Poll: Face Mask Fashion

[jesse_the_k]

Thanks to sara, I watched some excellent Baroque chamber music. The performers, as is customary in the U.S., wore formal clothing: a black suit with white shirt and black tie; a black floor-length dress. All performers wore matte black face masks. Which raises a vital question -- how should we coordinate our mask colors with the rest of our outfits?

Poll #25099 Face Mask Fashion

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 30

View Respondents

Formal Mask Wear: color choices

View Answers

Black
13 (43.3%)

White
1 (3.3%)

Same as shoes
2 (6.7%)

Same as upper body outer layer
9 (30.0%)

I'm commenting with a better idea
5 (16.7%)

Casual Mask Wear: color choices

View Answers

Coordinate with other accessories
21 (70.0%)

Whatever I can find
20 (66.7%)

Pull a new surgical mask from the box
6 (20.0%)

Ticky box
7 (23.3%)

Comments

[sasha_feather]

Formal mask: silver sparkles

[jesse_the_k]

Absolutely!

There are many possibilities here

[azurelunatic]

The formal mask color is matched to the tie color of the event: black or white.

For formal events that don't specify a tie color, a skin-color mask is usually fine, including masks with your own face printed on them, but only if they're your face in a normal-looking morph; comedy distortions or making-faces masks are strictly for casual use. Own-face masks with or without makeup could be matched to upper face makeup/lack of makeup.

Belovedest's homemade business-casual mask is khaki to match their work pants. An aloha print would also work, but to coordinate with their upper body outer layer rather than clash with it.

Surgical masks go with everything.

[sara]

See, I find "own face" or mouth looking masks of any kind very uncomfortably uncanny valley.

[wordweaverlynn]

Me too.

[jesse_the_k]

Completely creepy, because it's partially real, but never moves.

[julian]

Formal mask: black with restrained sparkles.

I have a wide variety of interestingly colored masks, and I do *try* and color coordinate. (Sometimes I fail.)

[jesse_the_k]

Absent color coordination, I think the default should be white, not black. Because at least in the U.S., we've made this decision in re: socks. Although maybe there's a class distinction there -- middle class default socks (at least on MyGuy) are black, while working class socks are white tubes purchased in 6-packs.

[tei]

Oooh. So, in my orchestra string players are asked to wear black masks, though for the first few shows some didn't have one yet and wore blue surgical or black with a logo; THAT SAID, I checked "same as shoes" because I just realized that an all-black outfit with coloured shoes and mask would be an excellent look.

You are correct :,)

[jesse_the_k]

Yep!

[melannen]

Obviously they match the pocket square.

For non-suit-based formal wear, it should tastefully coordinate with other accessories, if any.

(Actually earlier this year I was told a friend's fiancee was planning to wear a ratty used surgical mask to their wedding, and she didn't know if he was planning to wear his blue suit or his black one, so I whipped up two reversible masks in navy and black w navy and black based prints for the reverse. She said they were perfect! Hers was sequined It was not a formal wedding though, it was outdoors w five people.

(The correct answer is probably probably that you should not attend formal events during a pandemic. But it will be useful to know for after!)

[jesse_the_k]

pocket square is indeed an excellent answer for those sporting them.

every wedding should be outdoors right now.

[grrlpup]

"Same as upper body outer layer" seems like it would usually be right, but if there's a cummerbund involved surely it should match that!

[jesse_the_k]

I grew up with a cummerbund-forward family, and you are completely correct.

(I did wonder why my father got to wear this lovely garment but my mother didn't.)

[sara]

I have made a LOT of masks this pandemic (no, more than that). I make them in the most fun prints I can because everything is SO SHITTY that we need all the fun we can get. If they also match someone's socks or something that's great but not obligatory.

Gov. Inslee has been rocking some beautiful sashiko masks that someone is obvs making him and I must say his taste in masks is much better than his taste in neckties (but he should not wear a checked shirt, a sashiko mask, and a patterned tie together, that is too much.

[azurelunatic]

That is much too much.

[jesse_the_k]

Yikes! I believe checked shirts require bolo ties.

Thanks for putting a name to that beautiful white-on-indigo embroidery!

[emceeaich]

I think for formal-wear, a mask can be a statement piece, possibly in lieu of statement jewelry.

