My Adventures in Silicone

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I've been working on my silicone tail for some time now....and I figured I'd finally post a thread about it!
Here is my design:
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I'm using a finis foil because I want my fluke to be really flowy. I've also never sculpted anything outside of the little cups that I made back in elementary school so...that was interesting!
Here is a progress shot:
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And here is the finished product!

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It's not perfectly symmetrical but that's okay. It's my first try, I don't expect it to be perfect.
The first scale mould I made failed. I pulled up too quickly and it cracked right down the middle. It also had a bunch of undercuts and the bottom near the feet was not wide enough. After that fiasco, I decided to sculpt each scale by hand out of clay.
They look like this:
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It took me and a friend about a month of sculpting and laying down scales to finish it, but it was worth it!
I also had a huge setback, getting money. But eventually I saved up and ordered my silicone! I only got one gallon order and a trial kit, mostly because that is all I had enough money for.
Once I got my silicone I did a few tests to get used to working with it. Here are the results:
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After I stopped freaking out about pouring large amounts of silicone, I dove right in.
Here it is unpainted:
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The only problem I seem to be having is painting. It takes so many layers to get the colors I want that the detail I spent hours adding to my scales is disappearing :thumbdown:
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I don't think there is anything I can do to stop it. But I guess it's okay, it is my first time making a silicone tail after all. It's just a little disappointing.
Anyway, I thought I'd post my progress here since that's how I got the courage to make one myself, by reading the threads of the talented people here making their own tails.
I'll post more as it gets done! :) This has been a very fun and interesting adventure.

[Mermaid Adriel]

GREAT! Can't wait to see more photos ^_^

[teeth4u]

This looks awesome! Love the fluke

[Lydia Lobster]

Wow!!! I like the colors.
What i am always wondering about is which paints do you all use for the silicone!?
My next Projekt will be a latex Tail - just because i know that i can paint it, unlike silicone... i am confused @_@

But: good job!!!

[Raayvhen]

@lydia Usually you pigment more silicone and airbrush it to paint.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks everyone! I've been painting all day and the front of my fluke is almost fully painted! Most of the texture I added with a fork when sculpting is gone, but it still looks good! I'll take some pictures once it's done curing.

[Lydia Lobster]

Thank you, Raayvhen, this is what i already know, but it looks like Nerissa is just painting her silicone.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I am painting by hand, but I'm still using pigmented silicone to do it. I'm pretty sure there isn't any other way.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Okay, the front of my fluke is done! I'm really happy with it, I think it looks just like my drawing. Scales are coming along nicely too.
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[Jessica]

Beautiful! The colors are lovely-- I can't wait to see this finished!!

[Lydia Lobster]

Ah,okay Nerissa. Sounds more plausible. But... in my job, i have to work with silicone and i know that cured silicone doesn't connect with liquid.
So i am STILL confused. Or what kind of silicone do you use? I heard that dragon skin silicone comes with special paints...?
I am so curious about this, sorry :$

[PearlieMae]

I recognize that jar of purple pigment! I love that there's another purple mermaid in the works!

Lydia, what she's doing, and correct me if I'm wrong, is mixing dry pigment into the same dragonskin silicone she's cast her tail and fluke from, and painting on top of it. The silicone fuses to itself and the paint layer becomes part of the tail.

Nerissa, you might need to add more pigment to your silicone to get the coverage you want. Be sure to test on some of your scraps, first!

Good luck! It looks GREAT!

[Lydia Lobster]

Okay, so i guess dragonskin is different than the silicone types at my work. Thank you!!!

[PearlieMae]

What kind of silicone do you work with? Dragonskin is 2-part, platinum-cure, prosthetic quality silicone rubber with a shore hardness factor of 10.

[Lydia Lobster]

Are you referring to me?
I am a dental technician and use silicones to duplicate models or mockups. So it needs different properties than dragonskin, i guess.

(I hope this is not too off-topic )

[PearlieMae]

Didn't mean to hijack your thread, Nerissa! (Thanks, Lydia!)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Here is todays progress!
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Here is a closeup, but the camera on my phone makes it look blue. 23641

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[Lydia Lobster]

:clap:

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I keep forgetting to post my progress! I finished the front, and painted both seams. I haven't painted the top few rows because I'm not sure if I want to blend the waist or not....I probably won't. 23827
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Okay...I finished painting the back (mostly, I just need to add a few layers near the top) and I just tried putting the monofin in.
Buuuttt it didn't fit :mad:
So I spent another forty five minutes getting it back out without ripping the tail. I'm so frustrated and disappointed right now that I want to cry....
It fits into the fluke just fine, but where the body of the tail meets the fluke isn't wide enough for the end of the foot pockets. I'm thinking the only thing to do is to take the fluke away from the body and add a few scales to the sides at the bottom.

[Chrissy]

It is looking really good!!!

