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7 DIY Plague Masks You Make At Home For Halloween

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Hands down this is going to be one of the most popular Halloween costumes for 2020 but what is going to make your Plague mask stand out from the rest? Sure you could buy a plague mask or you could DIY something amazing!

And do you want to know a little bit more about the mask before you make your own plague mask for your costume? I had to do some research as to be honest I didn’t really know the history of the plague mask before writing this Halloween post.

A plague doctor was a physician who treated victims of the bubonic plague. In times of epidemics, these physicians were specifically hired by towns where the plague had taken hold. Since the city was paying their salary, they treated everyone, wealthy or poor. Wikipedia

So why the beaks? These doctors were all about the weird stuff, they believed herbs would cure them, so the beak was filled with herbs as if to “filter” the disease before reaching the mouth of the wearer. This mask is very popular in Venice and is worn at the yearly festivals. It’s not so fun now though is it.

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The costume is usually credited to Charles de Lorme, a physician who catered to the medical needs of many European royals during the 17th century, including King Louis XIII and Gaston d’Orléans, son of Marie de Médici.

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New Year’s Resolutions for Cross Stitchers

As the year comes to a close, you might be thinking about things you want to do, or do differently, in your life in the next year, and your crafting life should definitely be part of whatever resolutions or goals you set.

I feel like one of the most common goals for crafters of all varieties, not just cross stitchers, is to be more organized. Earlier this year I shared a post about organizing cross stitch supplies, and in the vault you’ll find ideas for storing embroidery floss in particular, as well as this post about how one cross stitcher uses a Caboodles box to keep her projects contained.

You might also want to finish projects that you’ve started but abandoned in the past, or to let go of some things that you know you’ll never finish (if you need help decluttering your craft supplies, I’ve got an ebook to help!).

Making more time for your crafts is another good goal, and may be especially important if you’re trying to avoid the news or social media. Start small, with scheduling in an extra 10 or 15 minutes a day, or declare that after supper is craft time, or whatever you need to do to hold that time for yourself. Doing something like a 100 day project is an easy way to commit to working on a craft regularly.

Another resolution you might consider is learning new skills or trying more difficult projects. I’m guilty of staying in the beginner zone when it comes to cross stitch for a really long time, but writing about it here has inspired me to try bigger, more colorful and more difficult projects, which is the challenging kind of fun. If there’s a project you’ve always wanted to do but were afraid to try, make this coming year the time you do it.

And if you are still learning the basics of cross stitch, check out my learn to cross stitch guide over at Our Daily Craft.

Do you have a cross stitch related resolution or something you want to learn this year? I’d love to hear about it!