Jessica's Second Dragonskin Tail

[Jessica]

Thanks Dottie, mermaidm, Mizuko, and Dominique!

Mizuko,
I'm incredibly excited right now! I think I just figured out a really great way to do seams! It's easier than the way I did them last time....and I'm hoping it turns out well.

i will be posting in detail how I did my seams so you and others can learn and hopefully improve on my methods! We can all learn from each other

First things first....you have a big rectangular scale sheet, now what?

Here's what I did:
i made a pattern of Eva's body just like I was going to make her a fabric tail. I didn't add any inches or subtract any. The body pattern was exactly her measurements(which I checked against the duct tape body mold) I also included an extra seven inches of scales at the bottom to cover the monofin and meet the fluke of the tail. I have a good bit of experience in pattern making(I'm a quilter!) so if anyone needs me to explain this step in detail, let me know.

after I finished the pattern, I carefully and selectively cut the scales to size, leaving a seam allowance around the entire pattern. For the most part, I included one scale length outside the pattern. This is hard to put into words, but if you look at the pictures below you can see how much of a seam allowance I left. It is important to note that the seam allowance is not consistent. It varies slightly because of the scale pattern and because I cut the scales selectively to have a better seam. ****i make my seams overlap 1" or less. Other people do more, some do even 3-4". This is really a personal preference and it depends on what you're comfortable with. I think it's easier to overlap just an inch or so because it seems to give you more control over the sizing. If you decide to have a bigger seam allowance, make sure you extend your seam allowance the correct amount!

One thing in you may be wondering....why didn't I just include a seam allowance in my pattern? You can certainly do this, but since I selectively cut scales, I need to see what I'm doing! If I had added the seam allowance to the pattern it would have been in the way.....unless I had just cut a line through the scales instead of cutting selectively.

i have to to run, but I will be posting more seam info soon!