK were to use disposable, single-use face masks each and every day for one year, this would create 66,000 tons of plastic waste! Our planet really doesn’t need any more plastic waste than what already exists.

For example, statistics carried out by the SAS (Surfers Against Sewage) has found that 8 million pieces of plastic pollution find their way into our oceans every day. Indeed, they also estimate that 5.25 trillion macro and micro-plastic pieces are floating in the open ocean, which accounts to 269,000 tonnes of plastic pollution. Therefore, making washable cloth facemasks out of old clothing or fabrics is not just fun, but it also prevents mass plastic waste and reserves PPE for those in health care settings who need it more than ever.

Homemade face masks can be really fun to make!

I promise you, my sewing skills are really quite low down on my skill set, but even I was able to make a half decent face mask! There are lots of simple tutorials online which take you through the mask making process step by step. However, if you are still unsure about making your own mask, you can instead support some of the wonderful independent businesses which are making reusable, machine washable face masks in a variety of designs. Try going onto Etsy and searching for designers in your area, so you can also help to support local businesses.

Over the next 30 days, I will be sharing even more tips and tricks to help you build some great Ayurvedic routines. Hopefully, they will soon be imbedded in your life and you can progress with them. Be sure to let me know how you’re getting on, and why share if you have made your own face mask? Find me on Instagram @anneheigham and on YouTube.