Here’s a novel opportunity to make bees happy and give something back to nature: 100% biodegradable face masks with flower […]
Here’s a novel opportunity to make bees happy and give something back to nature: 100% biodegradable face masks with flower seeds embedded in them, ready for planting.
The woman behind the idea, Marianne de Groot-Pons, graphic designer at Pons Ontwerp visual communication in Utrecht, the Netherlands, says on her website:
“In all the years that I have been working as a graphic designer I have also soiled the earth with designing for printing and packaging, so I wanted to give something back and at the same time the subject ‘Wandering and sinking disposable plastic and the ban on it from 1 July 2021’ is once again in the spotlight.
After weeks of tripping over all the blue disposable masks on the street, I woke up one morning to the idea of a biodegradable face mask with flower seeds in it. Earth happy, bees happy, nature happy, people happy. I sell the mask under the name Marie Bee Bloom. Bloom the world!!”
The mask is made from rice paper and contains flower seeds that are even visible. Its straps are made from pure sheep’s wool. Even the glue used to attach certain parts is made using potato starch and water. This does, nevertheless, make the mask much more fragile than regular disposable masks, as Marianne de Groot-Pons explains herself, reminding would-be buyers that the accessory should be handled with care.
Image Credit: @mariebeebloom via Instagram
Instead of rubber bands, they have soft cords made of pure sheep wool. The flower seeds remain in the mask using a special glue that is made from water and potato starch. And in addition to all the other sustainable materials from which the biodegradable mask is made, even the logo is written in a special sustainable ink.
For best results, these masks need to be buried in the garden or in a large pot. We can of course throw them in the trash and they will decompose on their own in the landfill to which they will be transported, but there most likely they will not have the opportunity to turn these seeds into beautiful flowers.