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Our Cutters and Our Seamsters - Leave a message for the team!
Ninth Isle is honored to present our hard working VIPs, who each had a significant hand in hand-making your cloth face mask. It's a little early for a celebration or ceremony, but considering that many of you have invested your time to thank us and our team, this thank-you page has been made.
Please meet our 2 fabric cutters, Samson and Way.
These two men are responsible for cutting fabric into the exact shapes and proportions of the face mask. Their cut fabric acts as an intuitive instruction manual and guide for our seamsters to help them quickly and accurately sew each mask. If you're wondering, we actually call and pronounce his name as "Way". Like "Way-to-go". Our longest running pun is "If there's Way, there's a way."
Next we have our seamstresses and seamsters. Let's use a list for this one. If not for each person, we would be incapacitated by the sheer volume of orders.
Winnie, Julie & Ryan, Thina, Nga, Annie, Chen (Way's wife), Ann, and yours truly!
Sewing was a massive challenge. During normal times, production works as an assembly line, each step has a dedicated time and person. During stay-at-home orders, we are only able to do what we can at home with our household members. Luckily, this means that those with kids are able to get free help. Those whose children have moved out, well, they just worked extra extra hard. We started with just Winnie and Julie/Ryan. The learning curve was steep, but they stepped up, shared info, and kept pushing out masks one by one. They were able to share this info with our later collaborators to significantly boost production. Each seamstress shared our values of providing necessary face masks for our community and country at an accessible price for all. This means that each person had donated their time and labor. It was this combined efforts on all sides that we are able to provide these quality hand-made multi-layered face masks at such affordable prices. On April 9th, we really saw the power of 8 professional seamsters and 1 nervous amatuer (me). We knocked out 75% - 80% of our backlog, which meant that not a single person waited more than 2 days for their order to get shipped.
If you'd like to thank our 2 cutters and 8 seamsters, please leave your comments below. Things are still tough on everyone, so your kind words of encouragement keep us going!
We all would like to thank you as our customer, if not for your support and personal recommendations to friends, we wouldn't have the opportunity to use our skills for a good cause!
Note: We might be able to get photos of each person. I know many of them are shy, but let's see who can't be coaxed into OK-ing a little photo for the blog.
Comments
Nellie said:
To the entire staff – Words cannot express the deep gratitude I have for all the time & effort you spend in making your beautiful face masks. Each and everyone of you play an important role in accomplishing what you do. Thank you for thinking of us who might not know how to sew or may not have the equipment to do so. I pray that God continue to give you all the strength needed to continue in your work and that he blesses you for everything that you do. Keep up the wonderful work that you are doing and please, whenever you can, please take the time to rest and take care of yourselves. Because without you, I wouldn’t have the beautiful face masks that I will always cherish. Take care, stay safe and a million mahalo nui loa to each of you.
Nellie said:
To the entire staff – Words cannot express the deep gratitude I have for all the time & effort you spend in making your beautiful face masks. Each and everyone of you play an important role in accomplishing what you do. Thank you for thinking of us who might not know how to sew or may not have the equipment to do so. I pray that God continue to give you all the strength needed to continue in your work and that he blesses you for everything that you do. Keep up the wonderful work that you are doing and please, whenever you can, please take the time to rest and take care of yourselves. Because without you, I wouldn’t have the beautiful face masks that I will always cherish. Take care, stay safe and a million mahalo nui loa to each of you.
Delwyn said:
Everyone there awesome! Thank you very much for the excellent masks we ordered from you and ordered more. They are precisely cut and sewn and everyone of you should be proud of them and thank you all for your service during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Delwyn said:
Everyone there awesome! Thank you very much for the excellent masks we ordered from you and ordered more. They are precisely cut and sewn and everyone of you should be proud of them and thank you all for your service during the COVID-19 pandemic. P.S. Stay Healthy and stay safe!