[OceanRose]

Would it be possible to shorten the monofin by shaving some off the end? Although might be easier to just make more scales and lengthen the body.
Your tail looks beautiful ♥

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Would it be possible to shorten the monofin by shaving some off the end? Although might be easier to just make more scales and lengthen the body.
Your tail looks beautiful ♥
The problem isn't length. The monofin I'm using has your feet seperated a good two inches, and I think I forgot that when I was seaming! The footpocket part of the monofin can't fully flatten out because there isn't enough room, so I'm gonna have to take the seams out a little.

Also thank you everyone for the compliments!

[Mermaid Zandarra]

Ouch how frustrating :( Your tail is looking great though, so hopefully you'll be able to add a few scales around the foot pocket without too much anguish. Keep up the great work. Sending you good vibes that things fix up smoothly.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I'm taking today off of tailmaking, then I'll get back to work! I'm really hoping to finish by the weekend.

[Slee]

It's looking really lovely, you've got this. I was thinking about this project today while sitting in the chair at the dentist getting the last of my fillings.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Finally getting back into working on this thing. I haven't touched it in months due to school and sewing for a convention. Now that that's over I decided to try to get this thing done. I cut open the side that is too small for the monofin, and tried the tail on. It was too short. The thing is at least four inches too short. I know when I tried it on after seaming the second time, it came a bit too short in the back so I added a few more rows on. So the problem is the position of my monofin.
It's like this:
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My feet are where my ankles should be.
This is where it would need to be for it to fit correctly:
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The problem with that is that I cast my fluke pretty thin, so the thick ridges of the monofin would be suuuper obvious. I originally sculpted my fluke so the lines on it would match up with the ridges of the foil, but if I moved it down the thing would just look silly.
So I guess my next plan of action is to make a monofin that will work better. I can get a sheet of lexan from home depot for about 20 bucks, and scrap some old flippers for the foot pockets.
My plan is to use a shape like this:
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I might not have the money for a while but I refuse to give up on this tail!

[Ilyena]

Don't give up!!! everything is about learning, and it looks amazing so far. Even if it will take a while, doesn't matter <3

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Good news! Without the monofin, it fits perfectly!
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[Mer-gal]

Wow your tail looks great!!! I feel bad about the mono fin though. Good luck!

[Morticia Mermaid]

Looks great Nerissa! If you decide to make another one, try pigmenting the silicone when you pour your scales and fluke. When it comes to painting you wont have to do so many layers, so it helps keep more of the detail and you use less silicone :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I got my lexan and hopefully I can get my dad to cut it today! 26516

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Monofin is done! Now I just need to seal it into the fluke and attach the side fins!
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[Mermaid Leira]

Looking good! What did you cast your clay scale sheet with the second time Nerissa? :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I just used plaster again. But instead of wooden walls, I made a big cardboard box. When it was done, I carefully flipped it over then tore away the cardboard. Plaster works fine as long as you pour it thick and be gentle with it :)

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

More progress! My fluke is in two halves again and my monofin is sanded so it wont cut though. My next problem is that the footpockets are kind of boxy and give a weird shape. I'm thinking of making a neoprene cover type thing to smooth it out, but I wouldn't want to cover the whole thing.
Something like this:
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

So the struggle continues....
I tried making a neoprene cover, and it sort of worked but not really.
Of course, it looked better if I pushed the monofin up a bit so the footpockets are completely covered by scales, but doing that would return me to the problem of the tail being too short. That and I would have to cut the monofin to be more narrow. Ugh :cry:

[Dreadful Mermaids]

I love your tail so far. I hope you find an easy solution to your problem.
Best wishes
😍

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Alright problem solved! I ditched the footpockets and used the one from my broken magictail monofin!
NOW I can finally finish this tail!

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[Mermaid Leira]

You're so close now! It's going to be stunning!

[Dreadful Mermaids]

Awesome. Can't wait to see it

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thank you both for the encouragement! Half of the fluke is currently being re-glued (I can only do one side at a time due to lack of clothes pins lol) Hopefully I can finish this thing in the next few days! :dance:

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Woo more progress! The monofin is sealed into the fluke, the ankle seams are curing (I had to bring them in due to the fact that the new monofin has my ankles together), and my side fins are almost fully painted!

[JamesGunnels]

That's awesome! I cannot wait to finally start on making my tail! I ordered the monofin...it should be here by early to mid next week. I already did the molds for my ankle fins...but still need to get some silicone...ya know...most important element in making the tail and all :rainbow:

[MerQueen Nerissa]

IT'S DONE!!
And all packed up to go on a swim this weekend!
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[OceanWhisper]

congratulations, and well done! this is such a pretty tail :D the amount of work you did to achieve this is amazing, so any frustrations you had while making it should melt away when you swim in it the first time :) so pretty!

[Mermaid Nerida]

Wow! This looks so great! Congratulations, and I hope you have fun swimming!

Sent from my shell phone under the sea!

[Mermaid Leira]

It's beautiful can't wait to see a swimming pic :)

[Mermaid Alea]

Great job good luck with your first swim in your new tail! :D

[Little_Orca]

Looking good. Cannot wait to see action shots.

