What I must do to become a real professional mermaid?

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Hi everyone :)

I know there are lots of threads here around, but it's quite hard for me to understand clearly every single thing :$

Whell about the underwater tricks I am at a good point (I can do every kind of bubble like rings,hearts -thanks to the advices of this community- and lots of other things), I resolved the problem of the water going up my nose (so I can do whatever I want and swim in every position) and I'm working on holding my breath (I manage to stay under the water for 1 minute thanks to the training of agonistic swimming); I can't lay on the backdrop but I think this isn't foundamental and I can reach a maximum depth of one meter and a half.
Do you think this is good enought to start or I need something more?Should I improve this skills before start thinking of working as a professional mermaid?

Ok, now I'll really bore you with these questions:
I know I should be ashamed to ask this question but.....how longer should a performance last? I mean if I swim in a tank how longer should I stay there?

I'm really thinking of buying a tail because I'm afraid to do some damage making it by myself but I'm only eighteen and I can't afford a tail for € 1000 (thinking that I live in Italy so I should pay for a very expensive shipping) but I need something that lasts for a long time....so do you have some advices?

I've read that the tail needs a special care to be sure that it'll "live" longer then just 6 months, this means that I should buy some products to protect the material with the tail is made and sometimes I'll need to repaint it, right?
If yes do you can advice which I should take?

I understood the part talking about the photos,videos,creating a website,offer reasonable prices and always making a contract but I can't get a spider from its hole with the speech of the insurance policy....someone can explane it in few simple words?

Whell that is everything I can think about in this moment.....if there is something missing (and I think there will be) please can you tell me what is it?

Thank you very much to all of you for your kindness and patience to make me understand something :$

[Mermaid Saphira]

I'm really thinking of buying a tail because I'm afraid to do some damage making it by myself but I'm only eighteen and I can't afford a tail for € 1000 (thinking that I live in Italy so I should pay for a very expensive shipping) but I need something that lasts for a long time....so do you have some advices?

Why not try a tail from Mermaid Lira ( http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?2300-Fabrics-Latex-and-Silicone-mermaid-tails-! ) , I believe she is somewhere in Europe. Or www.fish-butts.com (http://www.fish-butts.com) is going to start offering silicone tails however I am not sure what the price will be and that includes shipping. Good luck :)

[MermaidIvy]

Well, I'd reccomend Fish Butts. They have really nice, realistic Custom tails from 230-345$. They're all really nice, and You design it yourself! Shipping is cheap too I think.

Good Luck!!!

[Mermaid Saphira]

Well, I'd reccomend Fish Butts. They have really nice, realistic Custom tails from 230-345$. They're all really nice, and You design it yourself! Shipping is cheap too I think.

Good Luck!!!

Keep in kind, she lives in Europe and would have to deal with expensive shipping ;)

[Mermaid Fenicia]

Shipping in the US will be done through USPS Priority Mail 3 - 5 Business Days FREE.
International shipping to CANADA is $30
International shipping anywhere overseas is $60.
Rush Delivery is also available for an additional $100. Rush Delivery is guaranteed to arrive within two weeks of ordering.

This is from there website ;) http://www.fish-butts.com/Ordering-Info-and-FAQ.html

[Lyna]

fish butts tails are retarded cheap and beyond amazing to swim in. they are realistic as well. about mid range realism. but the way they move and feel in water...oh my god. it's the best of all worlds. durable, realistic, comfortable, functional, and CHEAP! i wrote a review 2 nights ago on mine. make sure whoever you go with, you do your research and ask customers (and returning customers) because you don't want to get stuck with a useless tail (or in debt from something worthless like i did the first time around).

[Spindrift]

There's not much I can help you with in terms of your performance questions, since I don't perform, but I can have a go at your other questions.

There is actually an Italian tailmaker! His work is on Deviantart, but I have no idea if he sells his tails, or if they can be used underwater (I only saw them in shore shots).
Your tail care questions seem to be tailored (haha) to Mertailor latex tails. I would recommend in investing in a tail much more durable if you are going to perform. Fishbutts is a cheap alternative, from what I've heard, but there are also other tail makers that may fit your needs. There's a list of them on this forum if you're interested.

The insurance thing: basically this is so that venues who hire you won't have to be responsible for any accidents that might happen either to you or other people and that someone can pay for the damages, that kind of thing.

That's about it, right?