Lynn said:
Mahalo nui loa all! My entire family needed masks for work and for the foreseeable future. With family members in retail pharmacy, hospital staff, and home development they are considered essential workers and must continue to work on-site. Just placed my second order with you. A dear friend works at a major hospital in NY and hasn’t been able to get any supplies for herself during her days off so having the option to ship to her is truly a blessing. Thank you so much for your hard work and tireless hours you have been putting in to support the safety of our community! It means so much right now having access to masks at an affordable price, of great quality, and beautiful design to keep our spirits up and loved ones safer.
Debbie said:
I love my masks! Thank you so much! You guys are awesome!!!
Lillian said:
Thank you all of you who had a role in making the masks! Knowing that I would not be very successful in making my own, I ordered 6, then ordered 3 more the next day. I received all of them within 3-5 days…they are absolutely beautiful in workmanship and quality. I appreciate your time and talents, both of which are keeping my family and I safe. Take care. Aloha.
Jennifer said:
I absolutely appreciate the hard work you guys have done and have been doing to make face masks and also make them available to the public. Its been frustrating to find masks available for purchase.
I wrote to Ronald (btw, thank you for your kind words too!) that I know you guys have been working tirelessly because 1) I was actually able to buy some of your face masks and 2) there are still more face masks available on your site.
I know it can’t be easy for you all. It looks easy to us as the consumer, all we see is the finished product, the price and the ship time. Easy click of a button. You guys have to meet and keep up with demand, and deal with many more chaotic variables that we customers don’t see behind the scenes. You have to balance between work and personal life (some of you may feel you don’t have a life anymore since taking on this effort- don’t worry, it’ll get better soon. I know, but more importantly, I want YOU to know, that our Creator is blessing you for what you are doing :D).
I thank each you for hanging in there for the sake of others. I thank you for having the heart to step up and do something pono for your community. Thank you for selling these masks at an affordable price (and with free shipping!) in times where prices are rising and people’s source of income are being cut. Thank you for possessing ownership and pride in your work, ensuring these products are professionally done and well-made. Thank you for contributing your time and individual talents to come together as a solid team! With your impressive teamwork, these masks are available and shipped out in a VERY short turn around time. That is critical! Just within the last couple of days, more and more places are implementing mandatory face masks for people needing to enter their stores.
You guys set the bar really high. I again thank you for helping me, my loved ones and others out there to stay safe and keep others safe. You are definitely making a difference and in my opinion, helping to save lives. God bless you and your families!
Damien said:
Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication! I loved the masks so much that I order some for family on the mainland.
Jessica said:
Truly lucky to find you guys! Best service and best products! Each person in my family wants to say thank you for what you are doing. Please please please protect yourself well!
Jan said:
We are so thankful, grateful and in such awe to all of you who have so diligently and sacrificed your time in completing our face mask bulk order! Please know that our 600 employees/volunteers share in my appreciation to every single one of you who have worked so hard! Thank you to all of you for giving us a peace of mind. Thank you so much for all that you are doing to serve our community!
Lisa Peacock said:
Hello! I just received my order today – so fast!! The workmanship is great and the prints are beautiful!! Thank you so much to the team at Ninth Isle – you are all working so hard completing bulk orders AND orders for individuals. I will be ordering more for others soon! Bless you all.
Gerald said:
I ordered 3 masks on Tuesday evening and was surprised when I received them on Thursday. I wasn’t expecting them for a week or two. The fit and finish of the masks are very good as well as the fabric used. Kudos to your team for their workmanship. The prices are very reasonable, especially considering it includes taxes and shipping. I’ve looked at other companies online and a lot of times it costs more for shipping than for the product itself.
Tina said:
Mahalos to you all! We just ordered our face masks today. Can’t wait to get them. Much appreciation for your service and dedication. By making these the way you do and at a reasonable cost, it helps locals in our community. Always happy to support local. Keep safe! Stay healthy! Malama pono! Aloha nui loa….
Monica said:
Thank you for the well-made, quality fabric masks, and especially for all of your hard work. The masks were shipped the day after we ordered them, and arrived the following day. We appreciate the inclusion of tax and shipping into the cost, which makes us even more happy to buy local. We just placed another order for the rest of our ’ohana. Mahalo nui loa!