[Dreadful Mermaids]

:jawdrop: oh ... my.... mergod. :clap: amazing work. All your hard work paid off

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks everyone! Sadly I couldnt swim with my tail as the Kroc center decided that they don't allow monofins anymore.

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[Mermaid Alea]

I don't understand why some places don't allow monofins? Is it a liability issue or something?

I don't know if you have any colleges nearby, but you could try going to a college pool. No one said anything to me about the monofin and the old people there swimming didn't care at all. The lifeguards definitely didn't care. They were sitting there bored out of their minds.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I don't get it either. The thing that makes me really mad is that I wore a tail there less than a year ago and nobody said anything. Oh, that and the fact that halfway through my time there a bunch of girls started swimming in finfun tails, and nobody stopped them. Granted they didnt have the monofins, but to me , swimming in a tail without a monofin is even harder.

I'll definitely check out a college pool!

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[Lily]

I don't understand why some places don't allow monofins? Is it a liability issue or something?

Pretty much. It's a safety issue for others in the pool, especially during open swim. A lot of pools don't allow fins of any kind (unless it's part of a class and they've signed a waiver) because they can't take the risk of someone taking a fin to the eye and suing the place.


@Nerissa, I'm so sorry you couldn't swim in that fabulous tail! Hopefully you'll find someplace that will let you mermaid to your heart's content!

[Mermaid Nessie]

Most pools don't allow any kind of tails, monofin or even flippers due to liability issues, which is understandable. Not only can you injure someone, you can injure yourself, the pool, even if your tail drips water on the pool deck and someone (or you) slip. They just want to look out for everyone's safety and be able to cover their asses if something goes wrong. If you have insurance for your company it can sometimes help but not always. I had this problem when I came to Newfoundland. None of the pools will let me swim here.

[Yulia]

It's beautiful! Great work!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I finally got to swim in my tail! It was AMAZING!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz9rpl-Ns2k

[Mermaid Mystery]

the Kroc center in San Diego? ugh I wanted to swim there during my brother's hockey tournament SO BAD.


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[Mermaid Mystery]

also your tail is stunning!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

No it was the kroc center in Grand Rapids. The rules might not be the same at yours though.
And thanks!

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[Mermaid Wesley]

Beautiful!!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

I'm thinking about making a new tail so I've been playing around with individual scales!
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[JamesGunnels]

IKEA bags have so many uses! lol

[MerQueen Nerissa]

More scales!
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The lighter ones are eyeshadow/old reflex violet pearlex. The darker ones are ultra violet, and I'm currently waiting on scales to cure that I pigmented with the iridescent violet.
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[Mermaid Pickles]

Oooh purty!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I've made almost fourty scales now! But now I'm starting to question the shape. I like them individually but not so much in a group. I'm worried that they look too busy.
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Here's an individual one:
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[Yulia]

I like them very much in group, I think they will look even better when you have more of them.
Further away the ridges will help to keep a fishy feel to them, but without a complicated pattern.

[Mermaid Alea]

I agree with Yulia. I really like detailed scales and there are several tails out there that have detailed scales that look very pretty up close or from a distance. :)

[Ashe]

Ah! Just saw the finished tail :D It looks really nice

[Mermaid Alea]

Wait...It's finished?

[Ashe]

Wait...It's finished?
On the third page she said the tail was finished and was packing it up for a swim! I think she is working on a new tail now :)

[Mermaid Alea]

Ooh okay I thought you were talking about this new one with the shell scales. :doh:

[Ashe]

Ah no worries, I was late to see the finished tail :P

And the new scales look really nice! In the picture where the color is just solid purple, they kinda blend into each other and get lost. The ones that have the purple gradient look very clean though!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Ah no worries, I was late to see the finished tail :P

And the new scales look really nice! In the picture where the color is just solid purple, they kinda blend into each other and get lost. The ones that have the purple gradient look very clean though!

The thing is that the tail will mostly be solid purple, like my first tail. So the weird blend into each other thing would happen a lot.
Right now I'm working on some other scale shapes, hopefully I can figure out one that works better.

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[Yulia]

The thing is that the tail will mostly be solid purple, like my first tail. So the weird blend into each other thing would happen a lot.
Right now I'm working on some other scale shapes, hopefully I can figure out one that works better.

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You could do some scale tipping maybe? Not everywhere, but like in patches.

[Ashe]

Maybe switch up some of the scale designs as well (not on the actual tail, just testers) so you might find a design that works with the color scheme. Maybe some without the ridges, some without the scalloped edge. Or maybe try the ridges but only on the bottom part of the scale!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I ditched the shell design altogether. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do with all of the scales I made...
Anyway, I really like pointed scales, but they don't really work with my design. So I went with rounded off pointy scales!
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Hopefully these ones work out :D
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Scale batch #1 curing!
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[Mermaid Alea]

Oooh so pretty!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Woo!
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[merkitty]

I ditched the shell design altogether. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do with all of the scales I made...

