Image of face masks

Sourdough lungs!

A few weeks into lockdown when flour was hard to come to by were concerned by all of the flour dust that we were breathing in. At that time, a long-standing customer of ours, Catherine, was making scrubs for the NHS. We asked her if she would make us a few face coverings to help us avoid breathing in flour and developing what we fondly called 'sourdough lung'. She of course agreed and asked us to donate the cost of the fabric to the local food bank.

Speedy sewing benefits the food bank

These 'masks' were the prototypes for what we began to sell in the shop way before the mandatory rules were on the horizon. Catherine and her nimble fingers made 20 masks and week and eventually when the government announced that it would become mandatory to wear face coverings in shops demand outstripped or small, hand-made supply within a day of getting them in. We continued to carry out Catherines desire to donate to the food bank and so far we have raised well over £500 since June.

We know that it is not necessary to wear a face mask in shops and public places but it is mandatory to wear a face covering. We ask that all our customers respect our need to keep our staff safe. If you can't or don't want to wear a mask just let us know and we'll do your shopping for you from the shop entrance.

Support your local food bank

Our face mask sales are slowing now so we're winding down asking Catherine to make them with a view to eventually stopping. However, if you still want to support the food bank, they take donations of canned and pre-packaged food and other items direct to their door in Cranmer Bank. They desperately need personal care items and cleaning products most of all at the moment.