Sensible and chic: The $185 luxury face mask from Belgium

Belgian designers are turning medical masks into chic accessories

Published: July 26, 2020 08:54 Reuters and compiled by Balaram Menon, Senior Web Editor

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Take a face mask, adorn it with jewels or attach it to a long, flowing neck scarf. What have you got? A pandemic precaution, yes, but also a luxury fashion statement that can cost anywhere from 75 to 160 euros ($87-185). Above: Jewellery designer Olivia Hainaut adjusts pearls on a mannequin wearing a decorated protective mask in her workshop in Brussels. Image Credit: REUTERS

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As mask-wearing becomes part of everyday defences against the coronavirus, Belgian designers are turning medical masks into chic accessories. Above: A model poses as she wears a "scarfmask" by The Wolf Belgium, in a store in Brussels. Image Credit: REUTERS

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Brussels-based stylist Aude De Wolf has created a "scarf mask" that uses linen, cashmere and other high-quality materials to combine masks with luxurious shawls. Image Credit: REUTERS

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"I was inspired by my mother because she doesn't like her neck," De Wolf, who has already sewn some 1,500 free medical masks for hospitals, told Reuters from her workshop. Image Credit: REUTERS

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"You can slip the mask off when you're in the car and slip it back on in the shops ... You could say it's a luxury product," she said of the masks, which she is selling for 160 euros ($185) each. Image Credit: REUTERS

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Haut-couture garment and accessory maker Olivia Hainaut (pictured) has turned her skills to creating masks with sequins, jewels and other flamboyant touches, such as silk flowers. They sell from 75 euros, depending on the work and materials involved. Image Credit: REUTERS

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"These are not masks for everyday wear, perhaps for a party or a wedding ... the idea is to bring some joy to something that is very sad," she said of the pandemic. Image Credit: REUTERS

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Designer Olivia Hainaut sews a gold-plated clover on a protective mask in her workshop in Brussels. Image Credit: REUTERS

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