[Mermaid Annariea]

lira lives in europe, shes from france. from the pictures, her tails look quite nice (: or if youd be willing to pay the shipping, you could go with fish butts. their tails are less expensive than others, so the shipping wouldnt make it as ridiculously expensive as it would make buying a tail from another US tailmaker.

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Thank you very much for all your advices! You all really helped me :)
I think I'll buy my first tal from fish-butt, I love Stephany's creations!!!:D

I don't know who you're talking about Spindrift, do you remember his/her name?

Talking about the tecnical aspects of beeing a professional mermaid, someone can give me some advices for the perfomance and the rest? (related of not to what I wrote in the first message), I mean are my skills enought to start this job or not?What should I care about befor starting to promote myself?

[MermaidAliyah]

How do you keep the water out of your nose?

[Mermaid Kassandra]

I use different tecniques, it depends on what I do.... Sometimes I need to let a little part of water go up the nose, but it's very little so you don't even feel it

[Artisankatie]

I think you seem to have the perfect skills for a professional mermaid! You might want to work on being comfortable a little bit deeper, like to the bottom of a diving pool, if you have access to one. That way you can get some nice underwater photos and videos of yourself :)

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Well I can't access to a diving pool because here we don't have one, but I live close to the sea so I can searc for a deeper part of it where to practice :)

Thank you Artisankatie for your message and your advice! :D

For the photos and the videos I thought to ask to the Aquarium of Genoa if I can swim in one of their tank (maybe with harmless fish) to set up a little show (actually my first one) so they would have a unique attraction of its kind and maybe more costumers and I can have my photos and videos with a little advertising :) ,otherwise in Italy we have many water parks with dolphins, orcas and other creatures of the sea where I can ask for an engagement.

I have to set things in this way because I don't own an underwater camera and it would be too much expensive to buy and on my side I have the advantage that here in e
Europe there are few professional mermaids and here on the Mediterranean Sea there aren't.

[Mermaid Fenicia]

2 of the professional mermaids are living in the Netherlands. I live in Belgium, but as the prefer skinny mers here, I don't get many gigs :(

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Wow! It sounds quite strange because I know that people around there love mithical creatures.... specially mermaids

[Mermaid Fenicia]

It's mostly kids that love them here in Belgium, but not the grown-ups. They think it's stupid and childish to dress-up, no matter what outfit :(

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Oh it's so sad know this! They should think that it doesn't matter if it seems stupid or something like this, the real important thing is that see a mermaid would make their children happy as they can never be!And there are lots of things that the grown-up do that are childish!Moreover fantasy is what allow us to create all sort of things (we wouldn't have airplanes or even the atomic bomb if who inveted them wouldn't take inspiration from fantasy!)Everything comes out from a dream that is made of fantasy, so don't worry but be the fantasy and live the dream they will understand!Just try to promote yourself not only in your state but also in the other near and in some aquatic park (they have dolphins,orcas and their trusted costumers are children so they miss only you! :) )

[Mermaid Fenicia]

Not aloud to preform in water-parks or in aquarium here :( Belgium have very strict rules on safety :(

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Well, and if you have your own tank to swim in? Like the one that Mermaid Raven has, in this way you could work as a real mermaid in an aquatic park without swim in the pool with the animals and in compete safety :)It would be like you're a fish and you swim in your tank only to show yourself to people

[Mermaid Fenicia]

They don't do that here :( and I don't have any money of my own as I'm disabled, so I can't buy a tank. :(

[Mermaid Kassandra]

From what you say it seems that they don't want to hire a mermaid but let me tell you that if they would know how much money they could do with a mermaid the solution to the problem will come out by itself!

[Mermaid Fenicia]

I know, but they have a very strange way of thinking here :( The only mer-gigs I can do is dry events at kids-party's along with face-painting.

[Mermaid Kassandra]

Yes I agree with you....it'sa very strange way of thinking..... o.O
Well, I don't know if here in Italy it's different because it will took ages before I start to perform (if I manage to...) and I'll be the first professional mermaid here so everything is an unknown factor....and to be honest that really frightens me.
I want to ask to the Genoa's Aquarium if they let me to perform in one of their tank, but I don't even know if they'll take this seriously....

[Ashe]

Hi BlueHorse110! There is a thread for introducing yourself here! Go to The Chatterbox, then click 'Introduce yourself' You can start your own thread all about you there! With the keeping water out of your nose, you can blow a stream of bubbles from your nose when doing flips. But sometimes, you just get used to having a bit of water in your nose though, and it wont bother you after a while. That's what happened to me haha! But anyways, welcome to Mernetwork! :D