How to Choose the Best Cloth Face Mask for You

Any mask is better than no mask to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, and now that everyone and their grandparents are selling cloth face masks, you have options. Tens of thousands of them. (Around 15,000 listings on Etsy alone.) As with regular cloth face masks, the key is to create multiple layers and a good seal. We consulted a range of authorities, from fashion designers and textile experts to aerosol scientists and infectious disease specialists, to zero in on the small but crucial design details that have an outsize impact on how a mask fits and feels, and—by extension—how it helps prevent person-to-person viral transmission.