FACE MASKS: THE NEW STATUS QUO?

The coronavirus pandemic has changed the world in what seems like the blink of an eye. Depending on where you live, those changes might have come for you sooner rather than later. Some of these changes will most likely be temporary or they have inspired businesses and also our daily routine in a good way to continue life in new form.

One of those changes is the increasing need to help prevent transmission of the virus by paying more attention to hygiene, including wearing a face mask.

A tiny piece of fabric which we put in front of our face has created a massive debate globally. Whether it was the point of view in terms of medical aspects or even it got to the point being a political statement.

We want to take a look at a culture where wearing a face-mask is as normal as putting on your shoes in the morning. Japan. Why do Japanese pay so much more attention to hygiene and keep distance to each other as well as why the hell they wear face-masks when most parts of the world think wearing a face-mask is unnatural and even creates conflict in communication? Many people in western culture think face-masks in Asia are worn because of the air-pollution but this is not the case at all.

In Japan a huge amount of people living together in density and therefore want to keep themselves healthy by avoiding transmission of droplets especially during flu season by wearing usually throw-away face-masks. But this has changed now, and the demand on more sustainable and eco-friendly washable face-masks has grown interest globally.

Japan is a country where face masks have long been worn in order to inhibit the spread of germs during cold and flu season – a form of hygiene, as well as for protection against airborne allergens and irritants. Beyond their practical uses, though, face masks have also found their place as a fashion item in their own right in Japan. At some point face-masks are also seen as sexual appealing as the focus lies on the eyes of the wearer.

It all seems like that face-masks are here to stay. At least as a fashion statement.

So, what do you need to know about face masks? Well, basically there are just two types: those that protect you and others – the FFP2 and FFP3 masks that you’ve probably been hearing about – and those that just protect others by stopping the spread of droplets. And it’s this type of mask that we suggest you to be wearing.

It’s important to wear a healthy, skin-friendly and washable material over your face, which is why we’ve collaborated with revolutionary textile producers from Italy, Japan and Switzerland to create the SHOHEI face-mask collection.

One of them is PYRATES with which we have teamed up for the SHOHEI Smart Mask range, whose PYRATEX smart fabrics are plant-based intelligent fibers which have UV protection 50UPF, high degree of breathability and moisture optimization.

Another one is the SHOHEI Hydro Mask in cooperation with SHOELLER textiles which as well are EU certified textiles, specifically created for COVID-19 prevention of droplets and consist of two layers – one is hydrophilicon inside and hydrophobic on outside.

Our highlight are the face-masks made of Japanese premium transparent textiles. LUCID face-mask & KORN face-mask. Our recommendation if you want to wear a mask and breath as usual including the Hydro Mask.

Click through to discover our face-mask collection.

BE SMART - WEAR A MASK

SHOHEI
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Text by P. Marcus Browne