Spring Face Masks to Stay Protected and Stylish This Season

More people are receiving a COVID-19 vaccine every day, so there are encouraging signs that normalcy is on the way. However, the pandemic isn't over yet, and you should still be wearing a face mask whenever you leave the house. (According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, you should actually be wearing two. A surgical face mask first, and then a cloth option on top of that.) Now that we're just a few weeks away from the official start of spring, you should have a covering that's fitting for the new season, such as masks that remind you of the blooming flowers in your garden. (If you have to wear a mask, you might as well make it cute, right?) Here are eight options (both reusable and disposable) to buy this spring.

The government currently says you don't have to wear a covering if you have "a physical or mental illness or impairment, or disability" and would experience "severe distress" from doing so, reports ChronicleLive.

This includes:

Children (under 11 in England or Wales, under 13 in Northern Ireland, under five in Scotland)

If you're travelling with someone who requires lip-reading

Those unable to put on or wear a face covering because of a physical or mental illness or disability

People for whom wearing or removing a face covering will cause severe distress

Anyone assisting someone who relies on lip reading to communicate

To eat, drink or take medication

If you are travelling with someone who requires lip-reading or reading facial expressions, wearing a mask will not be compulsory.

The new rule will not apply to retail staff, but will apply to all members of the public. Children under 11 are also exempt.