[jesse_the_k]

I spent many happy minutes browsing Etsy yesterday for mask jewelry. Today I realized that anything that's pinned to the mask defeats its purpose. /o\

[sylvaine]

I'm so here for EVERYONE's ideas in the comments! :D I also think formalwear masks could be fun and coordinated if you get some people wearing white and some wearing black and then make a pattern with the people. Although that's maybe for a slightly more casual/humorous formal event. :D

[jesse_the_k]

Coordination could be tricky!

Formal maskwear

[vass]

I misread your subject header as 'Face Mask Fandom', which is a whole different (and also interesting) post!

Traditionally, it's expected that one's mask should match one's tail (and, optionally, socks or booties.) The exceptions are tortoiseshells, calicos, and torbies, whose mask and tail do not have to match so long as they're in the same overall colour scheme.

For humans, with melannen's last line as an obvious preamble:

I think it depends how formal, and the occasion, but same general rules as accessories (bags, shoes, hats, hair ornaments, pocket squares, ties.) Which, of course, varies by gender, class, ethnicity and region, role at the event, etc etc.

Edit: the other main rule is length and cut: regardless of the level of formality, the mask should cover both mouth and nose, and fit securely with negative ease. For incognito occasions, it should also cover the eye area (except for holes for visibility, in which situation the above-nose area of the mask should have its own lower seam and ties, to avoid venting air from the mouth/nose region.

Re: Formal maskwear

[jesse_the_k]

I appreciate your reporting from feline world HQ!

[agoodwinsmith]

I haven't voted because I can't make up my mind.

However, the times I have seen a woman wear a mask that matches her dress, it looks the like the dress is attempting to hush her up. Black is very common in Canada for both male and female, but I think that is because the first masks were made hastily for some dreadful funerals, and the black kind of stuck for "serious" occasions.

I have a variety of colours and patterns, and it is usually my whim that decides what I wear. I have favourite clothes and favourite masks - and they don't always form an ensemble.

[jesse_the_k]

Great point about the solid sweep of black -- in fact that was the impression I got from the linked chamber music presentation. I feared that tentacles would be showing up at any moment.

[j00j]

I think any of these are fine, but I’m enjoying exploring more adventurous prints on masks. I’ve usually worn mostly solid colors so masks have been a low stakes way to branch out. I think for formal I’d lean towards a different color than suit or dress, coordinating with shoes or pocket square or whatever. Maybe sparkles, yes.

[jesse_the_k]

So masks have been your gateway drug to wild ties? ;)

[j00j]

Maybe! I like the idea of wearing ties but haven’t worn them except for costume party type occasions... and it’s especially hard to envision in the present highly informal wardrobe...

[peachpai]

I've seen some really good mask fashion around my hospital. There was a doctor that had a mask that masked his extremely fashionable suit. A dad pushing a stroller had an interesting quilted mask in bold colors. I hear mask charms are a thing now too, but I haven't seen any yet. Maybe for formal wear dressing up the ties with some sparkle would be nice!

[jesse_the_k]

Mask charms are indeed available, although my searching mainly returns "little charms in the shape of a mask" and not "dangly things to attach to a face mask." Attaching the latter would be a challenge: tie tacks or brooch pins would impair the vapor barrier. Aha! magnetic hijab pins would work quite well.

Mask chains seem to be mostly inspired by lanyard trends, a market that dramatically increased after 9/11 security theater required so many folks to wear badges.

[agoodwinsmith]

I was sent a free item from the place I order my masks, and I finally figured out it was for dangling my mask on my chest. It is a pretty thing, but I am really squicked out by the idea. I do take my mask off in the car between errands, and I do put the same mask back on for the next errand. Having my sweaty-breath mask bopping on my chest is just a no. Also: ties and soup - masks and soup.

I mostly try to only unhook one ear between errands, so I am not handling it too much, but in a car the flapping mask tends to obscure my view to the side - no.

I'll try ti figure out something to do with the lanyardy thing, but I don't wear lanyards or necklaces or even loop-necked aprons because having something pressing on those vertebrae gives me such a headache.

[jesse_the_k]

As far as cars go, I see drivers hooking one loop on their rear-view mirrors. Seems suboptimal for visibility.

Headaches are so peculiar! I get them from wind on my ears (a partial justification for my scores of hats).