Merbellas Thread

**Merfin_Aurora_Oceania** · 03-17-2015, 05:53 PM

Raina I wouldn't begin to imagine what you went through! *hugs* So relieved Raven was there for you.

If you were to place a wet hand towel in the waist would that work to help by an chance?

Dry tails seriously need a waterfall system much like a costume that has an installed fan ventilation, when's our mermaid waterfall system coming for our tails

**AniaR** · 03-17-2015, 07:05 PM

yeah I use a lot of water/lube and towels to put my tail off and on already and always suggest people do the same. The issue with dry gigs is you sometimes don't have enough space/safe enough space to put your stuff on, and your skin dries faster than you can get the tail off/on and trying to slide rubber off or on anything dry is just horrible. In this instance I was in my tail 1/2 way through getting it off in a Harry Potter styled under the stairs cubby in the dark and it was a recipe for disaster. Anytime I have every damaged any tail I've owned I go through my head thinking what could I have done better? Well short of literally changing in front of everyone at the gig there's nowhere else I could of done or anything else I could of really done. The place I was wasn't even properly sealed off so people going up the stairs could look down and see part of the room I was in and I was trying to hide under it. I RARELY take dry gigs anymore because 99% of the time when anything bad has happened to a tail it's been during a dry gig. But this is a big contract and it has gotten us so much publicity.

I just can't even tell you how I sick I feel over it. We put so much thought into the design of my tail so that if issues happened like the long term wear and tear of my last one did- I'd be able to handle it. I know how to fix split scales, reattached fins, fix holes/splits in flukes, scraped, or fraying. But I just can't fix a blended waist by myself with the extent I damaged it. And you know, I've been super careful and hyper aware. I don't even roll my waist down with this tail. But it was one of those moments I'm kinda rushing to do what has to be done and I hear the rip and my brain is going "that was a weird sound, what could that have been." and then all of a sudden it's not very tight on my belly anymore. lol We even put less fins on my tail and made the dorsal fin stubbier to account for how often I'm in the thing.

I honestly have no idea when I can have Raven fix it. I am booked solid until october and the plan for the Franken tail was to put another mermaid in it until we could replace THEIR tail. And I don't want to waste all this extra money because of the exchange rate. So I guess it'll either be fall or if I get to take a trip to Florida. Whichever comes first.

As much as I love my highly waisted tails I may have her just make the blended part shorter and stubbier so I am more aware of where it sits on my body and less likely to do the same thing. I had a nap after this gig and woke up and was like "oh yeah, I busted that part." I just feel so gross. And Raven worked SO HARD on it I felt awful telling her.

To give you an example, when I first started out as a mermaid I did probably 1-2 gigs a month if I was lucky- from April- September. Anything after those months I was lucky to have 1 gig a month.

I am at the point now that this year alone I've done 3-5 gigs a week since January, many of them being 5-6 hours gigs. I'm spending as much time in my tail currently as I would at a job. So far it's been in just about every single pool in this city, and many of the dry venues. It's been transported all over this province and others. It's been through freezing temperatures. Up until this point the only damage I'd done was tearing off a fin (which I was able to seamlessly fix) when I was at a pool gig and changed in the shower area. One of the fins got caught in a broken drain and when I lifted my fluke the broken part of the drain caught the fin and tore it. I was upset but it was a 10 second fix and looks brand new like nothing happened.

But hey, I haven't posted any new pics in this thread for a while, so here's some stuff:

Here's an amazing pic of Raven in her Lion Fish tail

Here's some pics I had done prior to this issue:

(those lines you see are actually from storage creases, and not the monfon at the bottom of the fluke. The monofin is small and ends way higher up in the fluke ^)

**polyhymnia113** · 03-17-2015, 07:14 PM

Raina, just a quick question...do you choose not to roll the blended waist down to not put extra wear and tear on it or is it not even an option to roll it down now that you have a translucent blend waist? I am starting to stress a lot about getting myself into and out of my tail once it arrives. Does the translucent part have no flex to it?

**OceanWhisper** · 03-17-2015, 07:18 PM

Originally Posted by Yulia

https://mermaidtailcollection.wordpress.com/

not a single photo will show up

**MermaidMichelle** · 03-17-2015, 07:19 PM

I was preparing to ask the same question, so I shall just swiftly point out how amazing both you and Raven look, Raina! The begowned mermaid look is like a piece of film/performance art, and that baby looks to be in awe!

**Yulia** · 03-17-2015, 07:54 PM

Originally Posted by OceanWhisper

not a single photo will show up

It happens sometimes on cellphones, it's some dumb Wordpress bug. >:

If you're not on a phone, I don't know why. Is it just white?

**AniaR** · 03-17-2015, 08:02 PM

Raina, just a quick question...do you choose not to roll the blended waist down to not put extra wear and tear on it or is it not even an option to roll it down now that you have a translucent blend waist? I am starting to stress a lot about getting myself into and out of my tail once it arrives. Does the translucent part have no flex to it?

No. It's because my waist was so high. IN all my high waisted tails I have found if I roll them down it's really hard to unroll them while putting them on, and that most damage happens when I do that. but with a regular or low waisted tail rolling down was fine. It's just really hard to unroll something once you get to your hips and the roll makes it twice as thick and it stretches the top of the waist across that.

Getting into and out of a tail is hard no matter what you do. and over time it will always put stress on the places that you move the most. With rapidash I would always tear my fins that were in the pelvic area because when I was unrolling I wouldn't realize I had grabbed one. And trying to stretch something as tiny as your waist over your bum and hips can be tricky too. Usually the first year of a tail is fine but as silicone ages it loses its stretch and becomes harder.

So no, don't freak out about the blended waist. But if you have your tail come up high; based on my personal experience I wouldn't roll it.

**Merfin_Aurora_Oceania** · 03-17-2015, 08:23 PM

We've somehow got to invent a portable bathtub for dry gigs or something in which you can safely take the tail off if you can not access a bathroom facility to take it on or off.

I know silicone is trickier than any other material used...

That gets me thinking, any ideas how to take plumbing on the go? There has to be a portable camping shower.

All the best Raina

**polyhymnia113** · 03-17-2015, 08:53 PM

Thanks, Raina! Auroraspirit there are portable camp showers and they're not terribly expensive but privacy would still be the biggest issue. Perhaps you could build a curtianed tent around it?

**AniaR** · 03-17-2015, 10:17 PM

I dont think that makes much sense I already lug a load of stuff to gigs and that would be a water damage issue liability with insurance. It's just the breaks. Silicone + dry gigs = not easy to do.

**Venessa Louisiana Mermaid** · 03-18-2015, 12:02 AM

I am so excited I finally get to post on this thread. I placed my order with Raven back in November as soon as she announced she had a spot open on Facebook. Because I know her wait times are very long, and I am admittedly a very impatient person, I inquired about rush fees. I also knew I needed it by Spring because I have contract for gigs throughout the upcoming months and my Mertailor tail has been ripping at the seams. She did offer me a rush fee option of 60-90 days for $450. I will talk about all of this in detail when I do my review however. For now, I wanted to share my pics. All of my gigs are either in concrete pools or waterparks...or an occasional land based gig. But they usually all involve lots of kids who are touching and pulling on my tail, swimming with me and on me, etc. They truly get an "interactive" mermaid experience. So therefore, I went for just the simple tail shape with no added fins that could be yanked off.

I am so in love with the fluke design and colors as well as the "streamers." I can't wait to experience how this will feel actually swimming in it. I also ordered the "Ariel" clam shell bra top with Atlantis design extras. These are the only pics I have for now but will of course post more once I get it in. CAN NOT WAIT!

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