An Icelandic designer who goes by the name ‘Ýrúrarí’, real name Yr Johannsdottir, has taken the practice of producing and wearing a face mask to a whole new level with her knitted face masks.
The goal behind her unusual designs, which often include scary tongues or fangs isn’t to stop airborne droplets in their tracks, instead she hopes her designs will encourage people to abide by the social distancing rules.
Johannsdottir said ‘The idea is that the masks would be ‘scary’ because of the rule of keeping the distance,’ according to Timeslive.
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Mother mouth and her sprouts 🌱 swipe for details 👀 #mask #fashionforbankrobbers #fiberart #growth
Ýrúrarí knits the masks herself from a small studio apartment in the industrial area of Reykjavik, with the most elaborate of designs taking upwards of 10 hours to create.
This isn’t the first time Ýrúrarí has turned to abstract designs to get her message across. Two years ago she designed a line of sweatshirts that featured a variety of tongues and mouths, which represented ‘confusing feelings that come with life.’
Ýrúrarí learned how to knit at the age of 9, as most Icelandic children are taught the skill at school.
‘I got strangely obsessed with knitting … I was always reading Donald Duck comics and knitting at the same time,’ she said.
Unfortunately, Ýrúrarí doesn’t plan on mass producing her unusual face masks despite them becoming extremely popular on social media.
‘I don’t want to make too many either, I want them to just be like they are for the moment I made them.’
Image credit: Instagram/ @Ýrúrarí
