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How Long Until Facemasks Go Designey? Here are Some Contenders

By Rain Noe - May 15, 2020

If COVID-19 outbreaks persist and masks become seasonal, I'm guessing folks will get tired of wearing cut-up T-shirts and Etsy projects on their faces. And a subset of people will want something designey, so there's an opportunity here. What might they look like?

These AirWaves concepts are entries from a 2013 internal design competition at frog's Shanghai office, according to CNET. They're meant to contain technology that monitors pollution levels and shares the data with other wearers. If these were real, I could see the tech crowd picking these up.

These are industrial designer Michael Soleo's take on the DHH Mask Project, which aims to make masks that allow lip reading by the hearing impaired. And a side benefit of the design is that people's facial expressions become intelligible. If Soleo was producing these, I'd buy one.

by Michael Soleo

Of course, all it might take is for an existing mask manufacturer to start expanding their market. This Pitta Mask by Arax is a currently available pollution mask from Japan, aimed at the fashion-minded set.

What I'm not looking forward to seeing, is when the luxury fashion brands start coming out with theirs. I can already picture what the LV one will look like.

o

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How Long Until Facemasks Go Designey? Here are Some Contenders

taak 13

9 months ago

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You're creative Rain, why don't you just make the mask that you want? The only special equipment used in this one was a sewing needle sized drill bit. Also, anyone know of some group/forum where difficult-to-make diy masks are being documented?

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Jacob Breinholt

9 months ago

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It has already happened, amigo-- https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/face-masks-trend-resale-market/

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Rain Noe

I’m a lapsed industrial designer. I was born in NYC and figured I’d die there, but a few years ago I abandoned New York to live on a farm in the countryside with my wife. We have six dogs.