Bridgnorth mother and daughter design new style printable face mask
A mother and daughter duo from Bridgnorth have come up with a home-printable face mask invention.
Karen North, aged 50, and her 21-year-old daughter, Josephine, have launched The Printable Mask Company.
Together with husband Richard, and Graeme Taylor, founders of toy company Wow! Stuff, the pair have helped create home-printable and customisable face mask kits.
Wow! Stuff, which picked up the award for most innovative toy at this year’s New York Toy Fair for its Harry Potter invisibility cloak, put its internal team of inventors to work midway through the pandemic to help create the kit.
The Printable Face Mask Company has pledged £10,000 from its sales to the NHS Charities Together.
Two product lines have been developed so far, the Your Face Mask and Mask of the Day kits, which have been tested to meet World Health Organisation guidelines.
CEO Mr North said: “Wow! Stuff is known for creating the most innovative toys in the world. With the use of face coverings being encouraged by countries around the world, many people still seem a little too self-conscious wearing them in public.
"We thought we could encourage younger generations in particular to feel more comfortable wearing a mask, if they fitted in with their lifestyle and personalities, so we set our inventor team the task. Your Face Masks, and the fashion variant, Mask of the Day, are the result.
“By moving on from the stereotypical clinical look and adding a small touch of creativity and customisability to a serious subject, we feel we can help get more people wearing face coverings and feeling positive about that.”
The kit includes inkjet printable, breathable, 100 per cent cotton sheets with filtration fabric inserts, elasticated ear loops, comfort fit adjustable nose bands and iron-on web adhesive.
