Face masks that both protect and stand out

Hong Kong-based designer Nina Griffee’s collaboration with Vogmask. [JoongAng Ilbo]

The country has been engulfed by the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), leaving the public with varying levels of apprehension. The face mask fits just about every level. Whether it’s to protect a person from becoming infected, or to protect others in case the person is infected, a mask does the trick. It’s the ultimate one-size-fits-all accoutrement.

Fashion-sensitive people are refusing to choose between looking stylish and being safe. The sun is shining and it’s the best season to show off a sense of style but a careful head-to-toe look is destroyed by a big white disposable mask.

A tourist in Korea wears a fashion mask. [JoongAng Ilbo]

Some people are taking the MERS scare as an opportunity to create a fashion item that’s entirely new.

“I didn’t want to look the same as everyone else,” said Kim Myung-jin, a 24-year-old student in Seoul, who was wearing a black face mask with white patterns on the front on a bus last weekend. “I got it on the Internet for 3,000 won [$2.73] as soon as I heard about MERS. I also heard that these kind of face masks don’t really protect you from the virus but I still wear it because I think it’s safer to wear it than not to. Plus, I think it looks cool. And let’s face it: It’s not like you can wear this every day in Korea.”

Ultra Fashion, a fashion store in Hongdae, western Seoul, has been selling fashion face masks online and offline. Owner Park Bum-il says he’s been seeing an unprecedented hike in sales of fashion face masks including one that looks like an animal’s nose and another that has a mouth printed on it in recent weeks.

“Summer is usually not the time for face masks to be sold in big numbers as they’re more popular in spring and winter,” said Park. “But because of MERS, we are seeing unprecedented sales. Usually during this season, we sell about one or two per day but now we are selling 50 to 60. We’ve been sending more orders to the factory and it’s having a hard time managing the demand.”

Ultra Fashion’s animal fashion mask. Provided by the store

High fashion has seized on infectious diseases like MERS as an inspiration for fashion. During Paris Fashion Week, Chinese fashion designer Masha Ma adorned her models with Swarovski crystal-studded face masks. Another Hong Kong-based designer Nina Griffee, owner of face-painting and body art company Face Slap, introduced a new line of outfits that incorporates face masks during Hong Kong Fashion Week last year. By collaborating with Vogmask, a company that makes filtering masks that protect wearers from ultrafine particles, the designer introduced masks attached by a zipper to shawls, dresses and ponchos.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]

korea joongAng daily

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Face masks that both protect and stand out

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