Starting a Sequin Tail

[Mermaid Caidence]

Ok, so after snooping around on here I've deciced to start a sequin tail. I'm still locating a store to buy neoprene. So far it looks like it's going to be from http://spandexworld.com/c3/catalog/browse/95 . Has anybody purchased neoprin from here? I was considering the white stretch neoprin or the white stretch printed neoprin. I was looking at the differences between them and was wondering why they have so many differences between them. White Stretch Neoprin-87% Nylon 13% Spandex, 2 way stretch, and width is 48"-50". White Stretch Printed Neoprin- 90% Nylon, 10% Spandex, 4 way stretch, and 54" width. With the minimum width being 48" that would leave 2 feet if folded in half. Which would be long enough to make a tail, but it would be cutting it close. I was also trying to figure out how thick that neoprin is. Anway, I was thinking of ordering 2 yards. As for the vinyl shelf liner, I can pick that up at home depot. I ordered a dew packs of sequins at http://www.ccartwright.com/shells.html. Once I get them, I'm going to be making my tail design. I'm ordering all of my materials now, because on Augest 19th I'm moving to Canada. Since I live in Va, thats going to be a 2 week car trip. Ordering here, would mean saving on shipping and there are just way more options for materials. As for sewing on sequins, I was going to do that by machine. The issue is, woudn't the tail still have to be in two-halfs? Sewing all of the sequins on and then sewing the tail and having it not fit would be a huge disapoinment. Am I just overthinking this? Anyway, if you could help answer any of my questions, that would be great. :)

[Mermaid Caidence]

Ok so I ordered some samples of the neoprin. I also ordered a few packets of sequins to start making my design. :)

[Mermaid Caidence]

After 2 and a half days without power, I finally have internet again. :D My sequins came today. I'm having some issues though. I ordered almost all hologram sequins, and the hologram part is rubbing off revealing silver underneath. I was considering buying new sequins, but I have no idea which ones. I have one packet of iris shells, they don't rub, but they're clear. Doesn't anybody have any advice on what to do with the shells?

[Sea Specter]

Why not paint them?
I've heard of some people mixing paint with costume latex so it does't rub off.
There's also gold/silver foil, but that tends to get a little pricey
Happy tail making, I hope everything works out :]

[Mermaid Caidence]

Here was my tail design.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0001.jpg
Here are the different sequins I ordered.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0006.jpg
Here was some practice sewing I had done on a foam like craft thing.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0009.jpg
And here is the difference between a rubbed sequin and one that hasn't been rubbed.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0017.jpg

[Mermaid Caidence]

And I didn't want to paint them seeing as they already had colors, but maybe there is something clear I can put over them to stop it from rubbing off?

[Mermaid Lira]

Woah ! It'll be a beautiful tail ! How many sequins did you buy ?

[Mermaid Caidence]

Thanks!, but right now I don't know how it will work out. And I only bought 1 packet of each sequin color to see what the colors were really like. It seems like a good thing to look at the real thing before buying thousands of sequins because things like color rubbing off might happen.

[Mermaid Caidence]

So here are the iris shells, which I guess I am going to have to use.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0021.jpg

[Ilonka]

Omg those are sooo pretty! My favorite colors

[Mermaid Jewel]

The iris ones really look like scales too! :D

[Mermaid Momo]

have you tried the spray on mod podge? the clear coat is available in matte and shine and it dries really quickly

[Mermaid Caidence]

hmmmm, I haven't. I have mod podge puzzle glue. Maybe I'll try and find the spray.

[Mermaid Momo]

i th ink walmart might sell it.(i've seen it there sometimes) your best bet would probably be at craft stores like hobby lobby and micheals

[AniaR]

cant wait to see what you come up with

[Mermaid Caidence]

Ok, so I ordered new colors all in Iris.

[Mermaid Caidence]

So, I got my new sequins and my neoprin samples. :) Here are the neoprin samples.
I'm probobly going to go with upper left black.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00202.jpg
Here is my new design.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00172.jpg
And here is what the sequins look like. In the design, I decided to replace the silver with white.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00222.jpg
Apparently the picture doesn't want to turn sideways

[theoceanblue]

OMGosh! I was thinking about doing a sequin tail too! Your design is so pretty!!!

[Spindrift]

Wow, you can really make those sequins blend!

