My husband, Lukas, and I have always been crafters, but we had no idea how useful that skill would be during a pandemic.

We started out making gifts — mostly home décor items. Then, early during the pandemic, a friend who knew that I grew up quilting and sewing asked if I could take part of her old Pikachu hoodie and turn it into a face mask. She loved the finished product and put a picture of it on Facebook; once our talents were out, we started making masks for friends, co-workers, and even some of our patients at Cincinnati Eye Institute, where Lukas and I work, as a surgery scheduler and as a technician and scribe, respectively.

We decided to turn it into a side business and started Okay Crafts in April.

Crafting the masks

After work, we usually go into our basement — or “craft dungeon” — to work on orders. We have two IKEA desks down there, and Lukas sits at one tracing and cutting out pieces of fabric, which he will give to me at the other desk. There, I use my serger (a special sewing machine used for seam work) to securely attach the layers of fabric together, then hand them back to Lukas to sew elastic loops on the sides. In the last year, we have made more than 800 masks, using 70 to 100 yards of fabric.

The two of us find a lot of joy in making things for others. Some of our favorite masks have been those with references to TV shows like “The Office” or movies like “Lilo and Stitch.”

We have gotten requests from people all over the country, specifically after enthusiasm on an “I Love Sunflowers” Facebook group. We usually take orders through our website, www.okaycrafts.com , or Facebook.

As makers, we regularly have to listen to what people want, or need, for their various commissions, such as what designs they like, what makes the masks comfortable to wear, what features make the most sense in terms of functionality. This has had the added benefit of making us even more receptive to the feedback we receive at work, from patients, coworkers, and managers.

Working at the clinic

Lukas was the first of us to get a job at Cincinnati Eye Institute. About 8 months after Lukas was hired for CEI’s glaucoma department, I started looking for new work. It was actually Lukas who pointed out that I already knew most of the ophthalmic conditions (after helping him to study), so after applying and completing my own training course, I also acquired a position at CEI, in the anterior segment department.

Now that we are getting back into a more “normal” clinic routine, I am so happy that we started making masks about 11 months ago. It has truly given us a unique way to relate to our patients. Usually, when they see us walk in with our fun masks on, decked out in colorful or intricate patterns, it gives us a way to engage with them, build rapport, and initiate meaningful conversations. OP