My first tail in the making :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Well I've been trying to work on my first tail for a while now. I made one that was all black, and I got stuck trying to figure out how to fix it so I started fresh on a new tail :) thought maybe if I posted my progress like everyone else does that it'd motivate me :) plus I'd love the feedback [emoji2] so I am super excited about finally having a finished tail! I'll post pics soon!

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/22/a11bc3e33a011a9d334b04a7103c2f50.jpg

I used safety pins and pinned myself into the fabric. I'm not sure of what kind of fabric it is cuz it was just some scraps I had at my house but I think it's great and I'm pretty sure it's water durable. Either way it's good for practice :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Got it sewed and cut!http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/22/87af2fcda674442750901a99996ab0a0.jpg

It has My monofin in it. I have a finis wave :)

[Mermaid Wesley]

Good job!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks! I didn't have enough fabric to make it not look like a manatee fin, so I added on a shower curtain extension to fit some kind of shape on it. Not sure how well it'll turn out when I figure out how to put a zipper or velcro or something in the fluke. Haven't figured it out yet.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/22/9212405e9f0e3fd79ac16158c3aef74d.jpg

Definitely enough fabric to make a design now! Haha.

Today I'm working on how to make a detachable monofin modification.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/22/00ed666a0b550919530a3578a0b684a6.jpg

It's a finis wave. Still sanding some stuff down and looking for tiny bungee chords today! Hope it works out how I'm thinking it on my head!

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Cool! Just watch out cos some fabrics can be quite heavy when its wet.

[Rebekah.fish]

Yea I'm gonna take it to the lake and just pin up the end to kinda take it for a test driv. And make sure It's okay. If not then I can at least use it for a pattern for my next one!

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/23/dc54eea4241fb493c0d7211dc4a1117c.jpg

Swatch tests for how I'm gonna paint my fluke! :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Just testing acrylic or fabric paint and seeing which works best on both the fabric and the curtain

[Carolina Mermaid]

Be careful with acrylic. I used that for my neoprene tail...did not go well.

[Rebekah.fish]

What happened to it?

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Acrylic paint washes off in water if you don't set it with heat. And you have to be very careful setting anything with spandex as it will melt.

[Rebekah.fish]

I'm using fabric paint anyways :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Gotta test the fabric in the water first before I get to painting and all that.

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/24/b5f994cc7ccdebcb1c71510c5507ece1.jpg

Water test was a success! Time to sew it into the fluke!! So excited! [emoji2] [emoji13]

[Rebekah.fish]

The fluke was just a tad see through so I may cover the whole thing in the white shower curtain. The curtain was a lot easier to paint anyways. I just gotta figure out how first. But I'm still making progress! I'll be pinning the mono in it today so I can shape the fluke how I want it :)

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/25/96c59f7cf6dc0b7da9a352dd9b76d5dd.jpg

Fits good! Real real tight though. Afraid it might need a zipper. But I'll be sewing up the end tomorrow!!

[Raayvhen]

In the water it won't be as tight.
i recommend adding an elastic waist.

[Rebekah.fish]

I already tested it in the water and it stays just as tight! It's not a stretch fabric, that's why. But that's a great idea though! How would I do that just fold the fabric over the elastic and sew? I may have to do that for another tail one day! Thanks for the advice!! :)

[Raayvhen]

Pretty much, you have to sew the elastic inside the fold without actually sewing the elastic. And you have to fully stretch it while sewing on a machine. Alternatively, sew the fold and leave a little hole where you thread the elastic through.

[Rebekah.fish]

Ah okay. That'd b a good idea for if I ever make it too loose at the top

[Rebekah.fish]

Finished sewing up the fluke!!

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/27/5a1aa668a98dd9a5532e2d5a8bade00c.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

The pint works wonderfully on the white but not so much on the blue fabric. So I'm wondering if I should make something like a slip cover out of the white plastic and cover the fluke or if I should just the a few pieces and sew it directly to the blue fabric. I wanna cover the fluke with white cuz it'll be so much easier to paint. Any advice??!?

[Carolina Mermaid]

Lookin good!

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks!! Any idea on how to paint the fluke??

[Carolina Mermaid]

How's it going? Any progress?

[Rebekah.fish]

Well, still trying to figure out how to paint it.. The fabric it's made out of doesn't like paint, but the white tips are easy to paint. So I think the first think I'm gonna try to do is paint the white tips to match the color of the tail. I wanted to paint streaks all over the fluke but... idk how to do that yet.

[Rebekah.fish]

So I didn't know what kind of design to d. For the fluke. I wanted lots and lots and lots of thin lines like the right, but thought it might be easier to do thick ones like the left.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/30/2da4b804431ba9b3c6169551f8d29538.jpg
(Ignore the ugly blue blob)

I drew guidelines on the fluke with a pencil in case I decided on thick lines instead.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/30/a5a4af221ba0d0cc7563e725707c13ae.jpg

What do u think?

