The mask of fashion

The face masks or pollution masks, one would assume are worn to ward off, what else, the ills of pollution, right? And it is usually white in color, held on by two bands around the ears, covering the nose and mouth. There is nothing fashionable about these masks as they just serve the purpose of protecting.

Well, Hong Kong and China, who are basically brand crazy, have crazily, turned this small pollution protector also into a fashion statement. Designer face masks and being made by some of the biggest brands of the world!

Almost all across SE Asia, people are now seen donning multicolored cotton masks with Nike Swooshes, Winnie the pooh prints or floral patterns. More than a necessity, it has been turned into a must-have fashion accessory. Even haute couture houses and high-end fashion brands are reportedly coming out with designs to combat the plague-in style.  So now there are masks using denim, some with smile and pout icons, in reds and yellows and all hues of colors.  Some are nutty enough to embellish these masks with beads but this is strictly for that glamorous evening cocktail. There are masks with even Swarovski stones, dangling beads and rhinestones. It’s a different issue altogether that these ‘designer’ creations do not meet World Health Organization standards for filtering out particles the size of 0.3 microns.

Does one call this being creative or more proof of the world going batty?