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If necessity really is the mother of invention, then lots of folks have stepped up with their own ways of staying relatively safe during the coronavirus pandemic.

Check out our gallery of homemade protective masks or reasonable facsimiles thereof. From party hats to a giant water bottle ... they hopefully do the trick.

As you know, or should know by now, we're all being advised not to wear the professional-grade masks which are in extremely short supply and reserved for frontline health care workers, so the creative ones are welcome by all.

As for how to make a homegrown mask, the CDC recommends it fit snugly but comfortably and secured with ties or ear loops. It should also include multiple layers of fabric and allow for unrestricted breathing. It should also be laundry friendly.

Demi Lovato and Max Ehrich are here to show you how it's done when you venture out for some grub!!!

Demi and Max, the newly-minted couple who are self-quarantining, hit up Erewhon organic market in L.A. Saturday, and they were following recommendations from the top down -- when you venture out, protect yourself and others.

In case you've been under a rock -- which, in many ways we all have -- we're all supposed to act in public as if we have the disease because a mask and gloves can prevent others from contracting it.

Max, whose credits include "Young and the Restless" and "American Princess," gave us a peek into his and Demi's life this week, along with her trusted pooch, Batman.

If you forgot what it looks like when Hollywood titans meet up for chitchat, take a peek at this.

The likes of Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw joined married couple Michelle Pfeiffer and David E. Kelley as they walked their Pacific Palisades neighborhood on the westside of L.A.

They meandered around the hood late afternoon for about an hour, and were yakking it up the whole time.

Hard to tell from the pic if they're properly social distancing -- 6 feet of separation, please.

L.A. has been a mixed bag when it comes to the stay-at-home order. Many beaches, hiking trails and open-air markets have been crowded this week, despite orders by the Mayor and the Governor.

Will Pharrell Williams' good looks ever really die!

Here is a 29-year-old version of the Grammy award-winning artist looking his best in his signature N.E.R.D. hat at a launch party in New York City while he made waves as The Neptunes with his longtime friend and music partner Chad Hugo back in 2002 (left).

And, 18 years later ... The trendsetter is spending this weekend celebrating his 47th birthday. The BBC boss and producer was last spotted sporting his Benjamin Button looks at Paris Fashion Week earlier this year (right).

He's got a lot to be happy about!

The question is ...

Bring on the April showers ... but only if it includes these famous faces who are delivering good, clean, fun and help us ring in the new month with their wet hotshots.

With everyone talking about washing their hands for twenty seconds ... feel free to soak in these ladies that are bringing a whole new meaning to spring-cleaning for as long as you want!

For some crazy reason, way too many Los Angelenos are hell-bent on violating the mandatory closures in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and in some ways, as the news gets worse, the problems with social distancing increase.

The number of folks on the sand has increased all week in the L.A. area, partly because the weather is good and partly because people want out of their apartments and houses.

Check out the beach in Marina del Rey ... an increasing number of landlubbers are hitting the sand despite mandatory beach closures in L.A. County.

People are using the beach to sun, exercise, surf, paddleboard and walk their dogs -- all of which is now illegal.  Problem is ... there have been no cops patrolling many of the areas and it seems people are not being shooed off the beach or given a ticket. Just a mile south, we've heard cops are out in force ticketing anyone who dares to hit the sand in Hermosa Beach ... but only in sections, it would seem. There too ... social distancing is often being poo-pooed.

The photos in the gallery (above) of a trail bordering Hermosa Beach -- which appears to be out of view from the main roads and general public -- show it's FLOODED with dog walkers and hikers, who aren't even close to being six feet apart.

There have been lots of problems in the L.A. area. Just a few days ago, folks jammed into the Santa Monica Farmers Market.

Just about every industry in America is being hit hard by the coronavirus -- but when you have the whole plane pretty much to yourself ... you know airlines are especially screwed.

Meet Dan Nolan, who took an American Airlines flight Saturday from Newburgh, NY to Philly, and would later connect to an L.A. flight. Along the way, he walked into an empty cabin -- save for one other passenger traveling with him -- and it truly made for a surreal scene.