[Carolina Mermaid]

That is going to look awesome!

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks! Do u like the thick lines or the lots and lots of thin ones?

[Carolina Mermaid]

Thin

[Rebekah.fish]

Well painting has begun! (Very slowly though cuz the game was on haha) I'll post pics of progress soon!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Looking forward to seeing it!

[Rebekah.fish]

Started painting last night!http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/31/4a1a5cc6de51d67ebdc65eb3e9f56768.jpg
Gonna cover the whole thing. Might add some dark blue too!

[Lydia Lobster]

:clap:

[Carolina Mermaid]

Nice!

[Rebekah.fish]

Finished the back. Not sure how I feel about it quite yet lol.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/31/a0be49f6352828f0ec82bdc80c4102ee.jpg

[teeth4u]

This looks really good! I love the paint job! So much detail :rainbow:

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks! I'm not gonna lie I kinda think it's ugly and I'm timid about painting the opposite side.

[Lostariel Telrunya]

It would be super cool if you slowly turned the lines into little dots as you go up the tail, that would give it a neat fading effect. I don't think it's ugly, and if you think so, just paint over it!

[Rebekah.fish]

Yea :) that would b neat! I was actually going to use some patchy scales

[Carolina Mermaid]

It's looking really really good!

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks!

[Rebekah.fish]

So I haven't worked all week cuz of school but it's 1 am and I finished homework soooooo
LET'S GOOOOOOO! I'm gonna start painting the top of the fluke :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Gotta kill it for tonight but here's what I got!
http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/09/03/90a352a2685c69a1b47aea5fea660a6d.jpg
This is the front/top of the fluke

[Rebekah.fish]

Finished it up this morning!http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/09/04/d8340da37d02599866f7002e94c9a7b2.jpg

So excited! Now to let it dry and then I'll start with some scales!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Wooooooow!!!!

[Rebekah.fish]

:)u like it?! I like it better than the back definitely

[Rebekah.fish]

Finally getting time from school to work a little!! Started scales today!! UBER EXCITED!!!

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/09/30/7806fba65b430ad8ce494a512f825995.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/09/30/ab2fcb9256e2128a49d3de94c386ff9b.jpg

Gotta head to school but good progress for a half hour!!

[Rebekah.fish]

I know I've gotten like very little done today, but I'm just so excited that I got to work on it again I can't help but to post :3 I don't get any time to work on it during the semester cuz I have so much homework to do so I'm just happy to be reunited with it. :)) here's what I got done today!

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/09/30/52972232cd971cd7657ca52a6be815cf.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

Made a bit more progress today with my little free time. I just got up an hour or two early to get some stuff done. :) I like it so far tho!

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/01/8ead21641b5430376083483502c17401.jpg

[Vela]

Your tail is awesome! I love the painted fluke and the scales are a nice touch! Can't wait to see more!!:)

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks! It's coming along slowly but I'm so excited! I'm gonna try to not cover the whole thing in scales so we will see how the patchy look turns out. I saw someone else do it so I'm taking the challenge!! :D

[Rebekah.fish]

The end of another productive day :)

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/01/01fa8b115be4a37cdbfe30a6195fbf72.jpg

Does the splotchy effect look weird?
I think I'm falling in love though :)))

[Rebekah.fish]

Finished up the whole front today! Time to flip over! :))) I can't believe how quickly it's coming together!!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Oh my God!

[Rebekah.fish]

U like it? Omg I'm so excited! I'm in love :))

[deepblue]

By splotchy effect, do you mean the pattern you put the scales in? Because I think they look really lovely like that. I didn't think 'splotchy' at all!

[Rebekah.fish]

Yea that's what I meant. Little patches. I didn't know how else to describe it. But ya its def growing on me! I love it now!! And thanks!! :)))

[deepblue]

It's more realistic, really- reminds me of the patterns on some fish, like Koi.

[Jadestone]

This looks super great!! Can't wait to see it finished :)

[Rebekah.fish]

This is the first side finished (the top doesn't have any yet cuz I usually roll that under a few times.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/02/7b307596caebae7668d15045f87335b8.jpg

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/02/8f083d519751ad58e01ff5a264167b5e.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

I've got a big essay due Monday so I probably won't be working again until after I turn that in. Here's what I got finished on the back last night though.