I think they look great! But if you don't love them and don't know what to do with them I have a few ideas! If you have enough you can make a scale cuff, groups of scale patches that can be glued onto the body for a "growing scales" look, make a mini tail for a doll, glue the scales onto a cover of a notebook, If you are up for making more scales, you could make a lovely top :)

[Mermaid Wesley]

Are those shell shock molds? If so, are you pouring or brushing?

[Ashe]

I really like these!

[Rett]

Awesome work! :D

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I think they look great! But if you don't love them and don't know what to do with them I have a few ideas! If you have enough you can make a scale cuff, groups of scale patches that can be glued onto the body for a "growing scales" look, make a mini tail for a doll, glue the scales onto a cover of a notebook, If you are up for making more scales, you could make a lovely top :)
Ooh a notebook cover sounds awesome! I'm working on a "mermaid handbook" in the perspective of my charter in the book I wrote with a friend, and scales as the cover would be perfect!


Are those shell shock molds? If so, are you pouring or brushing?
No, I'm using the "amazing" casting resin you can get at hobby lobby and Michaels. I'm not sure if this applies to shell shock, but I'm pouring and it captures every detail just fine.

I really like these!


Awesome work! :D
Thanks!
I'm out of silicone (I was just using leftovers from the first tail), so I'll ordering a couple trial kits monday. I also bought a bunch of glitter today, because I freaking love sparkles and I want this tail to be magical!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

I had just enough silicone left to do some tests with the glitter! I think I'm going to get some that matches the dark purple better, but what I have right now will look great on the lighter colors of my tail.
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The second picture is obviously out of focus, but it shows the sparkle!
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This one is just clear with sparkles, which is what I'm planning on doing for a blended waist.
I have a couple other scales curing, but after that I won't have any new progress until my new silicone gets here (hopefully by the end of the week)

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[Mermaid Alea]

Oh my gosh that clear sparkly one!!!! :swoon:

[PearlieMae]

Nicely done!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I am so glad I decided to change my scales because I am SO in love with these!
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I also bought some new glitter that'll go well with my dark purple/violet.
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I'm also planning on getting my powermesh/making my leg dummy by the end of the week!
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Okay wow it's been a while since I've posted any progress on this. I have about 80 scales now (once I clean out my new mold I'll be able to make 15 at a time so it'll go faster), but no other progress. My plan WAS to buy a leaderfin monofin and then start working on sculpting the fluke, but now I'm questioning what monofin I really want. At first I thought I really wanted a big monofin so I could have a big fluke and swim really fast, but now that I've swam in my first silicone tail (which has a pretty big monofin), I'm thinking that I like my softer, smaller monofins better.
So now I guess I need to figure out which smaller, softer monofin I want to get. I really love my foil but it's a pain to deal with rubber and silicone. I can fit my feet into
both the wave and the rapid, but they both have those bulky strap things on the side. Then there is the hydra, but that also has the bulky strap things, plus it looks like it really separates your legs, the foil and rapid do this as well but in some pictures the hydra looks like it does it even more.
So I guess I'll continue working on scales until I figure out what the flip I want to do for the monofin :rollover:

[PaolaMF]

we need more pitcures !!!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

we need more pitcures !!!
I promise I'll add pictures when there is something exciting to see!

I haven't done much with this lately because I've been working on tails for friends, and my little brother! I did however buy my monofin! I decided to go with the finis foil after looking through some threads and watching some youtube videos. I know you can't go very fast in them, but I'm a sucker for flowy, floppy flukes!

[Samantha Sleeman]

Hi, a little bit of help here for you re painting etc.
If you paint the tail after the cure time (48 to 72 hours max) then the silicone paint will not stick too well (it will peel off here and there)
It all has to be done so fast that you have to be very very organised and often involves 15 hour days!
Again, adding scales etc once that vital cure time has passed is nigh on impossible, for a good bond, unless you use something called silpoxy (from Smooth on)
When you design your next tail make sure the contour between fluke and leg part flows smoothly, allowing for the extra space required to locate the fin, both on the fluke and leg part (make sure they are the same too)

Hope that helps :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I don't have any actual tail progress, mostly because of college and anime conventions, but I did finally figure out a design that I love!
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I'm pretty sure the fluke is going to end up being pretty big, which brings me back to deciding on a monofin. But I'm going really slow with this so I have time to figure it out!
Winter break is coming up so hopefully I'll have time then to actually work on the tail!

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[Luna Dreamtide]

Very pretty design! And looking back through the thread I have to say I love those clear sparkly scales too :)

[Mermaid Clara]

I don't have any actual tail progress, mostly because of college and anime conventions, but I did finally figure out a design that I love!
34169
I'm pretty sure the fluke is going to end up being pretty big, which brings me back to deciding on a monofin. But I'm going really slow with this so I have time to figure it out!
Winter break is coming up so hopefully I'll have time then to actually work on the tail!

