Beicology: Will Beijing Fashionistas Flock to Buy These Blinged-Out Pollution Masks?
The haze has been heavy lately, and we all, of course, know what that means: we should be strapping on air quality masks to ensure our lungs stay nice and pink. So why do so many of us not heed such sound advice, and instead venture out into the soup with any protection? The discomfort of many masks can frequently be a factor, along with simply forgetting to make the precaution part of our routine. But chicer Beijingers have more aesthetic concerns, worrying that bulky pale masks will clash with their ensembles.
Enter MeHow, a new mask company based out of Shenzhen looking to make lung protection trendy by way of flashy extensions in the shapes of butterflies, wingtips, and other bold molds. You've likely seen their ads splattered over the walls of various Beijing subway stations recently, prompting us at the Beijinger to wonder just how much potential such extravagant masks have in our increasingly fashion-forward capital.
After speaking to a handful of designers and fashion writers, the consensus was less than enthusiastic, to say the least. Julia Liang, who blogs about fashion and travel at Heels On the Go, admits that MeHow is on to something with the notion of trendier masks, explaining: "If it were up to me, if I absolutely have to wear a mask, I'd choose something more stylish and different than a mask we'd buy at the convenience store that's cheap-looking."
And while Liang can see the appeal in that, she is also quick to add: "There's a fine line between stylish and tacky, and these seem tacky to me. The thing about style, you want to make a statement. You want people to look at you and say 'Oh, she's got style.' But at the same time, you don't want people to look at you and go, 'Wow, that's too weird.'"
Fashion vlogger Adrianna Wang (who uses the alias Mulan or can be found on Weibo as @the木兰show) was all the more adamant in that regard, saying the MeHow masks "don't look good at all," before going adding, "I don't know what designers they hired. If they don't have a background in fashion design, and think what they're doing is creative ..."
Her main gripe with MeHow is its eye-popping patterns, which she deems to be an eyesore. "You don't wear a mask on its own, you're not naked while wearing it; it has to go with the rest of your outfit," Wang says, adding: "I don't like the pattern, it doesn't look fashionable, it doesn't inspire you to put it together with another outfit. It just looks like a picture you Googled off the internet ... these days, if you want to wear something on a daily basis, it's better to make things simpler."
But for Elsbeth van Paridon, founder and editor of the China fashion-focused Temper Magazine, the MeHow masks, as overly flashy as they may be, at least skirt a cardinal fashion sin in her eyes: being bland. "Stylish or not, it is a statement ... I do think that the pollution masks have become a staple wardrobe item. And when it comes to staples, you either go big or go home," she says, before even applauding the butterfly design as a metaphor for nature vs. pollution. She adds: "I'm a proponent. What constitutes a stylish mask? A stylish mask is one you own, I don't care if you wear Big Bird on your face, if you own it, it's style.
Elisabeth Koch, a renowned Beijing milliner who has kept a close eye on fashion trends in the capital throughout her decade-long stay here, agrees with Paridon, to an extent at least. "The first masks we saw on the street looked like one had just stepped out of a hospital," Koch points out, before pointing to more aesthetically pleasing masks designed by Plastered 8 for Vogmask, or Cambridge Mask Co.'s colorful designs, as a natural progression for appearance-conscious Beijingers. "Now I see these MeHow masks, with sparkles and sequins, embroidery and beads. There’s a vast market for masks in China, so this is fantastic, why not? Although they are niche, a niche in China can be huge!"
Still, Koch couldn't quite reconcile some of her concerns with MeHow's over-the-top design, weighing pros and cons again and again, saying: "I still wonder how functional these MeHow masks are. I don't see any valves or filters on the sides. And I also question if they are indeed comfortable and what the price point is. Masks are typically things that get lost like gloves, so price should play a role. I absolutely welcome these fun, glamorous, MeHow masks even if just to add some more glitter and sparkle to the streets. They’ll make people who see them smile. But for me personally, I’ll stick to the Cambridge Mask Co.’s cheerful, happy, comfortable, and functional pieces."
Wang has even greater functionality doubts about MeHow, raising points about both the fitting (or lack thereof) and the material, which she feels is subpar and that the company is trying to cover up with gaudy butterfly outlines.
We at True Run Media had similar concerns, prompting us to order one of the MeHow masks and see how it looked and felt. Priced at a staggering RMB 334.50, it arrived at our office a few days after we ordered it. Andy Peñafuerte III, an editor at beijingkids magazine and the most dapper dude in our company by far, placed the MeHow on his face and ... didn't know what to make of it at first.
"I'd wear it to a party, I guess," he said after seeing what the gleaming blue mask, complete with outstretched wings, looked like in the mirror. He felt the mask was too festive-looking for daily use, like wearing it to and from work. When we stepped outside his glasses quickly fogged up, a bad sign that there's little to no seal and that air was leaking in and out. He had trouble fiddling with the strap's beads to make the mask fit properly, and even after that it still didn't seem to form a legitimate seal – crucial to any PM2.5 mask's functionality.
His verdict, in the end: "It's only a novelty product."
And that's a shame, at least according to Liang, the fashion and travel blogger, who still sees promise in the idea, if it could be executed with greater precision and forethought.
"I'd maybe want one that would match my outfit, but a butterfly won't match most outfits," she says, explaining she'd instead want a lush pink shade in the summer or a muted grey for winter. If more mask designers could come around to that viewpoint, she thinks they'd have greater success. "I could see the market for that for some girls, not everybody. If they could make a more mature version for the office lady, and a cuter version for school girls, then that could work."
Check out the MeHow website here.
More stories by this author here.
Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle
Instagram: mullin.kyle
Photos: MeHow, Mitchell Pe Masilun, Kyle Mullin
