Wearing a face mask doesn’t have to be a boring civic duty. Cool kids in Japan have been wearing masks as fashion accessories for years. Add some style and express yourself with these masks and PPE. Don’t forget to wash them after each use.
On the 40th Anniversary of DEVO’s Energy Dome, the band is releasing The Dome with an attached clear face shield. The shield attaches with velcro, and you can buy the shield separately if you already have your Energy Dome. This holy totem will now not only recirculate the energy escaping out of the top of your head, but keep your bodily fluids where they belong. Available for pre-order. If you’re not the type to seek out attention, there are also face masks. Duty Now for the Future is especially meaningful right now.
The Gay Hedonist shop on Etsy has a collection of masks featuring gay icons illustrated with an 80s punk paint-splatter effect. Options include Oscar Wilde, Grace Jones, our favorites–Divine and Bette Davis, and maybe one too many featuring Boy George.
This site features the work of more than a dozen artists, primarily on T-shirts and mugs. The masks they do have are awesome. You will love Glen Hanson’s caricatures of Sunset Boulevard the Golden Girls, and Endora. And don’t forget a gift for your favorite leather Daddy. Richie Rick’s adorable pups and Vikxel’s mean girls socially distancing masks will make your day.
Merchbar’s site states, “Every item we sell is guaranteed 100% authentic, official merchandise. We work with hundreds of labels, merch companies, retailers and artists from around the world to bring you the best licensed products.” Some of the artists are even donating profits from their masks to charity. So you can feel good about yourself while sporting Lionel Ritchie’s moustache, or The Wu-Tang Clan logo.
OBEY finds their “balance between community and commerce” with these fashionable accessories that help provide masks to people who can’t afford them. For every mask you buy, OBEY will donate two. You can also add an additional donation of masks to your cart. The masks are subtle, made with the clothing brand’s simple fabrics, not printed with the OBEY giant or Obama HOPE illustrations. We have found some black market OBEY Giant masks, but we love Shepard Fairey and would never fuck him over like that.
There is a mask for everyone at Redbubble, and by purchasing them you support the independent artists who designed them. Some artists, like Karen Lynch, present original works, while others are inspired by themes from popular books, comics, and music, like the hilarious 90s throwback Down with PPE. You can disguise yourself as Homer Simpson, Bob Dobbs, the Cheshire Cat, or Butthead. There are even masks for anti-maskers condemning the governor and making excuses for even wearing one. It doesn’t look like the artists and designers get licensing from their subjects, but I haven’t found any copyright issues in articles about the company.
Rockabilia states that its merch is 100% licensed. Rock out with masks from artists like The Damned, Alice Cooper, and Digital Underground. You might want to avoid the FEAR and Biohazard masks, depending on the message you’re trying to send.
This site offers a variety of cool masks, with a Salvador Dali ‘stache, art deco, tiki, Deadhead, and retro designs. there are masks with animals, dinosaurs, artworks, pithy sayings, a Redd Kross version, and my favorite, from Night of the Living Dead.
You have probably seen pictures of people wearing these masks and wondered where to get them. You will definitely get double-takes, and hopefully will not be confronted with people asking you to don a mask. Unless you are a practical joker who likes the big reveal.
The Shining Mask from BLVCKFLY
Pay tribute to the OG social distancers with this mask decorated with the iconic carpet pattern from the Overlook Hotel. BLVCKFLY’s ETSY shop also carries designs with the carpet pattern from Room 237, Aubrey Beardsley illustrations, and Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasure’s album cover. There are some pretty cool throw pillows in the shop as well.
Sonic Youth is selling a mask and T-shirt bundle decorated with the cover from their thirteenth studio album, Sonic Nurse. What could be more perfect? Proceeds will be donated to The Brooklyn Community Bail Fund, Bed Stuy Strong, and ActBlue: AOC’s Covid Relief Fund. You get both items for the low, low price of only $35! Seriously, though, that’s a really good deal. Shipping will be delayed due to Corona. Ironic.
Finally, here are some low-cost masks, cute masks for kids, a high-performance sports mask, a gorgeous and pricy designer mask, a mask that lets you sip drinks, and clear masks for lipreading or showing off your gorgeous smile. The Punk Museum, founded by our own Tequila Mockingbird, has partnered with Martin Atkins and Maggie Ehrig to produce awesome masks that say STAY THE FUCK INSIDE.
