Mermaid Costume Ideas for Toddlers
Generations of little girls have loved mermaids. Share the mermaid magic with your toddler so that she, too, can experience the childhood fantasy. If your daughter is a new walker, create age-appropriate costume elements for her to wear. Mermaid outfits make ideal Halloween costumes, or you can dress her up for a trip to the pool or the beach or for imaginative play at home.
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Mermaid Tail
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Your toddler is likely walking, but it may be a challenge for her to move safely in a traditional tight mermaid tail that fans out at the bottom. Search costume stores for looser mermaid tails that do not restrict her walking abilities, or make her tail yourself. Find a long pencil skirt in a bright green or blue color that fits your toddler. A skirt in an iridescent or shiny fabric would be ideal. At the bottom of the skirt, cut a triangle shape out of the center in front so that the tip of the triangle points to your toddler's knees. Cut out the same triangle shape in the back of the skirt. The triangular points in the front and the back will give the skirt a mermaid fin effect.
Mermaid Top
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Mermaids traditionally wear seashell bras as their tops. Recreate this concept by simply dressing your toddler in a colorful leotard or bathing suit. Depending on the weather, a bathing suit or a long-sleeved leotard may be more appropriate. Look for a top full of bright sea colors to reinforce the idea that she is a mermaid. To make the costume look more true to the traditional mermaid look, dress her in a skin-colored leotard and put a brightly colored bikini top over it.
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Shoes
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Seek out shoes in the same color as the mermaid skirt. If the colors blend, the footwear will not stand out. Other shoe options include clear jelly sandals or simple beach shoes.
Accessories
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Dress up your toddler with mermaid accessories, such as a wig of long hair, seashell jewelry, long beaded necklaces and bangle bracelets. Sew or glue accessories onto her homemade skirt and her leotard. Silver sequins, gemstones, seashells and layers of mesh fabric will give her mermaid skirt and top extra dimension. If you are recreating a cartoon mermaid character like Disney's Ariel, give your toddler a stuffed toy crab or fish to carry around with her.
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References
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