TRYING TO MAKE MY DIY SILICONE MERMAID TAIL 

To keep the paint from chipping off you should use pearl ex pigments and mix them into the clear silicone and then add some solvent or thinner to think the silicone down. Then (once your scales and flukes have dried) you can paint the pigmented silicone on top of your tail and once its dry it wont chip off. To avoid measurement issues be sure to measure everything with a measuring tape. Waist, knees, calves, ankles, hip to floor measurement and then measure the length between all these Marks.

I just wanna say you did really good for your first tail attempt!! Never give up! This was just a learning process, I know your going to make something even better

And that's how professionnel special effect are born.. i am sure by the time you reach adulthood you will become a very successful FX costume / make up artist for many movies...bravo..😄👍💕

I know I wasn’t the only one who looked up multiple “how to become a mermaid” or “mermaid potions”😂😂😂

You're attempt on making the tail is already awesome.. So dont give up gurl..

if i saw this when i was 7 i would literally cry for the same one

Omg girl thats so dangerous you gotta wear a respiratory mask not just a slip mask. That looks bomb tho!!

Yo, If I had your determination and patience, I could conquer the gosh dang world. You Are A Legend!!!

nobody: me at 13 years old:

SOMEONE GET HER A REAL DETAILED MERMAID FIN NOW

I had the exact same problem but what you want to do is pressure wash the spray paint off and then get pearl ex paints and then after your done you spray over top of it with silicone spray. Also another thing that happened to me was basically the silicone didnt stick to thw duct tape when i made mine so basically i put another layer of fabric over it so the silicone would stick. I literally just ripped of the silicone all at the bottom and went over it again after putting the fabric on and now it works great :))) hope this helps and sorry about your tail!! Dont worry, you can fix it!

Hey girl! Good job on your first tail! I remember making my first one, took 20 hours and didn't turn out well at all. The second one I made turned out sooo much better. I'm going to be making a tutorial video this week. Stay tuned :) The process is very similar, just a few key points that might help you out! :)

When you had the tail hanging to paint it looked so nice!

I cant even make a paper airplane and your over here making a beautiful detailed mermaid tail .-. Im jelous ;-; xD

That look like fun, I can’t wait to try it one day.

I look down at the comment section and all I see is this "nobody meme" I really hope the success of your tail is making you have high hopes for everything. I'm a furry and I am trying to make a full suit. You probably wont see this but good luck if you making more tails.

You did a wonderful job, in spite of the setbacks. I'm glad you're not going to give up and you're going to try again. Never look at the past or mistakes as anything less then learning tools for the future. :) Now you know, that paint sucks, and you need a lot more silicone then you originally thought, and your measurements were a little off. You wouldn't have known those things without doing this first. You did a great job, be proud of the hard word you did! :)

Im glad you shared this. A lot of videos these days just show people making amazing things and they dont have any trouble and the end product is exactly what they envisioned. Most of the time it doesnt work that way. You get tired, you run into problems, its super stressful, takes longer than planned, etc. Most people don't show those parts of the process in their videos. Thankyou for keeping it real.

I am glad that you were brave enough to show how you made your own tail, even if it was did not work as expected. All that work you did might help someone else, even if it shows what not to do. The advice I would give you is that have to be patient and test materials before you do such a big project. Maybe try making a side fin first. And watch a lot of videos on how other people made their own tails. And don't be afraid to ask for help. Best of luck on your next try!

This is a little late but I'm so proud of her for working so hard on this

Love how real you were with us . RU-vidrs come on here and act like anything they touch turns to gold . Thank you for making me feel like you’re one of us ! You got this & better luck next time keep you’re head up ! We support you

i cant be the only one who use to watch "mermaid potion" videos

When your hands or feet hurt a lot soaking them in really warm water (but be careful to not burn yourself) and salt helps to relax the muscles :)

hey! i made my own tail using basically the same method lol. Spray paint mistakes and everything. If you have any questions about anything, I made pretty much every mistake possible so i feel pretty capable to answer. especially ones like materials and sourcing pigments (I found some places to get them super cheap) just let me know. Mine took me about 6 months to finish and I'm soo impressed that you got this far in a week!

U have to use silicone paint-

Girl, I know how you feel. Working so hard on something and getting your hopes up just for it to not work in the end. Been there so many times. But you cry, you scream, the trash the product, you take a nap, you do better tomorrow. I'm definately going to check for the next video. I'm inspired.

Nothing like a little cat montage to warm your heart

yeah... I did the same thing, you just have to use a silc pigment or powder or even a liquid paint, but for silicone. silicone only sticks to silicone, so you need a special paint, it will work!! Trust me ❣️

Her:this is my normal hand and this is my actual hand Me:she must be really tired

the crying part made me sad just subbed love u

Why are the comments mean? I think this is so cool and talented 💖💖💖

It looks really good so far! Small tip though: silicone won't stick to anything other than silicone (generally), so the issues you were having with the spray paint and the superglue weren't due to the brands, just the type of paint/adhesive. I recommend using either silicone paints, or pigment mixed with silicone instead of spraypaint, and just regular silicone instead of glue. They'll probably end up being more expensive than normal paint or glue, but they'll definitely last longer.