Rows and rows of empty seats, except for Dan and other fella. Yeah, he had some fun with it ... but this reality is becoming more and more common. And, frankly, it's concerning on a number of fronts.

For one, it's a testament to how doused the air travel industry is with coronavirus woes right now. Very few are flying at the moment, and airlines have cut back their flight schedules significantly. Meanwhile, the government hasn't shut 'em down yet -- as they're deemed essential. The more and more of this we see, though, might change that.

Frankly, it's probably more expensive to operate these planes and flights -- even just the domestic ones -- than the money they're seeing coming in from anyone booking tickets. At the end of the day, airlines might have to seriously self-regulate to avoid going under.

The new stimulus package that just passed will certainly help in avoiding that, but still ... the longer this goes on, the more dire it becomes. Not just that, but some flight attendants have also expressed concerns about having to continue working, worrying about getting sick.

Forget politics for a minute ... Donald Trump is demanding, of all things, gratitude from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, despite the fact New York's health care system is about to break without these phantom tests, ventilators and PPE's the President constantly claims are rolling out.

Trump was true to form as he MC'd his daily coronavirus briefing, boasting about the federal response ... something in sharp, sharp contrast to the thousands of doctors and nurses who are now drafting their wills because there's nothing to adequately protect them from the disease.

Trump went in on Cuomo, saying he's given him everything imaginable ... maybe he didn't hear about the broken ventilators, the ridiculous competitive bidding among states for lifesaving equipment, the lack of masks, the lack of tests, and on and on.

Trump said Cuomo should be more like CA Gov Gavin Newsom. Here's the thing ... Newsom's a smart guy, and he, like every other leader at this point, knows Trump's enormous ego needs heavy stroking ... or else. Remember, he told Pence not to even call the governors of Washington State and Michigan because they supposedly lacked gratitude.

Here's what clearly escapes Trump. We want leaders who speak up, leaders who raise their voices when the doctors and nurses in their states are getting infected and dying. We need leaders who will stand up to a federal government that STILL will not recommend that EVERY state impose a stay-at-home order ... which is the most absurd thing in this whole messed up situation.

Leave it to Jeff Lowe to let the cats out of the bag -- there's a bonus episode of 'Tiger King' coming to Netflix.

Joe Exotic's ex-business partner spilled the tea -- yet again -- during a cameo video message for Dodgers star Justin Turner. Jeff and his wife, Lauren, say they heard Justin was a big fan of the docuseries. They gave him a good ribbing about that, and then dropped the bombshell.

Jeff says Netflix producers will be shooting at his home on Sunday, and the footage will be used for a new episode dropping next week.

Makes sense Netflix would strike while the iron's piping hot. The series is Netflix's #1 show right now, and there are endless loose ends to address.

For instance, Jeff was raided by the feds last year ... something mentioned at the end of 'Tiger King,' but with no further detail. Only makes sense, the guy who snitched on Joe Exotic had to be the one to blab about the new episode.

Astros ace Justin Verlander is about to be donating a boatload of money for the next couple months to coronavirus charities -- and a lot of people have radically differing thoughts on it.

The pitcher and his wife, Kate Upton, took to IG Saturday to announce ... in light of the MLB continuing to pay its players for at least the next couple months -- per Justin himself -- he says he and Kate have decided to donate those funds toward COVID-19 relief efforts.

They say they'll choose different charities each week for each check, and announce them on their pages. There are tons to choose from these days, so no shortage of good orgs.

Now, time for some math ... 'cause Justin's donations are going to be staggering based on the numbers of his most recent contract with the 'Stros. He got signed to a 2-year, $66 million extension recently (good through the '20 and '21 seasons) and if you break that down -- it's about $634k a week. If he donates for two months ... $5 mil, more or less.

Probably more.

As for how folks received this very gesture ... a truly mixed bag, with lots of people responding drastically different depending on whose feed you check. If you hop on over to Justin's IG page, it seems to be nothing but love in his comments. Not so on Twitter ...