Finfolk Productions: anyone ordered a tail from them? I just did!

Sorry Marlin and Octavia, I didn't see your message until now :( Just message them again, I know there's a few times they didnt answer me for a while and when I sent a follow up they had honestly just forgotten to write me back. They only just now got a few of the studio assistants back and are starting to get back on track from being a bit behind in May.

Ayla, I felt a bit ackward about it too, but I honestly worried for nothing :) They were SO sweet and even talked about how they wish everyone could come in to get measurements done personally and talk because it just makes things so much easier them. I do not regret going to them at all, it was cool to see the studio and know personally who is making my dream come true haha :) You're going to love it!
I got to see a few peoples tails who are on here and let me just say, they are looking BEAUTIFUL! ;D

Arion, your tail is gorgeous, congratulations! <3 I absolutely adore that dorsal fin!

Honestly, I'm starting to really fall in love with Finfolk's tails; I always figured that if I ever got myself a silicone tail in a few years' time that it would be a Merbellas tail, but I genuinely think Finfolk is now at the top of my list if I ever do decide to order one! (The design I'd want costs about the same from either maker anyway-- excluding shipping-- just the Finfolk would be ~$25 cheaper.)

I've been trying to get a reply from the girls for a few weeks now; I know they are super busy but even though they said FB is the best way to contact and still are posting all the time my messages are unread. Suggestions? I've even posted to the page too. :(

Blaze currently because of them being so busy their number one priority is talking to their current customers. They are trying their best but it might take some time


~Mermaid Sirenia~

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Originally Posted by Blaze

I've been trying to get a reply from the girls for a few weeks now; I know they are super busy but even though they said FB is the best way to contact and still are posting all the time my messages are unread. Suggestions? I've even posted to the page too. :(

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It'll take a while :/ I think we're all trying to message them and the new Facebook pages (for me at least) seem to make it harder to see/reply back to messages. They told me my tail should get started this week last week and I haven't heard back from them as well on any updates or anything. I really wanna send them coffee for moral support lol, but I dunno.

If you read the comments on their posts, even though it states almost everything in their faqs and its super easy to find, regular people seem to have no common sense and still ask questions without researching which have been answered numerous times all around. I'm guessing they're also flooded with questions like so as well :/

Okay, playing the devils advocate here for all the people who don't jump to reading the faqs section of designers websites. I am new to the mer world. When I first learned about the tails (a few weeks ago), the first thing I wanted to do was talk to someone about it. (this was before I found this board BTW) It was kind of like...being Alice in wonderland with a little cake that says "eat me" on it. You have some idea that the end results are going to be mind boggaling, but before you invest your heart and soul, and a lot of money into it, you want to talk to the baker and find out what the heck the deal is. LOL It is sort of an assurance that this is real and not some scam or something. I personally reached out to a few, I think I even spoke to Raven, and possibly the folks from FinFolk as well. I also found you guys and that has been a big BIG help. Maybe the tailmakers should have a link to this website on their FB pages or websites so people can see they are not alone with their concerns and questions. That might help people to understand the process a bit better. I stumbled upon Mernetwork by accident when looking for other tail designer sites. It has been a HUGE help and a lot of encouragement. This site has really been awesome for my mer-education hehehe. :)

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Originally Posted by Fablecat

Okay, playing the devils advocate here for all the people who don't jump to reading the faqs section of designers websites. I am new to the mer world. When I first learned about the tails (a few weeks ago), the first thing I wanted to do was talk to someone about it. (this was before I found this board BTW) It was kind of like...being Alice in wonderland with a little cake that says "eat me" on it. You have some idea that the end results are going to be mind boggaling, but before you invest your heart and soul, and a lot of money into it, you want to talk to the baker and find out what the heck the deal is. LOL It is sort of an assurance that this is real and not some scam or something. I personally reached out to a few, I think I even spoke to Raven, and possibly the folks from FinFolk as well. I also found you guys and that has been a big BIG help. Maybe the tailmakers should have a link to this website on their FB pages or websites so people can see they are not alone with their concerns and questions. That might help people to understand the process a bit better. I stumbled upon Mernetwork by accident when looking for other tail designer sites. It has been a HUGE help and a lot of encouragement. This site has really been awesome for my mer-education hehehe. :)

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They don't have a website yet. Since they've started up, they seem too busy with the flood of orders coming in to create one. Facebook is all there is sometimes. It's not a scam, they're really sweet girls, they've just blown up quickly their work is extraordinaire to say the least. In a sense, it's like we're each taking a little bit of their summer and they truly do work very hard from all I've seen and read. Plus Facebook isn't making it any easier to get to the messages or even see them since they've switched over.

I guess I'll always defend them cause they've been really patient and kind to me throughout this process. These things aren't easy to make and the work that comes from them speaks for itself each and every time I see them post up a new tail.

Maybe I'm just too cynical for my own good as my friends would tell me...

FYI to all mermaids and mermen here :)

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I saw that too! So glad I ordered in Feb!

No scam Fablecat, my daughter has a beautifully made tail from the girls and they were perfect through the whole process :mermaid kiss:

Heh I got a reply shortly after posting. ;) I'd been already talking with them for a while but just couldn't get ahold of them this time which is why I was worried.

