Perfect Scented Mask Protector Out of Reused Materials

No one likes to get stuck without a mask and have to walk back to the car to find one or, to get stuck digging a mask out of the reaches of your pocket to find it's been folded and gone fuzzy with pocket lint, bleah! This is such a simple way to keep an extra mask clean and pristine in your pocket or purse while giving it a pleasant scent of your own choosing.

"Extra" brand gum makes a 35 stick pack that comes in a plastic flip top box. Keep the box. Reuse!

Straw- the plastic kind that you wish you could recycle after you bring home your soft drink (now you can).

Lighter or candle to heat your straw ends.

Pliers to squish the heated ends together.

Straight pin or needle to hold in the pliers to hold in the flame to get it hot to poke holes in the straw.

Small piece of paper towel or cotton ball to hold scent in straw pak.

Scent source- this can be an extract, essential oil or even a tea (dry) keep in mind you don't want it to be too strong.

"Extra" brand gum makes a 35 stick pack that comes in a plastic flip top box. These boxes smell like the gum that came in them for a while and are the perfect size for a disposable mask folded in half, they even hold most of my handmade and fabric masks. The boxes can be easily washed and would probably do alright on the top shelf of the dishwasher (sorry I don't have one so I can't test that). The boxes are easily decorated and labeled with stickers and markers so everyone can keep their own backup mask.

I have gotten some of these gum boxes from a friend and they didn't smell wonderful anymore so I made a scent pak, the advantage of this is I get to choose whatever scent I want. I've used mint tea, wintergreen extract and a calming oil mix. Oh, and cinnamon- that wasn't as successful as it burned my eyes but it's easy enough to change the scent pak too.

Take your straw, warm the end with the flame just until it starts to look soft then squish it flat with your pliers, check to see if it sealed- the seal doesn't have to be perfect but it should be closed enough that the contents don't fall out.

Measure your straw against the box, cut to length and poke pinholes along the length of the straw.

Fill the straw with your cottonball or paper towel, put a drop (one) of oil or extract on it, stuff it into the straw and repeat the melt and pinch on the end.

Fold your mask to fit in the box- usually a gentle fold around your finger in the center will be about right. Place your scent pak into the box and close the box. Your mask will be clean, crisp and nice smelling the next time you need it.

Enjoy.