Judy works as a freelance writer, producing content for major brands like Kraft-Heinz and Nabisco. She always jokes that her work is feast or famine—there’s either plenty to do or none at all. The week before this Masks for Medical Workers in Tampa Bay project began, there was no work on her online platform. She was waking up every day, walking into her craft room, and working on her Quilt Block of the Month project. She felt aimless. There was a major crisis going on, and there was nothing she could safely do to help.
The Million Mask Challenge
On Sunday, March 21st Judy received an email from a sewing pattern maker she follows that described the Million Mask Challenge. Her husband of 26 years was looking over her shoulder at the mask patterns and calls for masks. He said, “They have no idea what they’ve unleashed.” She responded, “Seriously. We have a nation of sewists at home with little to do, and you know we all have more fabric than we’ll use in a lifetime. Give us a task and stand back!”
Googling the challenge, Judy eventually found her way to the Masks for Medical Workers in Tampa Bay Facebook page. When she joined that morning, there were only 30-something members. Now, she notes, there are hundreds.
Joining The Team
Intrigued by and excited to participate in the challenge, Judy was energized by the idea that she could contribute to her local health care providers. She needed some guidance on how to participate, and received great suggestions from the administrators who have stepped up to organize this large project. She feels it’s incredibly helpful to have a place to ask questions.
Sewing for Fashion and Affordability
While Judy may have needed some guidance in mask creation, she is no novice to the art itself. She started sewing when she was 15, albeit under protest. She attended a private high school where girls were required to take Home Economics, including sewing, in 10th grade. Initially, she hated being forced to learn to sew. It seemed unfair that she had to learn just because she was a girl.
She soon changed her tune. At 5’1” tall with a thin build, and a bit of a fashionista, Judy had always found it hard to find great clothes. Home economics introduced her to pattern books for the first time and she realized sewing would allow her to make clothing for herself in any design and color. This was in the mid-80’s, when ready-to-wear clothes were more expensive than they are now. Sewing her own clothes not only gave her access to the latest fashions, but helped her stay on budget.
All-Time Favorite Creation
Her sewing skills really came in handy when she and her husband, who were college sweethearts at UF, were planning their wedding. They were paying for the wedding themselves, and she didn’t have hundreds of dollars (much less the thousands some spend now) for a dress. Plus, with her petite frame, all the dresses she tried on seemed made for women much larger than her. She decided to make her own wedding dress, and it fit perfectly. It had six layers of tulle, she says, and was so light and airy she practically floated down the aisle. It remains her all-time favorite creation.
Creative Costume-Maker
Coming in close second were Halloween costumes she made for her son, who is now 18 and heading to college at UF in the fall. Judy and her son would have a wonderful time going to JoAnn’s and looking through pattern books for his costume of choice. She most treasures the costume she made when he was two. He kept saying he was Mufasa from The Lion King, so she made him a lion costume. The lion mane was made out of a gazillion loops of yarn that had to be sewn into rows. She stayed up half the night finishing it before his Halloween playgroup party the next day, but it was worth it because he was so adorable.
Judy loves that her son has grown up in a world where his mother can make or fix just about anything. She recently received a text that said, “Jack (her son’s baseball teammate) needs you to hem his pants.” She imagines a conversation was going on at school and is proud her son was able to say, “My mom can do that.”
How to Fill an Empty(ing) Nest
That’s not all Judy can do. She also quilts, crochets, loom-knits, cross-stitches, scrapbooks, and does all sorts of paper crafting, including card-making. She has recently started to dabble in junk journaling, hand-lettering, and Bible journaling. Her yarn stash rivals her fabric stash, and is located in multiple rooms in the house. Her family always knows where to find her—in her craft room.
Come fall, however (assuming life is back to somewhat normal) her son will start at UF and she and her husband will be empty-nesters. She’s been spending lots of time reflecting on what life will look like for her, and what her next step will be. She recently completed some online courses and obtained a Certificate in Theology and Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. She feels as if she is starting on a new path.
The Importance of Volunteering
Volunteering will always be a part of her life, though. Judy has used her crafting skills for volunteer projects before—particularly Case for Smiles, an organization that gives bright, fun pillowcases to children who are hospitalized with serious illness. She loved picking out kid-friendly fabric with dinosaurs, or cupcakes, or unicorns, and sewing the pillowcases. She hoped it would make each child’s day a little brighter. Judy plans to sew for more charitable groups in the future.
For now, she is focusing on her work for this group. It is the first sewing group she has ever joined. As a matter of fact, she doesn’t know anyone in her town who sews. She thinks this may be why people are always asking her to mend things. Her only sewing contact is her sister-in-law in Jacksonville. Sometimes they text each other pictures of things they are making. Judy has considered joining a guild, but has not yet done so. She is, however, a member of a few other Facebook groups dedicated to paper crafting and Bible journaling. She finds it fun to be able to communicate with like-minded folks who totally get her crafting obsessions.
Working with a Purpose
This group is special, however, because it has given her purpose—to help protect health care professionals and patients. She knows these masks aren’t a substitute for the N95 masks, but feels they’re certainly better than nothing. She also believes these colorful masks let health care providers know their community cares for them. She’s trying to use really cute fabric to brighten their days just a little. She’s also wishing she had bought more masculine fabric over the years, because she’s afraid the male health care providers will be stuck with a lot of pink.
Anyone Can Help
When Judy sees messages of gratitude and heartfelt requests for more masks, she’s humbled by the idea that simply puttering along on her sewing machine, which she does all the time anyway, could make such an impact on someone’s life. She only wishes she could do more, produce faster. She knows the need is great, and when she can only complete ten masks in a day, she feels like it’s such a drop in the bucket that she shouldn’t even bother. Then she reminds herself that those ten masks probably mean the world to the health care professionals who receive them. And if someone else sews ten, and someone else sews five, the group will meet their goals. She has recruited her husband and her son’s girlfriend to help iron. She tells them, “I’m the only one here who can sew, but anyone can iron!”
In This, We Are All Together
If anyone is interested, Judy says, “Come on in, we’re all nice! Seriously, there are lots of roles to play, so there’s a place for you, even if you don’t sew. We even need cheerleaders, and anyone can do that. After sewing much of every day for over a week, I can start to get tired, emotionally and physically. Little pick-me-up messages go a long way.”
Judy is happy to see so many people pulling together in support of a common goal. She says, “Our nation has been divided for so many years, but in this, we are all together. People who can sew do that. People who can pick up and deliver do that. People who can donate do that. Everyone has a role to play and they are giving it everything they’ve got.”