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/03/e0413536b3e0153701c0b1c0d14a0c5f.jpg

I didn't wanna put to many near my heals for fear if I have to stand then they'd get torn off. But think it's a good start :)

[Rebekah.fish]

I believe she's done :)

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/04/b4f4368563edb445f8e422a860d07b9c.jpg

This is the back finally finished. At least I think it is :) it's still drying now. I need to try it on and make sure there aren't any scales loose that will pop off when I put it on. That's what I'm worried about cuz this thing is skin tight. We will see. **fins crossed!!!**

[Carolina Mermaid]

That looks amazing!

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/05/16a6b2dc49a5b01f7844d11c2f16ff47.jpg
Still gotta add scales on the thigh area so it's not finished YET, BUT IT WILL BE! by the end of the week. :)) can't wait to test it in the water.

[Rebekah.fish]

That looks amazing!
Thanks!! :)) so excited!

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/05/8ee64100c4fa643ead5dd605d6b9c726.jpg

[Yulia]

From a distance, the spotted effect of the scales make such a nice look!

[Rebekah.fish]

I like it up close the best :)

[Mermaid Harmony]

How is the E6000 working for you are you glad you are using that and not sewing?

[Rebekah.fish]

So far yes! Today was the first time putting it on and they stayed on solid! Even with all the pulling and tugging. Idk how it'll go in the water yet but I've got high hopes! I've head it works decent, so I'll be excited to see. Fins crossed! Yea I'm definitely not a seamstress lol

[Rebekah.fish]

So I didn't have enough scales up towards the top so I'm still adding more. Here's what I got for now (front)

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/08/ccc413c0de9ace30741aa5b4e7613558.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

Finished the front! :)

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/08/c982488649bb7a5c75858c6ba2e62314.jpg

[Rebekah.fish]

I filled in the big stupid blotch on the back. I hope it doesn't look dumb :/ I'ma think on it and add a few things. We will see if I can fix anything to make it look less dumb. Just glad I finally got it done. (Been working for about 2 & 1/2 hours. It's almost 1:30)

[Rebekah.fish]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/13/16a92128ae717b15da4d337a2c569764.jpg

Here it is

[Rebekah.fish]

I'll keep an update as much as I can :)

[Rebekah.fish]

It's done!!!

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/17/3317ed008483b1eaa4d4588f9831bf7b.jpg

[deepblue]

So lovely! Really great job, Rebekah! :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Thank you!!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Yay!!!!!!

[Rebekah.fish]

What do u think??!! I'm so excited!!

[Mermaid Galene]

It's lovely! Nice job!

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks ^-^ I am actually gonna have to rip the seam and put a zipper down the side because it's so tight that a few scales fold when I have to pull it on. But I don't that that'll be too bad :) and until then it is still fully operational

[Mermaid Galene]

Yes, when there are a number of sequins on a tail, it's easy to damage them if there's no zipper.

[Rebekah.fish]

Yea I just found that out. But I think it'll be okay til I add the zipper :)

[Rebekah.fish]

Anyone have an idea of how to cover the zipper so kids can't see it?

[ShyMer]

I think most people add a dorsal fin to disguise the zipper. Hannah mermaid uses shelf liner sometimes and it looks quite nice. You could also paint neoprene to match your fluke.

[Rebekah.fish]

The zipper would have to go down the side. I'm gonna have to rip the seam and add it in if I put one in.

[ShyMer]

Just a silly idea- you could maybe play it up as a scar, like you got hit by a boat or something.

I don't know how hard it would be to do a hidden zipper with neoprene, but it might not really be that noticeable depending on how you sew it together. Maybe you could sew sequins right next to the seam on both sides?
Or you could modify the dorsal idea and do a potc mermaid side fin thing.

[Rebekah.fish]

I have seen people with fringe like that all the way up. I like the scar idea! Haha I really don't wanna put a zipper in. I want it to be done! I like it how it is, I just don't wanna risk tearing scales off every time I wear it :/

[ShyMer]

Did you just try to message me? My inbox was full... Don't think I've ever cleaned out out before today :/

[Rebekah.fish]

Bahaha that's okay :) I'll resend It tomorrow!

[Rebekah.fish]

I'm gonna be starting on another one soon!! Real excited about it. Should I post about my next one in here or on another thread? Btw I haven't swam in my first tail yet since I finished all the scaling. That will be happening this Sunday! So excited!

[Atlantisblue]

I'd personally be concerned about swimming in non stretchable fabric. Hope it works well for you :)

[Rebekah.fish]

I'm concerned about it a little for the scales sake, but I have swam in it several times already with no problems. Just hope the scales hold up! Cuz they r just glued on

[Atlantisblue]

That's great :) I love what you did with the scales, turned out good

[Rebekah.fish]

Thanks! My next one will be waaaaaay better. :))) it's the first tail I ever started. Just plain black tail of lycra. It's real nice but it's black lol and the fluke looks stupid. So it's gonna get a huge makeover. Can't let that fabric go to waste!