[Mermaid Saphira]

Ok so I ordered some samples of the neoprin. I also ordered a few packets of sequins to start making my design. :)


I have a tail made of white neoprin from spandexworld. It does well, but when it gets wet it gets a little heavy O_o

[Ilonka]

I'm making a full white tail with sequins and latex, I'm using moleskin spandex instead of neoprene cuz I hate the fact that my latex tail.floats so bad because of it.
Your choice of colors and design is so.pretty! I think I had posted that already XD

[Mermaid Jewel]

Wow the sequins look gorgeous! :D Is that darker one at the bottom the Carnival color? I ordered that one too ^.^

[Mermaid Caidence]

Thanks everyone! :D


I have a tail made of white neoprin from spandexworld. It does well, but when it gets wet it gets a little heavy O_o
Is it a spacer? THe black one in the corner is the only one that says it's not a spacer


I'm making a full white tail with sequins and latex, I'm using moleskin spandex instead of neoprene cuz I hate the fact that my latex tail.floats so bad because of it.
Your choice of colors and design is so.pretty! I think I had posted that already XD
Yea, I love white! Up until a while ago, I was planning on making an all white neoprene tail. I haven't used neoprene though, so I woudn't know how much it floats. Thanks! :)


Wow the sequins look gorgeous! :D Is that darker one at the bottom the Carnival color? I ordered that one too ^.^

Thanks! Yep, the color is carnival. From bottom to top, the colors are (all iris) White, Carnival, Deep Blue Sea and Bahama Blue are right next to eachother, and then mermaid green.

[Mermaid Saphira]

[QUOTE=MermaidCaitlin;30262] Is it a spacer? THe black one in the corner is the only one that says it's not a spacer QUOTE]


it is spacer, it doesn't float to the point of being annoying and I like it :)

[Mermaid Jewel]

Thanks! Yep, the color is carnival. From bottom to top, the colors are (all iris) White, Carnival, Deep Blue Sea and Bahama Blue are right next to eachother, and then mermaid green.

I almost ordered all of those haha! I ended up taking out the Iris white and bahama blue but I did order the rest of them :) Glad to know the colors look so great though!

[Mermaid Caidence]

yea, I wish they had better pictures on their website. It can be so hard to tell the difference between them sometimes.

[MermaidBonnie]

I used the exact same sequins on my tail (about 10,000 of them), and they have withstood the ocean and various pools. Here's a tip: individually knot each sequin to keep them on. I keep reading about the issues of neoprene floating and I have some advice on that. In my scuba training I learned that the thickness of the neoprene plus the type of water you swim in drastically affects buoyancy. Your tail will float more in saltwater. My sequin tail has a neoprene base which fits perfectly, and in the pool it sinks well, but I had to work harder to get it to sink in the ocean. My Mertailor tail's base is neoprin, and after 3 years it is still in perfect condition after being through some crazy ocean adventures so I think that's a good material as well. It does float at first, but after I fill it with water it works so well, I can cut through some serious waves in it. I've started on a white sequined tail before I joined this forum and saw your thread, and I personally don't care if our tails look alike, I just wanted to give you a heads up :)

[Mermaid Caidence]

Thank you so much. :) woah, I have yo buy a lot of them. My sequins tend to move around to the left and right. Is there anyway to prevent this? I might also glue mine down. I'm ordering neoprin from spandex world. Don't worry mine will be white, several blues, and several greens. Ilonka's tail is going to be white and sequined though.

[Mermaid Caidence]

Ok, so sorry for being away I'm just really busy because I'm going to move to Canada soon. So I ordered me neoprene from Spandex world, except not only did they send me a fabric completely different then the sample I ordered, but I can't return it. :mad: I'm reordering the fabric today and it should be here in two days. I ordered a ton of sequins yesterday, so those should be here soon. In the mean time, I'm going to buy some E-6000 glue. :D

[Mermaid Caidence]

Okay, so here is my outline on top of my bad fabric.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00122.jpg
And here is the sample compared to what they sent me.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00142.jpg
And here are some of the frill things I've been working on using shelf liner.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00193.jpg
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_00203.jpg

[Merman_Shawn]

Looking good Caitlin!

[Mermaid Arianna]

well it sucks that they sent you the wrong fabric but its looking really good! :)

[Mermaid Caidence]

So my new fabric got here and it was fine. :D
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/IMG_0021.jpg
And after almost crying several times from the struggle of making my first neoprene tail xD... here it is
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/IMG_0024.jpg
There are some things that got messed up in the process but well it's mostly fine xD
And now I have started glueing on sequins.. it is taking forever!!! It will be worth the back breaking ( literally) pain
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/IMG_0025.jpg
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/IMG_0026.jpg

[Mermaid Arianna]

geez thats a lot of sequins!

[Mermaid Crystal]

No offence but i like the iris better but the hologram gives it the too sparkling look but in the sunlight it gives it shine in the sunlight i really do like both!

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

I really want to make my own sequin tail,but I'm afraid to damage it… Sequins are a fragile stuff…What do you think?...