Ronnie Guillen said:
Aloha All! I wanted to thank all of you for your hard work. I really appreciate you! I have just placed another small order because I am so happy with our masks. I ordered for my family and my mom. We can tell a lot of hard work went into the production. You are keeping many people healthy. Stay well and Mahalo for all you do.
Al in South Carolina said:
Amazed at the quick turnaround of my order and really appreciate the quality of your workmanship. I tried making a simple face mask and, while admittedly no seamstress, found there was more to it than I thought. Very pleased and impressed with what you sent and will re-order for gifts. Thank you very much!
Rose said:
Big Thank You/Mahalo to ALL the staff at Ninth Isle. I received my order pretty quick (April 18, 2020). I’ve looked at other local companies but none stood out like your company. I kept going back and forth looking at the various face masks available and each time the ones that I actually wanted was sold out. I decided to order the ones that were still available and I am very happy with them. The quality is excellent the stitching is top-notch and the ear loop fits perfect. I look forward to buying more face masks and maybe some other products from you in the future. May God Bless each and everyone of YOU!
Daria said:
Aloha from Waimanalo! I appreciate you all and your hard work with your beautifully made masks! Mahalo for your service! I am a Bus Operator on Oahu and am pleased with my Plumeria Black Aloha print masks. We sport Aloha Shirts as our uniforms and it will match with all! Do take care and God bless!
Ann said:
Thank you for producing a more substantial mask. I have ordered from other vendors but they are not as thick and well made as ninth isle’s. I’m so glad that everything I ordered is in stock so I don’t have to order elsewhere. The ordering system works really well now and your staff is helpful! Thank you!😷
Samson and Winnie said:
Thank you everyone! We are so happy to make the masks for everybody. We feel that there is a lot of meaning and purpose in our work, we will keep working hard for everyone. It is very touching to see so many messages and we are extra motivated everyday because of you all. Take care and be safe!
Dave said:
Just wanted to express my sincerest appreciation to the entire staff at Ninth Isle! I was pressed trying to find good quality masks for my family before the mandatory face mask law went into effect here on Oahu. I searched various local sites and none came close to you folks. Very fast arrival as promised, I was so impressed with my 1st order, I ordered some more the next day & received them in the mail today! In addition I told my sister about you folks and she also ordered some & received them today as well. I will definitely spread the word to my friends & co-workers. Thank you all once again, stay safe & God Bless!
Aloha
Dave H.
Delwyn Ching said:
To every one at the Ninth Isle, Mahalo Nui Loa! You folks are all awesome cutters and seamstresses and your masks are excellent. Ordering more for our son for when school gets back into session in the fall. Thank you very much.
Young said:
Much mahalo to everyone at Ninth Isle. First of all you guys make the best quality masks and no one else provides such quick delivery, great service, extremely well made masks for such a reasonable price. I just keep coming back for more and made my third order just now. Thank you so much for all that you guys do.
Diane said:
Mahalo for making mask that serve its purpose ( able to talk while wearing mask and not having to pull mask to breathe while wearing). Our family saw other websites selling mask some for high price and quality not as good as your face mask. Again thank you and god bless.
P.S. My son ordered 4 mask from your company. He saw your website and with no question placed his order.
Pamela M Eskue said:
I didn’t buy a mask but I did get car seat covers so I could have a bit of Oahu around me until I can visit safely again ,these seat covers are awesome so well made and fit my car seats perfect ,Mahalo for the Aloha feelings y’all sent me …God bless and keep you all safe
Christina S. said:
Just wanted to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for the well-made masks for me and my family. I was so surprised how quick it was delivered! We are very appreciative to you all from Ninth Isle working so hard to help keep our community safe. Thanks again for all that you guys do!
Stella Viena said:
From my families in Hawaii, California and Arizona, MAHALO, MAHALO, MAHALO! KUDOS to the entire staff for working tirelessly in making each mask worthwhile. From toddlers to adults, each family member are during their part in wearing their masks diligently when out and about. Am making another order again..Ninth Isle you folks are the BEST!