Sequins tails

[Lydia Lobster]

aah, allright. i'm looking forward to see the result!

( I like to talk english unlike writing it, the moment you say something is quick over and possible mistakes not catched...not so when it's written...ugh o_o )

[Mermaid Meara]

Depending on the fabric, sewing on will make it very uncomfortable. Thick fabric that will tug the knots in deeper/away from the skin, like neoprene, is fine. Same for glue, it's better with thick fabric. If your fabric is not thick, glue on with e6000. If you do full sequins, make sure to keep the fabric separated when drying, I had to tug mine apart a few times. Full sequin isn't uncomfortable for me, but you most defiantly need a zipper. I didn't put one in mine and it took me 15 minutes to get it on the first time. Oh, and expect a few little cuts and scrapes.

[Mermaid Galene]

I agree with Meara, thick fabric is best with full sequins. I made one fully sequined bra, and it's very comfortable largely because the foam cushioning in the bra keeps sequins from poking through the fabric into my skin. I did have to trim the edges of some sequins around the armhole, because those hard edges were digging into my skin. On a tail, I think you wouldn't want the sequin edges at the waist to be above the edge of the fabric. Leave 1/4" of fabric at the top so it sits comfortably on your skin.

[Adalira]

Thank you for the advices you guys! it is very very helpful.
I was thinking of maybe making an extra layer of fabric on the inside (if i decide to sow it on) to make it more comfortable.
The zipper is something i have been thinking about for a while now. And i think it is needed in a sequins tail.
I am still thinking of a way to sequins it completly to the top of the tail (the waist) and still having it feel comfortable. I have some ideas and it is all about testing them out

[Raayvhen]

Remember that an extra layer of fabric will trap water and balloon up.

[Adalira]

Thank you Raayvhen! Great tip!
Question: Has anyone of you used the E6000 glue to glue the sequins on? And if so, were you happy with the results? Any pro's and con's you can share with us?
A woman i know owns a big fabric store nearby and i will got here this week to see if she has any large zippers.
I will also bring the tails with me and see if she has any great tips and advice that could be of help

[Mermaid Meara]

I used e6000 to glue on all my sequins. I am happy with how it turned out in the end. Make sure the fabric is clean and do not paint it before glueing. The glue will start to peel off. It's very time consuming and you will end up with glue hands and it takes a while to get off. When I glued I would just pore the glue out, smear it with a paint brush (this does ruin the brush) and dump the sequins on, wasn't going for a polished look and this technique most certainly does not give one. Be careful when glueing the body, if the glue seeps threw and you let it sit over night, you will spend a good hour tugging fabric apart (which luckily didn't ruin the fabric for me). I let mine sit for a week before getting it in the water. You will lose a lot of sequins no matter how much you shake them off. I went through about 25 big tubes (3 oz I think) of glue.


As as far as zippers go, try to find an industrial one for things like awnings and furniture, last longer and is more water resistant/less likely to rust. A trick they taught me in Fashion school is if you want to make it completely invisible, sew (and glue for us) the zipper in before you cut the fabric, careful not the get glue on the actual zipper part, then cut the fabric as close to the glue/seam as possible. Glue a thin strip of Velcro on the flap that will cover the zipper and the fabric piece of the zipper that is now exposed. You can decorate the flap to hide it. Once the tail is on and zipper closed, press the Velcro together to hide the zipper. This is not the same as an invisible zipper in fashion sewing or that seamstresses will know about.


If you find you have a lot of gapping in the back you can do a similar technique for a hook and eye set to close up the gap and still make it easy to get on. Make sure to test swim before you start decorating so you know you are still happy with the fit.

[Adalira]

Wow, that's awesome advice! Thank you so much for taking the time to share this!
I will most likely be taking a lot longer than i was hoping for. We have the new shows to work on (we start touring in 1 month), rehearsels etc and off course i got the flue ....how lovely....
Oh well....nothing some bed rest can't cure.
And this gives me time to really think of designs and write everything down i have learned already so far and do some online research on materials.

[CowgirlMermaid]

So, how's the tail coming along?

[Adalira]

So, how's the tail coming along?