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Beautiful design!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks everyone for the kind words!! I'm still going slow and steady with this, but I've got at least enough scales to cover half of the front of a tail. I've also ordered a lighter purple/violet pigment so I don't have to mix that color every time I make scales, and it'll also be more consistent that way. I'm not sure how much I'll be able to work on it for the remainder of winter break, as I need to make a tail for the winner of my raffle.

[Adalira]

Wow, it is looking beautiful so far! Can't wait to see more progress, good luck! :-)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Here are the scales I've got so far!
(My phone seems to hate purple, none of the pictures I take ever show what it really looks like)
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I laid it on top of my partial tail for scale. They reach a few rows above the knees, and the final tail will probably be shorter than the partial one, so I'm farther along than it looks.
I've got powermesh now, and I'll be ordering another trial kit of silicone to tide me over until I save up enough for the gallon kit and monofin.
I'm hoping to get my butt in gear and try to finish this thing before summer!

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

I finally made a leg form and covered it with powermesh!
Here are all of my current scales pinned onto it.
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The color is definitely not that blue in real life, I wish I could photograph the real color!
I'm still not 100% sure on the lighter purple, so for now I'm going to focus on the darker scales.

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[Luna Dreamtide]

That looks so pretty! I can't wait to see it done - I loved your design.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Okay, so we're rolling again! I just got another trial kit, and I'm hoping that it'll cover at least the rest of the front!
I decided against the lighter purple I had, it just looked kind of weirdly brownish in some lighting. I picked up a jar of misty lavender pearlex, and while it looks really cool, I'm not sure that it matches. I just ordered a sample of a cooler toned lavender, so hopefully it's nice! I'll probably mix the misty lavender into the new one.
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I does look really nice with flash though!

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[Kait]

Just read through your entire thread. Wow your first tail looks exactly like your drawing! Second tail looks like it's coming along nicely. Love love love the dark purple, hope the new lavender works out for you :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks Kait!
I don't have much more progress, but I did finally find a lighter purple that I like! Once I'm done with my current tail order, I'll be able to get back to working on this!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BDlubp1gJdL/
I'm a bit farther than that now, the front should be done by the end of the week! It's hard to balance school, making tails for customers, and making my tail!
But I just ordered my leaderfin, so excited!!!

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[Mermaid Summerlilly]

Yayyyy! I just found this and I will be stalking this thread for progress reports! I love your first tail and this one is coming along beautifully! :jawdrop::swoon::drool::dance:

[Mermaid Tami]

I am so glad I decided to change my scales because I am SO in love with these!
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I also bought some new glitter that'll go well with my dark purple/violet.
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I'm also planning on getting my powermesh/making my leg dummy by the end of the week!
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I love these! I really wanted to do dark purple but I couldn't find the sequins in the color I wanted!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I love these! I really wanted to do dark purple but I couldn't find the sequins in the color I wanted!
Thanks!
I know cartwright has a darkish purple for their smaller sequins but the color rubs off really easily.

I got my leaderfin, it's huge! I might end up changing my fluke design a bit so it'll work with the fin better, I don't want my fluke to be too gigantic!
Finals week is next week, but after that I'm free and I can focus on getting this tail done!!

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Got my fluke all drawn out, it's gonna be huge! It's just over three feet wide and three feet long. I can't imagine how people make/swim in bigger ones! 36726
I've also made a couple darker purple scales for the back, but I used some lumiere paint to pigment them,and they turned out kind of sticky. I'm gonna give them some more time to cure to see if it'll go away.
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[Kait]

Oh no for some reason I can't see the fluke design attachment!
Beautiful dark purple, reminds me of like a midnight purple.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Tapatalk is being weird for me right now, hopefully this attachment works! 36728

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[Mermaid Julianne]

Yep! The attachment is working, and your design looks great!

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[Kait]

OOOO I love it! :D

[Coral Corey]

You are doing great!

[MerChemi]

I really love the shape of your scales, and your fluke is so unique!! I can't wait to see you pull the fluke!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Yep! The attachment is working, and your design looks great!

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OOOO I love it! :D


You are doing great!


I really love the shape of your scales, and your fluke is so unique!! I can't wait to see you pull the fluke!

Thanks everyone!

I don't have much progress, because I'm working on a tail order at the moment, and I still need to go buy clay. I really wanted to finish before summer, but now my goal is sometime in june!!

I've also been working a bit on my first silicone tail when I have the time. I took the polycarbonate monofin out and moved the scales farther up on the fluke, to give the tail more length. I went back to my original plan of having a foil in the tail, and used some extra silicone calking to seal the new monofin in there and make the fluke a little thicker. I can't wait to swim in it again, the fluke is really floppy now! Now I've just gotta take the top in a bit and fix up some small tears and it'll be ready to go! :D

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Just bought two big blocks of plastalina clay! I can't wait to start sculpting!

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[Mermaid Lieke]

Your first tail looks great! And I can't wait to see you second tail! I'm also considering to buying a leader fin, how did you decide on the stiffness of the blade?

