In the ongoing battle against the coronavirus, we’ve all heard about the shortage of PPE—the personal protective equipment necessary for frontline healthcare workers, grocery store clerks, and first responders fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Stepping up to assist in the production of both medical-grade and non-medical masks and gowns are many fashion brands (like Brooks Brothers, Nike, and New Balance), most of which have completely shut down their regular production. Denver’s fashion community is also answering the call by producing additional PPE for the city’s under-resourced hospitals and medical professionals. Read on to learn about the local fashion manufacturers working to protect Denver’s frontline.

Manus Supply mask production

With just about a year under its belt, Manus Supply launched its own campaign to assist in making medical-grade and cloth masks. On a normal day, this one-stop shop for fashion design and production would work with clients to create custom looks or coordinate small-scale manufacturing for emerging and existing independent brands (check out Colorado’s own Allison Nicole and Glenn + Glenn, both of which have worked with Manus Supply).

For its COVID-19 efforts, Manus will be making 1,000 medical-grade, carbon-filter masks, which will be produced in-house, and another 1,000 cloth masks that volunteers will sew. The response to Manus’s program has been so successful that the company has attracted volunteers from New York City to Los Angeles, and is slated to make an additional 1,000 cloth masks for the general public. Manus is donating all material and labor for this project, so if you would like to help support the company’s efforts, go to manussupply.co to donate. Manus Supply, Altieri Studios, 1 Galapago Street, 720-347-3487

Kastlfel face mask

Like Manus Supply, Kastlfel takes a lifecycle approach to designing and producing its apparel products. As makers of specialty tees, tanks, and hoodies for men, women, and kids, Kastlfel’s focus is on sustainable manufacturing practices and eco-friendly printing services. For their Rise Up and Lock Down fundraising campaign supporting the Colorado COVID-19 Relief Fund (“CCRF”), Kastlfel is donating 50 percent of all online garment sales to the CCRF, and is also including a free fabric face mask with each T-shirt purchase. For businesses wanting to protect their employees as the state economy starts to open up, Kastlfel has custom branded masks that can be printed with a name or logo with water-based inks. For every 100,000 masks sold to businesses, Kastlfel will donate 1,000 masks to those in need.

Color Up Sanitize hand spray

Denver-based Color Up (which we profiled in our CBD roundup last May) has also switched gears and launched their own brand of hand sanitizer. Available in Full Spectrum and Pure CBD, Color Up Sanitize is an antimicrobial spray that kills disease-causing germs, including COVID-19. Color Up COO and co-founder Shauna Blanch said the company made the decision to dedicate part of its in-house lab to creating a natural, organic hand sanitizer to cut down the cases of contact dermatitis, skin lesions, infection, and allergies associated with standard hand sanitizers due to prolonged alcohol use on the skin. So while Color Up’s formula is still 70 percent ethyl alcohol (derived from organic sources), it’s also infused with calming and moisturizing organic hemp CBD and organic essential oils like pink grapefruit, lemon, lime, and mandarin and sweet orange, giving this spray an invigorating, uplifting scent. Color Up will be donating 25 percent of the limited production of Sanitize to doctors and nurses in the metro area, as well as medical workers across the country. Color Up Sanitize, $3.50 for 1 fl. oz. or $9 for 4 fl. oz., colorupco.com