The Sewing Machine Is A Hungry Beast :U

[Discordien]

Hello there! I don't have any particular, er, name or mersona? I'm from the heart of Tampa, Florida, but I'm likely moving further down south to the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale Area, though (I haven't decided) later this year.
I love costumes/cosplay, but I figured given how much I weigh, it would behoove me to find a fun way to exercise. So mermaiding+cosplay seemed like an appropriate fit to me. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. I'll find out for myself. In the mean time, this will be my last self-indulgent thing before I have to adult and get the heck out of dodge.
I've seen that the Sun Tails monofin was decent for beginners, so I decided to get it to practice. And they were the only maker that I've seen that can easily accommodate someone with feet like mine (I have massive feet, between 11-wide/12 shoes).
I was not expecting trying the tail to be so intensive, but then again, I was never a fin-swimmer. So glad I heeded advice and stayed in the shallow area of the pool! I swam for less than an hour and I'm sure I took a six-hour nap after! I'm just about certain I did something right. The pool remains
I've decided to go with a high-waist fabric tail when I can actually get used to the water. While I did some lurking before joining, I've heard the performance fabrics at JoAnn were decent, but I was wondering if a few of these fabrics wouldn't be suitable for swimming? I see "non-chlorine bleach" in the description, and I'm a little reluctant to try using them. Do I need to avoid the fabrics that say that? It seems like an obvious question, but I figure that I should ask before I did anything else.

What I expected to do: X (http://www.xblafans.com/wp-content/uploads//2012/10/Ecco.png)
What I got to do (I didn't actually do this because I'm still alive and didn't have to call a lifeguard, lol):
http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/sonic/images/7/70/Nightmare_fuel_right_from_your_childhood.png/revision/latest?cb=20131003174657

What I learned:
Going slow helps to get your own personal rhythm.

Questions I have (if it's not to personal to ask):
Do you take pool water and put a fabric sample in it for a length of time? Have you ever seen chlorine damage immediately affect your fabric tail? What fabric have some of you used? Also, is swimwear lining optional or mandatory? I haven't seen many people mention using swimwear lining, but I suppose it's one of those things that's so obvious that it isn't worth mentioning.

[Ashe]

Welcome to the MerNetwork! Let's see if I can answer some questions :)

Spandex tails are very popular, and so is swimming in chlorine pools. However, they don't mix very well. Chlorine doesn't mix well with any kind of tail, so it's right for that warning to be on the fabric, but fabrics without that warning should be just the same. Although chlorine isn't good for fabrics, sometimes there's no getting around it. You can definitely swim in a tail in chlorine water, but you will need to give it a very very good rising afterwards and let it dry after every swim, or it will eventually eat away at the fabric.

And yes, for a lot of tails that I've done, I will make little sample patches of fabric and paints, glues, etc. and pop them in some water so see how they're affected. Even if it is just fabric, I would suggest you to do the same, just to be safe :)

For fabric tails, most people use four-way stretch spandex because of how it stretches! It is also sometimes called "Performance" fabrics at Jo-Ann, but ask an employee just to be safe.

I haven't seen any people talk about swimwear lining either, and I think that's because no one really uses it in tails. I know I haven't seen any fabric tails using it.

Hope I could help! Sorry if some of my answers seem confusing, long night at works and I'm ready for bed! :lol:

[Mermaid Mia]

Hello! I too do the cosplay thing and have made a few fabric tails so i hope i can help some.

I have found generally spanedex tails hold up about as well as a swimsuit would under the same conditions. I.e. Expect some fading, some stretching, and some pilling over time, and remember to rinse it in cold clean water after every use.

I have used liner in one of my tails but it was kinda by accident as i ordered the wrong fabric and just rolled with it. It did make the tail heavier just because there was more material so i would say its fine to skip it.

As far as things to avoid because they just don't hold up well, shiny fabrics and sparkly fabrics are usually made with foil/glitter that will come off fairly rapidly. That said, i love using the shiny fabrics anyway LOL.

Oh, and fabrics with a higher cotton content will be heavier/more absorbent. Those with a higher polyester content will hold up longer. A higher nylon content will be lighter and stretchier. (Always with spandex as the main part of the blend)

Good luck and i would LOVE to see anything you make :)


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[Mermaid Wesley]

^ all that. And keep in mind that even dark fabrics can go sheer in water. I like to minimize this issue by wearing tights or leggings under my tail.

[Discordien]

Thank you very much for your advice! I figure that's just the nature of things when it comes to chlorine pools. Is it possible to make a tail just from liner? What's the general opinion on scuba knit? I've heard the fabric can be heavyweight, so I wasn't sure if it was suitable for swimming.

[Aurelian]

I definitely agree with the advice people are giving here! JoAnn's is a great place to find fabric, (it's literally in the name of the store,) but you should make sure you have the right fabric for your tail. As Kalani said, four-way-stretch/Performance fabric works well for tailmaking.
I never thought of wearing leggings/tights to minimize the sheer appearance of the tail. That's a great idea!:)

[Discordien]

It never would have crossed my mind to use leggings, either. Once again, thanks for the help. :)