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Your first tail looks great! And I can't wait to see you second tail! I'm also considering to buying a leader fin, how did you decide on the stiffness of the blade?

I wanted to get whatever hardness was closest to the competitor, and after asking and doing some research I came to decide on the medium stiffness. I still haven't swam in it so I'm not sure how it'll look but it's pretty stiff, but I can bend it pretty easily with my hands. I think it'll flow nicely underwater but also have good power!

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

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Started sculpting today! I forgot how much work it was. But I'm really excited to finally be working on the fluke!
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[Mermaid Jaffa]

Ooo! Beautiful work!

[Mermaid Tami]

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Started sculpting today! I forgot how much work it was. But I'm really excited to finally be working on the fluke!
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I can't wait to see it! I've been working on my sequined tail but I'm considering a silicone one for the future. This post has been very helpful!!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Since I'm using plaster for my side fin and fluke moulds, I did a little test with clear spray paint to see if it would seal the plaster so the pulls would be shiny, and it worked! 3693336934

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[Mermaid Lieke]

Since I'm using plaster for my side fin and fluke moulds, I did a little test with clear spray paint to see if it would seal the plaster so the pulls would be shiny, and it worked! 3693336934

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Cool! I'm so happy that it worked out for you too ;-)

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[Aziara]

Could you take a picture of the clear spray paint you used? I would like to use something to seal my molds as well, and I have no idea of what to look for.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Could you take a picture of the clear spray paint you used? I would like to use something to seal my molds as well, and I have no idea of what to look for.

I keep forgetting to do this for you! But I'm pretty sure any clear spray paint would work.

I've been working hard on my fluke, and I sculpted and moulded my little calf fins! 3697936980

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[The Water Phoenix]

The sculpts are coming along wonderfully! :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I'm almost done sculpting my fluke! I just need to do the scales at the top and blend them in.
I also added a little seahorse! It's really subtle, but super cute! I love it.
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

I'm a bit farther than this now, but I'm really excited about the scale transition! It's pretty hard to sculpt such tiny scales, but I'm really loving how it looks! 3707237073
My gallon order of silicone is arriving today, and I'm hoping to make my fluke mould tomorrow! I also casted my little calf fins, but I'm gonna wait to post a picture until I have both of them pinned onto my leg form.
My plan is to finish by the time I leave to visit family in Canada at the end of June!

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Here is what I have pinned now! I've got a half light half dark batch of scales curing now, and once they're done I can finish pinning the front!
I'm not 100% on the belly length, I might make it start a bit higher, but I'll wait to see how it looks with more scales before changing it.
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Also, I'm super close to being done sculpting my fluke! I'm hoping to make the mould tomorrow!
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[Dancing Fish]

so pretty! I love purple. :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I finally finished sculpting the fluke! Tomorrow I'll be making the mould! I'm really excited but super nervous.
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[Mermaid Keena]

Great job!!!

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[Mermaid Lieke]

Your tail will be super pretty! Do you also find that the silicone feels sticky? Or did you do anything to it to make it less sticky?

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[Merman Arion]

I love watching your progress! Great job so far! :clap: :hail:


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[moniee]

This is looking breathtaking so far!! Keep it up!!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks everyone!
I made my fluke mould today and it turned out really nice! There are some bubbles but nothing major. I'm really excited! 37141

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[Lotus the Mermaid]

Love this so much!!! Go, go, go!! :cheerleader:

[Kait]

Fluke mould looks great! Can't wait to see how it turns out :) yay for purple!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Purple is the best!

Also, I finished pinning the front! (and the sides!
Now that it's all on there I really like how the belly looks! I can't stop looking at it.
Now onto the back!
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[MerQueen Nerissa]

I looked back at my design and decided I wanted the belly scales to be in more of a v shape, so I rearranged the scales a bit. I like it a lot better now!
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[Mermaid Julianne]

I like it too, it looks great!

[MermaidClaudy]

OMG I have read through the allllll thread, your tails look amazing i can't wait to see it finished!

[Hydra1337]

I love how the belly looks after you pointed it at the bottom. I can't wait for updates.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I've got no pictures, but I thought I'd give a quick update on the tail.
I'm one batch of scales away from being done with the back, and I've unpinned the scales on the front, washed them, and given them a clear sparkly top coat.
I'm working on casting my fluke, and I'm hoping to have the one half fully casted today (I'm coloring the silicone as I cast, instead of painting afterwards, which is why the casting is taking longer than it would normally) Hopefully this way I wont lose much of the texture I sculpted into the tail!
Tonight I'll be unpinning the back and washing them, then topcoating them. While that's going on I hope to start sealing the front scales.
My deadline is next friday, and I fully intend to meet it!
Pictures soon! :)

[Hydra1337]

I can't wait to see pictures. What's the deadline for? A gig?

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I can't wait to see pictures. What's the deadline for? A gig?
I'm going on a camping trip with my friend Mermaid Shaylee (who has a thread going here for her own absolutely beautiful tail) that's near a really nice lake, and we both planned on having our tails done so that we could get some pictures and video there!

