Tutorial for a Mermaid Costume for Kids
Mermaids are magical creatures and are a great creation for costume parties. Creating a mermaid outfit can be both practical and pretty. Children do not want to have their legs constricted if they are at a kids' party and want to run around and play games, so creating a costume that allows freedom of movement is key. You can use any color of material you like and you can add wigs, hair decorations and accessories of your choice. Most of the items you need you will probably already have at home and the extra material can be bought in a fabric store.
Things You'll Need
- Old vest
- Shiny material (taffeta, tulle, chiffon, etc.)
- Tape measure
- Scissors
- Needle
- Thread
- Fabric glue
- Tight-fitting long skirt
Instructions
-
Making the Top
-
1
Use an old vest that fits your child and has a color that matches the other material that you are using. Turn the vest inside out and then measure the length of the arm hole and the bottom of the vest.
-
2
Cut four pieces of your shiny material about 5 inches wide and the length of the arm hole that you just measured. Sew with tacking stitches two pieces placed together on the top of each arm hole. If you do not wish to sew, use a fabric glue.
-
-
3
Cut two pieces of fabric about 5 inches wide and the length of the bottom of the vest that you measured. Again, place the pieces of fabric together to create a layering effect, and then sew or glue the fabric to the bottom of the vest. Turn the vest back the right way around.
-
4
Decorate the body of the vest by cutting thin strips of shiny material and sticking them on with glue to make stripes or just accessorize with a shell necklace.
Making the Mermaid Fin
-
5
Use a long, tight-fitting skirt that has a color that matches the top and the material you have chosen. Cut a slit up each side of the skirt up to the knee.
-
6
Measure the length of the cut you made up to the knee of the skirt. You are now going to cut triangle shapes out of your shiny material. You will need to cut four triangle shapes for each side of the skirt. The length of the two sides that meet the point of the triangle should always be the same length as the measurement you have just taken. The bottom line of the triangle should be least 15 inches for your first triangle and then add 2 inches to bottom line of the triangle for the next triangle. Add 2 more inches to the next one and so on, so you have layers that are increasingly getting larger.
-
7
Turn the skirt inside out and using the fabric glue (or needle and thread if you prefer to sew) stick the last triangle in place. Do this by attaching the two sides that you measured to each side of the split in the skirt that you cut.
-
8
Attach the next triangle on top of the first in the same way and continue until you have attached all four layers, going down in size so that the layers can be seen on the outside. Do the same to the other side of the skirt on the split. Turn your skirt the right way around and allow the fabric glue to dry for the recommended time. You should now have a skirt that has "fins" on each side, but will allow a child to move about easily. Your mermaid outfit is now complete.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
How easily the material will stick will depend on the fabric you have chosen, check when buying fabric glue that it is suitable for the material you have bought.
Glue on scales by cutting pieces of silver foil into strips with rounded (scaled) edges.
References
- Photo Credit meerjungfrau image by Angelika Bentin from Fotolia.com