[Mermaid Caidence]

I really don't know seeing as I haven't actually worn my tail yet. I know that you definietly have to be more careful with them than a normal fabric tail.
UPDATE: OKay so since I moved I haven't worked on my tail at all. For the last two weeks I was scale hunting, but I coudn't find any and thought they were gone, but yesterday I looked in a linens box, and for some reason they were there. So, I am now working on my tail everyday. :D

[Mermaid Caidence]

OKay here are some pics of my work.
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0002.jpg
http://i1107.photobucket.com/albums/h387/_Caitey_/Sequin%20Tail/IMG_0003.jpg

[Mer_Adella]

you go girl....awesome work and time management :D I wish I could start on my next tail (or have the money to buy my professional one)

[Mermaid Caidence]

Thanks! Hopefully I'll be able to get some rows done today. :D

[Mermaid Arianna]

oh wow!That looks awesome! I love the colors you picked out! But the shells look really tiny, how big are they compared with say, your fingernail? :)

[Ashe]

This is looking great Caitlin! Im getting all jelly lol! <3:thumbs-up:

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

I'm not able to find sequins here in Italy… Awwwwww sadness… Cartwright don't send sequins in Italy.

[Mermaid Margarete]

I'm not able to find sequins here in Italy… Awwwwww sadness… Cartwright don't send sequins in Italy.

I believe this company ships worldwide: http://spandexhouse.com/ (http://spandexhouse.com/index.php?nId=1)

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

I believe this company ships worldwide: http://spandexhouse.com/ (http://spandexhouse.com/index.php?nId=1)

Thank you Gintsuki! But this company have only sequin fabrics…

From mail:
Informazioni sul commerciante:
Cartwright's Sequins
sequins@centurytel.net
http://www.ccartwright.com

Messaggio del commerciante:
We do not ship to Italy.

[Mermaid Margarete]

Ohh. =\

Well, you could always rip the sequins off the fabric if you were desprate enough XD

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

XD K!

[MerEmma]

Wow, love it so far!

[starlite]

i love your work ! The sequin are glued ?

Where can i find the material you use for the fin ?

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

I have come to a conclusion….It's impossible to find sequins… HELP!!!! I'm wandering for days now… No one who send sequins in Italy...

[Mermaid Arianna]

you can order them, send them to a friend in America and have them send them to you,

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

oh….That's a good idea!!!! Thank you Madeleine! <3 <3 <3

[starlite]

you can order them, send them to a friend in America and have them send them to you,

i need a friend in America :-)

[Mermaid Zaffiro]

i need a friend in America :-)

herrrr…me to… >.<"

[midwesternmermaid]

Forgive me if you've already posted the answer, but how many sequins is this taking? I've seen different counts and weights here and there (i.e. 3-4 pounds, 2000 sequins, etc.) and would like to know from someone's actual experience.

[maimerd]

Your tail looks great! I apologize if you've stated it, and I just didn't catch it, but where did you get the shelf liner for the extra tail fins? It looks so cool!

[Mermaid Kenzie]

@Maimerd I know Home Depot sells it.

[maimerd]

@Maimerd I know Home Depot sells it.

Thanks!

[Echidna]

i need a friend in America :-)

My mind totally sang this line with the melody "I like to be in America" lol.

Your tail looks gorgeous already.
The more I see of sequin tails, the more I'm tempted to try one myself.

But I know how fragile they are; I still have loads of sequin dance tops in my wardrobe which are very delicate.

[Mermaid Kenzie]

@maimerd np ;D

[Mermaid Caspiana]

Can't wait to see how this turns out Caitli! I'm making a sequin tail too. But not fully, patches and as you get further towards the fluke they get more dense. Good luck and I'm excited for you!

[Arie]

Would love to see how this turned out! And maybe even a video! I've been debating on doing sequins or paint for my second attempt at a tail, where is it that you get the small sequins?

[Mermaid Caspiana]

Would love to see how this turned out! And maybe even a video! I've been debating on doing sequins or paint for my second attempt at a tail, where is it that you get the small sequins?
Ccartwright Sequins. Just look it up on google and after 'sequins' type shells. It should come up. ;)

[Mermaid_Kenzee]

Oh crap I just ordered 1400 of the hologram from Cartwright now what am I suppose to do :*(

[Ashe]

Well I'm guessing you were planning on making a sequin tail so I guess you can do that haha!
If you do want to document your tail making journey with us, you should make a new thread for it!

[Arella]

So excited to see it I love sequin tails : )

[Mermaid_Kenzee]

What type of glue are you using???

[Winged Mermaid]

What type of glue are you using???

She already said what glue:


E-6000 glue. :D

Please read threads before posting questions! Thanks :)

[MermaidBrandie]

Did you order neoprin or neoprene? There's a difference. If it's neoprin I'd worry about it stretching out over time. Neoprene should be fine tho.