[Hydra1337]

Cool. I'm gonna go find her thread now. :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Here's a sneak peek of the fluke, and a progress shot of sealing the scales! I've sealed up to the knees now, and I'm hoping to finish sealing the front tonight!
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[Hydra1337]

It looks awesome so far!

[Mermaid Alea]

I love the fluke! I am always a fan of the scales continuing onto the fluke and getting really tiny like that. :)

[Hydra1337]

Agreed. It makes tails look so realistic that way.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Front is sealed, and I added some of the blue spots! I'm going to add some lighter blue ones as well.
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I've also sculpted my side fins, and I'll be making the mold for them today.
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Also today, sealing as much as I can on the back! I only have a few days left to meet my deadline!

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[MermaidClaudy]

OMG this is going to look amazing!!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Today's progress: turns out I didn't have enough scales for the back (honestly I have NO idea how that happened, unless I lost some scales during the washing/topcoating step), so I'm waiting on a batch to cure. Hopefully two batches will cover the rest! Then tomorrow will be a sealing spree! I know I can get the whole back sealed in a few hours if I focus on it.
I made the mold for my side fins, and casted one set, tomorrow I'll do the other set.
If I have to, I'll be pulling an all-nighter tomorrow night to get this thing finished for my trip this weekend. I'm leaving friday around 5 p.m.

[Ashe]

I love how intense those purple scales are! I'd love to see them in the water :)

Now just make sure you don't push yourself to the point where you make a big mistake when rushing to get this done by the weekend. I've had instances where I try to get a tail done before a vacation and end up setting myself back weeks in progress (or trashing the whole project) because I got too caught up and wasn't thinking. Good luck regardless! I'm excited to see this done :)

[merwandering]

So close and sooooo exciting! Totally do-able, it will easily be ready!! I love your sculpts.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I love how intense those purple scales are! I'd love to see them in the water :)

Now just make sure you don't push yourself to the point where you make a big mistake when rushing to get this done by the weekend. I've had instances where I try to get a tail done before a vacation and end up setting myself back weeks in progress (or trashing the whole project) because I got too caught up and wasn't thinking. Good luck regardless! I'm excited to see this done :)
Oh I'm totally aware that rushing can lead to some huge mistakes. I'm a cosplayer and I've had lots of costumes be less than presentable because I rushed when making them. I'm trying to be very careful and still do a good job on this even though I'm working fast. But thanks for the concern! :)


So close and sooooo exciting! Totally do-able, it will easily be ready!! I love your sculpts.
Aah thank you!! Your tail turned out amazing, it's really comforting to hear you say that :)

I should be able to get most of it done today! My second batch of scales is almost done curing, and I'm about to go topcoat my flukes. If the second batch of scales ends up being enough to cover the tail, I'll start sealing, and if not, I'll make another and work on putting the fluke together while those cure!!
Full steam ahead!! :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Update: the back is 80% sealed! I was going to stay up late to finish it but I really needed sleep. It should only take me an hour or two to finish it.
It also turns out that I have until Saturday morning now, so I can definitely get it done! :)

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[MermaidClaudy]

Show us :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Well, since I had to make almost three batches of new scales, I don't have enough silicone to finish :(
But that's okay, because I was super stressed about finishing this tail for my trip, and not having to worry about it now makes me feel so much better!!
I'll be ordering a trial kit, and hopefully finishing up the tail next week! :) I can't wait to swim in it!!
If I ever make another silicone tail, I'll definitely be ordering two gallon kits instead of trying to make just one work. Lesson learned!!


Show us :)
I'm waiting to post pictures until it's done ;)

[Hydra1337]

How many trial kits did you need after the gallon unit?

[MerQueen Nerissa]

How many trial kits did you need after the gallon unit?
I used two trial kits before ordering the gallon unit, and I need one more to finish the tail. So three trial kits and one gallon unit.

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Update!
I've sealed the whole tail and tried on the body!!
It's kinda loose behind the knees, but I'm hoping that the water pressure/suction will fix that. I really don't want to have to bring it in, I love that it's seamless right now!
Here's a crappy cell phone pic :P
38045
I'm working on assembling the fluke right now, and I'm hoping to attach it later tonight.
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[Hydra1337]

Omg it looks perfect!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Omg it looks perfect!
Thanks! I love it!!

Update #2: fluke is together! I used caulking to seal it so it'll be glued to the monofin. It seems to have worked really well. Now I'm just waiting until that's fully cured so I can go over the edges with dragon skin to make it smoother.
Also, I'm finally casting my second hip fin! I'll be attaching those and my little calf fins tonight :)
Hopefully I can finish the tail tomorrow!!

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[MermaidClaudy]

WAou!!!

[Merman Arion]

Very exciting! Great work so far. You're so close! :clap: :clap: :clap:


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[Mermaid Keena]

oooh love the little dots! how did you get them so round? did you use a stencil thing? =D

[MerQueen Nerissa]

oooh love the little dots! how did you get them so round? did you use a stencil thing? =D

Nope, I free handed them!
The trick is to let the silicone cure a little bit so it's not as runny when you paint them on :)

[Keiris]

It looks awesome Nerissa! You're doing a spectacular job!

