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View Full Version : Repainting FishButts Tail and adding fins



Prince Calypso
01-11-2013, 07:57 AM
So I've arranged to but Mermaid Stevi's Leopard print tail in a for a Spring Break mermaiding trip this March
and as much as I love the tails design and color, white is simply not one of those colors that looks good on me. Leopard print sure but white no
So i intend to repaint the Tail
but the only problem is, never having created a tail myself or even painted one before I have no idea what I am doing or even where to start.

Any suggestions or even full on answers to how I go about doing this would be greatly appreciated.
I know that Stevi did painted neoprene with silicone over it or something like that but can't you still pain silicone or am I just wasting my time here. I really want to do this right so I don't ruin Stevi's beautiful work

also how would I go about adding fins along the side of the tail and back

please any help would be great

Sammi Ray
01-11-2013, 08:18 AM
Ok had a quick look and you need pigmented paints, they are flossy finish but you might want to put some clear on to protect the layer of paint you have applied, some people like using spray. Depends on how much really you want to spend.

Silicone paints

Psycho Paint® (http://www.formx.eu/products/silicone1/psychopaint/index.php) is a versatile and easy to use platinum silicone paint base developed to help special effects and
prosthetic artisans, doll makers, etc. easily create painted-on color effects for their platinum silicone creations.
It is a two component translucent clear platinum-cure silicone that is used to make a base for color
pigmenting. Once the desired color is attained, Psycho Paint® is thinned with a solvent. Thin layers of paint
can be then be applied to a model’s surface (made of Dragon Skin®, Ecoflex® or other platinum silicone) using
an airbrush. It can also be applied by brushing.

here is a place i found to buy pigment paints (Not Psycho paints just normal pigment) it - http://www.mbfg.co.uk/silicone-pigments.html but you get the gist :)

Morticia Mermaid
01-11-2013, 10:00 AM
The problem is, without knowing what kind of silicone, or what brand, whatever you apply to it wont stick. When painting silicone, you have to mix it with the same silicone, otherwise it wont adhere to the tail.

SeaNymph
01-11-2013, 10:09 AM
Hey Pebbles, what clear-on can you recommend to protect the layers of paint? Is there a special company?

Mermaid Azira
01-11-2013, 10:11 AM
This thread is exactly what I've bee looking for.

Sammi Ray
01-11-2013, 10:21 AM
Very true. I am no way a pro, Nor have i painted silicone before, i just did some research on the net. If it's a fishbutts tail it should be dragonskin silicone so mixing the pigment with that should be fine (as far as i read up on mixing it) and she could also ask Stephanie which silicone she used on her tail. She might even recommend pigment paint that she used on the original tail :)

SeaNymphDanielle I'm sorry but i can not give a recommendation. Look it on it up on the net sweetie i'm sure there will be reviews out there which is the best :)

Prince Calypso
01-11-2013, 10:34 AM
STEVI!!!! HELP ME!!!!!

Mermaid Azira
01-11-2013, 10:47 AM
Copied and pasted from fishbutts facebook:

You can definitely paint it later if you decided to, but speaking from experience it is a difficult task to accomplish haha but you need silicone specific paint. I know Psycho Paint and Silc Pigs work and I think there's another kind that's less expensive. MerNetwork would have more answers on that. And I wont be doing any extra colors on them, just one, but I will do the extra fins for the additional $50. And I can make it pretty much any color you can think of I have all the primary colors and I'm pretty good at mixing colors, too

Sammi Ray
01-11-2013, 10:54 AM
Psycho paints work on it then :) that's lucky i posted that! Just search around to see who sells it cheaper!

AniaR
01-11-2013, 11:38 AM
...actually. the real problem is that the silicone isn't painted on that SPECIFIC tail, right? That tail she painted right onto the neoprene, and then put silicone over top. So I don't believe you can repaint it. You could re-silicone it with tinted silicone, but only the silicone that was used originally will bond to it.

Morticia Mermaid
01-11-2013, 11:42 AM
...actually. the real problem is that the silicone isn't painted on that SPECIFIC tail, right? That tail she painted right onto the neoprene, and then put silicone over top. So I don't believe you can repaint it. You could re-silicone it with tinted silicone, but only the silicone that was used originally will bond to it.

That is what I was trying to say xD

Sammi Ray
01-11-2013, 12:02 PM
Yes i do realise that. Thats why i mentioned the part of mixing it with the dragon skin. Should really get advice from the tail maker first. Just advising on paints and should be able to mix with pigment. So needs to find out grade of silicone.

Winged Mermaid
01-11-2013, 01:37 PM
Yes, if you get dragonskin and silicone pigments and mix them you can use it to paint your tail. Those pigment powders are DANGEROUS to handle without a proper respirator, as the particles are so fine. Make sure to buy a respirator to use when handling the pigments I would guess a P100, which filters at least 99.97% of airborne particles, but be sure to do your research. The saftey material data sheet says "Respiratory Protection: Follow OSHA respirator regulations 29 CFR 1910.134 and European Standard EN 149; wear an MSHA/NIOSH or European Standard EN149 approved respirator." You can even go to your local Lowes or Home Depot and ask to be sure you purchase the correct one.

Another concern is how many layers you will need to make the color you want. If it's a light color, it will take a lot of layers. Since the imbedding technique she uses makes for shallow scale indentions, you could lose a lot of detail when painting the tail, since you're adding extra silicone and taking away from what little depth is there. Just something that is possible that I want to give you a heads up about. But the more layers, the better. You will not get a good solid color in one layer of color, so take your time with it!

Prince Calypso
01-11-2013, 09:32 PM
*pouts* maybe i should just not buy the tail then. it seems like repainting it is either too involved or not possible without ruining the tail it's self and that's the last thing i want.
i really wanted this tail but i guess it snot meant to be

Mermaid Lorelei
01-11-2013, 10:57 PM
It's definitely possible to repaint it. She uses Dragonskin Platinum silicone, which most tail makers seem to use these days, and it's not terribly difficult to paint the tail itself. If you use an airbrush, you can lay on thin layers of color without resulting in too much texture loss on the scales. I've painted some of my own scales in this exact way using dragonskin and it's not too difficult if you take the time to do it right.
I'd be willing to paint it for you if you're at all interested. I can paint multiple colors and patterns as well.

Prince Calypso
01-12-2013, 04:09 AM
Lorelei have i mentioned that you rock
how much would you charge to pain it for me?

Mermaid Lorelei
01-12-2013, 06:44 PM
I'll pm you about it Calypso. And yes, you have mentioned it. <3

Prince Calypso
01-15-2013, 12:19 AM
so I've been messaging (bothering stevi for a few day about the type of pain she uses for the tail and she told me she uses Psycho paints and I've checked out the website but i have no idea what i should buy and how i should do this. My boyfriend offered to do the painting
(sorry Lorelei, he's doing the work for kisses, which is pretty much free)
he was like can't you just use any silicone based pain and an airbrush and i was like idk and started panicking which i have been doing for like a day now.
and way should use the silicone paint that Stevi used, which a big expensive and involved or should i just go buy a different silicone based paint
and after a do paint it to i need to use some kind of silent or over coat or something

Mermaid Lorelei
01-15-2013, 12:50 AM
You don't HAVE to use psycho paint. Basically, all psycho paint is is a container of dragonskin silicone. There's the slightest difference in consistency, but nothing important. The pigments offered on the website are very good pigments, but you don't have to use them. You can use other types of paint or powder pigments.
You will, however, need to make sure you do use Dragonskin silicone. That part is very important. You also don't need to seal the paint because it is mixed into the silicone itself. Hope that helps. :3