Ruffle masquerade mask - mask discontinued by Leg Avenue - review by Jul!a

I'm not sure what sparked me to go ahead and buy this masquerade mask, but I'm glad I did. It's not something I'm going to use all the time, but it's a cute accessory to have.

It came on a ridiculously large piece of cardboard from Leg Avenue, wire tied into place. The ties were really easy to remove without damaging either the mask, or the packaging.

The mask, including satin wrapped handle, is just about 13" tall and about 8" across the typical "cat's eye" style mask. Leg Avenue says that it's made of a rubber core covered in a heavy black fabric, and has a frilly black lace on the front. The two eye holes are about 1 1/4" apart across the bridge of the nose, and most people won't have a problem seeing through them.

The mask itself is flexible, but not overly so. The ruffly lace is sewn onto the front and won't come off easily, however the 'heavy black fabric' that covers the rubber core seems like it was hastily glued on, and only isn't falling off because the lace has been sewn on over it. The ruffles cover most of the front of the mask, leaving a section right around the eyes exposed. At first, I thought the exposed area was an oversight, until I realized that if the whole front of the mask was covered in ruffles, you probably wouldn't be able to see very well.

The mask also isn't really shaped at all. There's a subtle indentation for a nose to rest, but for the most part, the rest of the mask is flat across. It would be simple enough with some hot glue to add something like a wire across the top or bottom to give it a more fitted feel.

The handle is held on mostly by hot glue, but it's also sewn on at the 'top' and 'bottom' of where it falls on the right side of the mask. It's not flimsy at all, and is a good size for most people, not feeling too bulky or too small in the hand.

Here's a picture of the back of the mask, as well as the area around the eyes that's lacking in ruffles.



This mask is definitely geared for right handed use, but it's not terribly awkward to hold properly with the left hand either. It can also be tucked into a belt, belt loop, or anything resembling that for easy storage while not in use if you're out.

Overall, it's not a bad choice if you're looking. It does look a little cheap, but I think that unless you're overly rough with it, it's not going to fall apart very easily. There might be better masks you can get for $15, but this is far from the worst thing you can get.

This comes out periodically when I'm feeling silly and want to show it. It gets its most use when I'm having "I'm a pretty pretty princess and going to wear a tiara day, dammit" days. It's held up well through all of them so far, and I expect it to continue to hold up to the use it's getting from me.