Ugh not at all. I don't think my sequins have been shipped out yet. There has been some sad family news in the US so therefor things have been posponed a bit.
Also i have been ill for a bit. I did manage to go to a store ( i know the owners) and ask if they had E6000 glue and he had no idea what i was talking about.
So i need to figure out what it is called over here. Even after i explained and showed the fabric he had no idea what i could use for that
So it has been on hold since then.
I am also in the middle of rehearsels to prepare the tour of our new shows so everything is very hectic and busy and the moment.
I did manage to get my Etsy shop up and running (Another thing that had to be done already months ago but due to custom orders i wanted to finish first it got posponed)
https://www.etsy.com/nl/shop/FairyMeShop

I am very thankful for all the information i got from all of you so far.
It has made me think a lot about what i want to do with the tail.
What i really wanted was a full sequins tail on the fabric but now i am not too sure about that anymore cause it may not be comfortable anymore after covering it with sequins.
The E6000 is an option but i am afraid the sequins will come off if i cover it completly with sequins and E6000 glue so that is a concern as well.
I do not want to cover the fluke with sequins but paint it.
Maybe painting the tails and covering them only half wirh sequins is an option.
So many things to consider and think about.

[lynsea]

Meara, have you found that the glue has held up to the stretching of the fabric? i.e. the sequins don't pop off when you put your tail on?

[Prince Calypso]

could you put sequins on a silicone tail?

[Mermaid Wesley]

I'm sure you could but I don't know why you would


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mermaid Meara]

Lynsea: So far there hasn't been much damage even in high flex areas like ankles, heels, and knees. Of course some fall off because of the way I glued them on, some sequins are only attached by small amounts of glue, but because of the thick layer of sequins the loss isn't noticeable. But even Hannah's sewn on sequins are in constant need of repairs and replacement. I don't think you can make a sequin tail with out having loss of sequins over time.

Prince Calypso: there have been a few mer who have tried to do silicone with sequins and have found that the sequins will cut right through the silicone. I'm sure there is a way to do it but I think the risk of damage and cost of repairing it make it not worth it.

[Adalira]

Hi Everyone, A quick update on the tails. The sequins have been shipped out from the US a few days ago. I have no idea when they will arrive here. Could be anywhere from 2 weeks to 4 weeks or even more. Hoping for sooner than later off course.
I did some online research and found several stores in the Netherlands selling E6000 glue but the problem is that the tubes with the glue are very small so i would need a lot of tubes. I am thinking of going to a specialised store and asking them for something similar but in bigger tubes/packaging.
And then something else i have been thinking about: I don't want to put sequins on the fluke but paint it and maybe add some texture on there.
Could i create texture with silicone over the fabric? Not all over the fluke but just some vertical stripes from where the fluke starts untill the bottom of the fluke.
Does anyone know if that works?
And then i want to paint it with an outdoor waterproof paint. But would i still need to iron it to seal it?

[Adalira]

Good news! The package with sequins will mos tlikely be delivered on Tuesday!! WOOHOOO!! So excited to finally have them!
I will off course share a photo with you from all the sequins :-)

Still a few questions i hope someone can answer for me:
I don't want to put sequins on the fluke but paint it and maybe add some texture on there.
Could i create texture with silicone over the fabric? Not all over the fluke but just some vertical stripes from where the fluke starts untill the bottom of the fluke.
Does anyone know if that works?
And then i want to paint it with an outdoor waterproof paint. But would i still need to iron it to seal it?

[Adalira]

The sequins arrived today. I have made some photos of the bags.
I was a bit dissapoined though with the size. I meassured what it said on the website and thought they would be a little bit smaller than the sequins i already have at home....they are A LOT smaller though :-(
I took a photo of the sequins bags (the different colors) in daylight and with an extra light on it. And then took 1 sequins out of a bag to put next to the sequins i already have.

[Adalira]

Any opinions? Or advice?

[Miyu]

If you'd still like to use the sequins you got, I think scales of different sizes look very nice! There's lots of fish with scales of various sizes, and I think it makes a really neat look!

[Genevieve]

Like smaller scales at the waist and just above the fluke, to larger ones on the body of the tail. The color variation will also look realistically fishy. I love the look of tails that have the scale-shaped sequins like you have.