JCK managing editor Melissa Bernardo and I have a new little hobby in quarantine—direct messaging each other covetable nonmedical face masks seen on Instagram.
We’ve most recently been cooing over jewelry designer Irene Neuwirth’s house-made masks, which use gorgeous Liberty of London printed textiles. The cotton styles feel crisp and posh, in a Kate Middleton–preppy way. Each new batch of masks announced on Instagram sells out in what feels like—and what may actually be—minutes.
After nearly four months of quarantine, I’ve bought, worn, loved (and, well, loathed) several masks. The most comfortable being these simple printed ones from Etsy seller Creation Maridam.
But now I’m contemplating a mask with a little flair, one that speaks to my love of sparkly gemstones but is also well-made and will last through dozens of wash cycles!
Fortunately, masks featuring gemstone graphics are cropping up everywhere. The style is a natural for jewelry lovers like me, but also for fine jewelry retailers, who the CDC recommends wear masks when interacting with consumers (a guideline that goes for all retail workers, in fact).
Stylish and useful, such masks make perfect “welcome back” staff gifts for employees returning to work after long lockdowns.
Greenwich St. Jewelers in downtown Manhattan debuted beautiful masks printed with clusters of diamonds, rubies, amethysts, and other stones that also fundraise for a good cause. One hundred percent of the proceeds from the limited-edition diamond- and colored stone–print masks, which started at $30 a pop, benefit @colorofchange, the largest online racial justice organization.
I’m also loving the gemstone-print masks from Hungarian designer Beatrice Matiash, whose growing collection of $20 masks for her Tashka by Beatrice line includes white and black models with ear loops that feature a vibrant rainbow of colored stones. The washable, nonmedical masks sell out routinely, she wrote via email, but restock quickly.
“We’re living in uncertain and dark moments in time,” Matiash says. “Our COVID gem masks won’t hide that fact, but they will project a bright, colorful distraction, and doesn’t that put a smile on your face?”
Can’t argue with that.
Top: Tashka by Beatrice Diamond Cluster mask, $20 (image courtesy of Tashka by Beatrice)
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