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Originally Posted by Fifi Tigg

No scam Fablecat, my daughter has a beautifully made tail from the girls and they were perfect through the whole process :mermaid kiss:

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As do I :) The girls were very lovely and helpful when I ordered mine, and even helped me do my measurements over Skype when I expressed concern about doing them wrong. I also met them in person last summer when I went to the Minnesota Renaissance Festival where they work, and got to see a lot of their other tails on display! I know they're a LOT busier with tailmaking now than when I ordered (I ordered mine through their Kickstarter so it was essentially the first of their "new" line, with the new scales and fins and everything), so it takes them a lot more time to respond to everyone now, but I do know they care a lot about helping out all their customers as much as possible. And I think they've had their website in the works for a long time, we even talked about it last summer when I saw them, but I think they've just been so slammed with orders since then they haven't had enough time to devote to getting the website done for a while. And as much as I'd love to see their website, if you think about it, they're so popular now that they don't even really need one!

I'd also like to chime in on this too... The Twins have been nothing but friendly and helpful. I know I've been groaning a little (a lot) about waiting for my tail to come back to me, but I understand that it's just that they've run a little behind with all the business they've been getting.

Oh it's not that I think they are scammers! No no no, I am just giving a general idea of what someone new "might" be thinking when they first find all of this. It can be a tad overwhelming and a lot of money and these days it is rare to buy something that costs "that much" without ever actually seeing the product. Ya know? it can be intimidating it and it helps to reassure a person to know there is someone live on the receiving of all your money to connect with. I hope that makes sense?

I wonder how far down on the production list I am. I placed an order in febuary or march, but I only paid a little over half of what the tail will cost. I just wanted to guarantee myself a spot in the line. I still have just over 1k to pay off, so I'm mostly worried about getting that to them before they finish my tail so that they don't have to be stuck with a tail that hasn't been fully paid for.

@ Fablecat- It's a very trust oriented business. "Good" tailmakers; (Merbellas, Finfolk, MVD, Ect..) make a name and a reputation for themselves as trust worthy and it shows in their respective fanbases. Mernetwork does a good job of policing scam artists and keeping an eye out for each other by flagging companies that fail to return. You can see this with what happened to Fishbutts. She did well for a while, then started taking orders and not returning tails.

It really all boils down to a matter of trust. The Twins have been really nice and are just having a little trouble keeping up with the number of orders they have been getting lately- and I'm happy to see their business going well for them. It won't be long until they figure out the new workload and balance everything out again.

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Originally Posted by Ayla of Duluth

I wonder how far down on the production list I am. I placed an order in febuary or march, but I only paid a little over half of what the tail will cost. I just wanted to guarantee myself a spot in the line. I still have just over 1k to pay off, so I'm mostly worried about getting that to them before they finish my tail so that they don't have to be stuck with a tail that hasn't been fully paid for.

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You will be fine. At this moment, I didn't fully pay for my tail. The girls were so busy with their orders and they were already more than a week late for mine - deadline was 1st of June, they missed it because they were so swamped - that in the end, they immediately sent my tail to France without giving me the full bill first. I still have to pay $1750 for the tail and the shipping. Normally, they NEVER do that but they felt I was trustworthy. At this moment, I'm still waiting for my bill.
I do not want this to become a trend but since you met them (have you yet? I'm not sure), they will know you can be trusted and perhaps you can arrange something with them. I don't know, I'm just supposing. It's up to you to work something out with them, they are very nice girls and pretty much understanding.

I'm going to post a bunch of questions here so I don't bother the twins. :D

Does anyone know where I can see the difference between what the flukes look like in the 'fluke up' position with the Loreena fluke? Trying to decide if I want to get the competitor upgrade and that is one of the factors I need to see before making up my mind. :) I like how the competitor looks in the water but I don't know what they look like on land/air.

I'm curious as to how the paint job works. I remember a few people posting progress pics; do they send you pics and then tweak the paint until your happy?

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Originally Posted by Blaze

I'm going to post a bunch of questions here so I don't bother the twins. :D

Does anyone know where I can see the difference between what the flukes look like in the 'fluke up' position with the Loreena fluke? Trying to decide if I want to get the competitor upgrade and that is one of the factors I need to see before making up my mind. :) I like how the competitor looks in the water but I don't know what they look like on land/air.

I'm curious as to how the paint job works. I remember a few people posting progress pics; do they send you pics and then tweak the paint until your happy?

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I can help with that. Syrena has a competitor monofin in her Loreena fluke while Allie has a Trainer I think. I'm sending you some pictures to compare, sorry if it's heavy.

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I hope that helped. As for the progress pictures, when they did the painting of my tail, there have been some things that needed to be changed so I was honest and shared my thoughts. We discussed about it and in the end, we were really happy with the results. I'm glad I stood up because I know my tail would have been different otherwise. So do not hesitate to speak your mind if something is bothering you about the painting. Abby & Bryn want you to LOVE the tail, not just like it. They are ready to do what is necessary so you can be very happy with it. I had more pressure because I was oversea and now, it's just perfect. It took more time but I have no regrets :)