• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Women Deserve Better

Women Deserve Better: For us, that means better information, better support, and better choices. Life brings challenges. We bring empowerment, because we’ll never underestimate women.

  • Work
    • Find a Job
    • Build a Career
    • Take Maternity Leave
    • Thrive As a Working Parent
    • Know Your Rights at Work
  • Learn
    • Earn Your Degree As a Parent
    • Know Your Rights on Campus
    • Finance Your Education
    • Medical Care for Student Moms
    • Housing for Student Parents
    • Child Care While You’re In Class
  • Live
    • Child Care
    • Feeding Your Family
    • Elder Care
    • Housing
    • Clothes
    • Medical Care
    • Getting Around
    • Money Matters
    • Gardening
    • Special Needs
    • Fun
    • Self-Help
  • Love
    • Adoption
    • Bonding
    • Fathers
    • Your Parents
    • Support Networks
  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Contributors
  • Shop
    • Shop
    • View Cart/Checkout
  • Support Us
  • Donate
  • Home

Doing Her Part: A Seamstress Joins the COVID-19 Effort

April 21, 2020 by Bethanie Ryan

The coronavirus pandemic hit home for Giana Mylan. Literally.

That’s because Mylan, 28, lives in Queens, New York, the county with the most confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States. One of the most serious logistical crises facing those on the front lines of the effort to slow, stop, and defeat the virus is the shortage of personal protective equipment, or PPE for short. Mylan’s aunt works as a home health aide for the elderly and some hospice patients, and many health care workers like her have been forced to reuse masks only meant for one-time use or repurpose other materials into makeshift masks as a stopgap, putting them at risk of infection as well.

During the economic shut down, Mylan’s primary work for a temp agency dried up, and she wanted to give back during this downtime using her greatest gift: sewing. Mylan, who also does some freelance sewing work as a side job, is a part-time student at the Fashion Institute of Technology, in Manhattan, where she is enrolled in the haute couture sewing program. In order to help alleviate the PPE shortage, she decided to begin sewing rewashable surgical masks for her aunt and others who need them.

Mylan spoke with Women Deserve Better in an exclusive interview about how she — and you — can help meet the needs of those sacrificing so much during this difficult time.

First off, who or what got you into sewing?
My grandmother mostly, and apparently, it’s just in my blood. For special occasions, she would ask me what kind of dress I wanted. I would draw out my design and help her pick out the color and types of fabrics. From all of that, she would make the dress for me. I didn’t start trying to sew with a machine until I was around 11. She bought me a small starter kid’s machine that I used until college. She really supported my love of fashion and design. She couldn’t really teach me all too well, but we talked about silhouettes, fabrics, and the history of fashion many times. My first “adult home machine” I was gifted after I started classes at FIT.

Can you explain to a layperson specifically what haute couture sewing is?
Haute couture isn’t specifically defined, but I see it as something that uses techniques not found in ready-to-wear store-bought items, techniques that implement either an outside way of thinking or more hand-done finishings. To me, the most beautiful designs are sometimes the most simple looking on the outside and have the details with embroidery, beading, and structural work on the inside of the garment. Normally, these are one-of-a-kind garments that would be found in a museum after 20-plus years.

Is this your first time sewing for a good cause? If not, tell us about that.
I did sew a few pouches for the animals in Australia during the bushfires earlier this year. Unfortunately, by the time I was able to get the materials and such together, they were no longer accepting shipments from overseas. I am currently working on changing those pouches into small bags to either sell or donate — most likely donate. Since then, I have joined several relief crafting groups through social media to see if I can help more often.

Could you please explain to any of our readers who might want to help out what sewing technique you’re using? Is this something a beginner can sew, or does it require more experience?

Any beginner with a sewing machine can make these masks. I saw several posts of people hand-stitching them together, but for longer lasting masks, sewing with a machine is best. I use a normal straight stitch on a medium 2-2.5 length on my Janome home machine. I do at times go with a ⅛ seam allowance on the top stitch, but that is by choice. A ¼ inch seam allowance is the norm for these types of masks.

Where can one purchase inexpensive patterns to use? Can any other materials one might have lying around (e.g. an old T-shirt) be repurposed into masks?
The pattern is actually quite simple: There are two different sizes of masks available in pattern size, in the style that I normally make “the pleated surgical mask.” There are two options on how to fasten the mask. I have found though there are some people that are between sizes. For this problem, I used either the tie method (they have more of a range to tighten or loosen the mask) or use a slightly longer/shorter elastic.

I have used quilting cotton, a very tight woven cotton flannelette, or old 100 percent cotton T-shirts. Usually, anything that is very stretchy isn’t a good fabric for this sort of thing. Easiest thing to remember is cotton is the way to go. If your sheets are 100 percent, and you’re willing to part with them, you can turn those into masks. Check out this link to see what I used for my pattern.

Giana, thank you so much for your efforts. Stay healthy!

By Damian J. Geminder
Editor & Media Coordinator

P.S. Can’t sew? Never fear! The CDC has a how-to guide for two kinds of no-sew masks, as well as instructions for traditionally sewed cloth masks.

Filed Under: Clothes, Live, Love, Medical Care, Support Networks Tagged With: Coronavirus, helping, masks, seamstress

Primary Sidebar

Featured Articles

  • The Affordable Connectivity Program
  • Medicare Basics
  • Free Résumé Writing Resources from Harvard
  • 12 Free Ways To Integrate Learning Into Your Daily Routine
  • 5 Daily Habits for Overall Health
fb-share-icon

Footer

Women Deserve Better

4 hours ago

Women Deserve Better
No lies detected.So true! ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Women Deserve Better

1 day ago

Women Deserve Better
😁🫶🏽#momlife 💕 ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

womendeservebetter

Getting ready in the morning. #mommeme #mommemes Getting ready in the morning.

#mommeme #mommemes #parenting #parentingishard #parentingmeme #parentingmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes
Nothing quite as frustrating as your kid refusing Nothing quite as frustrating as your kid refusing to clean up. 

#mommeme #mommemes #parentingmeme #parentingmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes
True story. Me: Time for bed! Toddler: I'm going True story.

Me: Time for bed!

Toddler: I'm going to make this way harder than it needs to be.

#mommeme #mommemes #parentingmeme #parentmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes #bedtime #bedtimeishard #bedtimewithtoddlers #bedtimewithtoddler
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Thanks for signing up!

GET OUR LATEST NEWS

ABOUT

  • Our Mission
  • Contributors

SUPPORT US

  • Donate
  • Become a Partner
  • Share Your Story or Your Expertise
  • Promote Women Deserve Better

Women Deserve Better: For us, that means better information, better support, and better choices. Life brings challenges. We bring empowerment, because we’ll never underestimate women.

Copyright © 2023 — Feminists for Life of America • All rights reserved.