[Mermaid Keena]

Wow! Great job! 😄😄 Im definitely needing to practice my freehanding with silicone haha

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thank you both!

I'm currently attaching the scales to the fluke on the back, and as soon as it's cured I'll be seaming up the sides at my heels/ankles, then the tail will be done!!
Just in time for a gig I have Saturday! :yay:

[Mermaid Caspiana]

Just went through this whole thread. I love your tails! Especially this one! It's coming along so nicely and I can't wait to see it all done!!! *clapping* <3

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I'm so excited right now, the last bit of seaming/ attaching is curing right now!!
I'll be posting pictures as soon as it's done! And hopefully I'll be able to go for a swim after my gig tomorrow! I even have my underwater camera with me so I can get some video with it! :dance:

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Here's the finished tail!!!
38079
Its not the best picture but I'll probably get some better ones from my gig tomorrow.

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[Mermaid Wesley]

Woo!


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[Keiris]

Your hard work has really paid off!!! It's gorgeous!

[The Water Phoenix]

It's beautiful! :)

[Mermaid Keena]

Omg well done its beautiful 😍

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[MermaidClaudy]

OMG THIS IS BEAUITFULL!!!!!

[Mermaid Julianne]

Nerissa it's absolutely gorgeous! Congrats!!!!

[Mermaid Tami]

Beautiful!!!


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[MerQueen Nerissa]

Thanks everyone! I love it, and it swims great! The fluke moves just like I wanted it to :)
Now I just need to get to some deeper water so I can really utilize the leaderfin!
Here are some pictures from Mermaid Shaylee's thread. I love seeing two tails I designed come to life!
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[aureliamermaid]

Thanks everyone! I love it, and it swims great! The fluke moves just like I wanted it to :)
Now I just need to get to some deeper water so I can really utilize the leaderfin!
Here are some pictures from Mermaid Shaylee's thread. I love seeing two tails I designed come to life!
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38370

It's gorgeous!!! You're an amazing artist! [emoji1]


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[Sammi_Ray]

Looks amazing!! :-) great job!

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[MerQueen Nerissa]

So, it's time to work on this tail again!
I've decided that I really don't like my leaderfin. As cool as it is to be super powerful in the water, and have a huge fluke that the monofin fills most of, I really just can't see a need for it. It's very difficult to swim in more shallow water or pools because the fin is so large and is meant for deeper water. It also puts a lot of strain on my ankles which worries me.

So, I'll be taking the leaderfin out and putting in a mahina! I have one that I'll be putting into my partial silicone tail that I have planned (which hopefully I can sneak into my production lineup), and I really love it, I also love how my friend Mermaid Shaylee seems to be able to move her fluke around much easier than I can. I'll probably have to do some work with caulk to make the ridges of the mahina less visible, since my fluke is a bit wider than it, but I have a ton of caulk laying around that I can't use for the tails I sell, so that shouldn't be a problem. I'll also have to take in the ankles a bit most likely, but hopefully I can keep the seams pretty hidden!!

[MerQueen Nerissa]

Started tail surgery today, I got the leaderfin out of my fluke pretty easily! Next is to seal in the mahina, and then try it on to see how much I'll need to take it in!

[Mermaid Maris]

I am thinking about making a silicone tail and I have a few questions. How do you seal the scales? And how do you glue the monofin in?

[MerQueen Nerissa]

I am thinking about making a silicone tail and I have a few questions. How do you seal the scales? And how do you glue the monofin in?

Scales are sealed with more dragonskin. Since dragonskin will only stick to dragonskin, I used silicone sealant to glue my monofin into the fluke.


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[Mermaid Maris]

Scales are sealed with more dragonskin. Since dragonskin will only stick to dragonskin, I used silicone sealant to glue my monofin into the fluke.


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So you just paint more silicone over it, or stick the scales together with the silicone?
What silicone sealant did you use?
Also, thanks for replying! :)

[MerQueen Nerissa]

So you just paint more silicone over it, or stick the scales together with the silicone?
What silicone sealant did you use?
Also, thanks for replying! :)

You do both!
And I used ge silicone 1.


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[Mermaid Maris]

You do both!
And I used ge silicone 1.


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Thank you so much!

[Mermaid Arietta]

Here's a sneak peek of the fluke, and a progress shot of sealing the scales! I've sealed up to the knees now, and I'm hoping to finish sealing the front tonight!
3773637737

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That is gorgeous!!

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[Mermaid Arietta]

Thanks everyone! I love it, and it swims great! The fluke moves just like I wanted it to :)
Now I just need to get to some deeper water so I can really utilize the leaderfin!
Here are some pictures from Mermaid Shaylee's thread. I love seeing two tails I designed come to life!
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38370
I am in love with that blue one!! Wow you did an amazing job!!

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