The fact that you are trooping through this pain for your mermaidness made me sub your amazing!

Keep up the learning curve. You tried something new and had set back. Don't get disappointed in it. It happens to everyone. Can't wait to watch the next one.

I was sitting here like please don’t cry please don’t cry cause your gonna make me cry

I greatly appreciate what you did it even though it all failed on you. you've been the only person I've seen that shone step-by-step from beginning to end, on how to do one of these. I been wanting to make 1for a little bit now so thank you.

Hi, I'm Fedhi, nice to meet you! :) It is a very nice video, thank you so much for sharing your DIY Mermaid Tail video with us! ;) I'm so sorry for your tail, you made a great job! This is a long and tough work and even if the paint vanished you definately made a very beautiful tail by your own! :) Keep her as a souvenir, don't give up please and I really hope that your next tail will be stunning and gorgeous like this one already was! :) Don't hesitate to redo a DIY video on your new future tail! :) I love so much your scales and the fluke and speaking of tail, a SFX costume designer making me a silicone and sequins merman tail right now :) I can't wait to have it, I will show you! :) Don't give up and keep up the motivation and good job! :)

If you havent already figured a solution out take the tubes of silicone you used and see if they're ones you can paint over. Some you can't. If they're not, you can get a silicone you can paint over and literally paint that silicone over. That MIGHT work depending on the brand. Otherwise take the tubes you used to the store with you and show them to the person in the paint department and tell them you need paint that will work on top of silicone and be waterproof. I'm sorry girl! I'm an artist and my fiance has come home MANY times to me just crying next to a mess of a failed project I spent a lot of time on. Either way, I think the building you did and the detailing you did came out absolutely fantastic!!! Don't give up!

Hey no worries! A lot of peoples first tails dont turn out. Just dont let that ruin it for ya!

I love this trying to convince my parents to let me make one so having someone my age do it will help

yo I literally just discovered this is home yesterday and its my new favorite song im scared

Hey, I'm so sorry about it not working out. I've done nothing like this, but I understand how big projects can bring you to tears, especially when you're emotionally invested. You're one tough girl, keep making masterpieces. You are incredibly creative and smart and I learned a lot from this video that I am going to apply to so many art projects in the future

Please don’t swim in this! You have to have a real monofin in order to swim safely. Caulk isn’t made for skin and can be very toxic, you need a skin safe silicone. Even if the silicone doesn’t come in contact with your skin toxins can leech out of the caulk into the water with you. Safety should be your #1 concern and this tail is a huge accident waiting to happen it’s a health risk and using toxic materials to save money send a bad message to others that’s it’s ok to be unsafe. Dragonskin silicone is the correct material to make silicone tails from, finis monofins are a great brand for fins. Don’t use spray paint on tails and you really need gloves and a mask, especially working with hazardous materials like caulk.

You still did an amazing job I'm 32 years old and made a fabric tail with a plexy glass and silicone monofin to make it heavier and I love it but plan to buy a silicone tail once I've lost the weight I've been losing after my surgery so that I'm a size to fit the one I buy but keep your chin up and keep swimming mermaid

please don't give up on that tail, It looks so beautiful

I also made a tail like this but for costume purposes. It was sooo hard, especially because I'm in a wheelchair so the tail needed to fit when i sat down. Making the leg mold was so hard. I just left the back open since I'd be sitting down anyways. I used pigment powerder and setting spray to paint the tail. It turned out to be a huge success and so many photographers wanted to take my picture. I hope to one day be able to make it again, perfect mistakes i made before and get it to be even better and prettier. I might film it if i do it again as well since when i made it (2 years ago) it was soo hard to figure out and find info on what to use and such. I also had to use soo much silicone. I think i bought 15 bottles and i thought i was being excessive but i used almost all of them (i made smaller scales). I also made the paint mistake. Luckily i had only used it on the top so not the whole tail. I was able to get all off the paint off using i toothbrush, water and soap. Maybe a dishbrush because the tail is ofcourse a lot bigger than a top is

Not sure why they only have like 400 subscribers Edit: oh, they have like 3k now, congratulations

I am so glad this was a real tutorial

Silicone sticks to silicone but it's hard to get other things to stick to it. That is probably why the paint was flaking.

Don’t be sad! all stars can’t shine without darkness. yes you can’t wear the tail but the effort your put into this proves your determined and that is an amazing quality to have ❤️

Making something like this isn’t easy… don’t limit yourself to a time frame ❤️ The process should be fun not stressful love ❤️🧜‍♀️

AWE!!!!! I feel for you! You did work so hard on that mermaid tail!!!!! Don't give up on it, try again!!!! When things don't turn out while I doing one of my transformations, it's so frustrating, I can relate to how you feel, we try again, because we Love it!!!!!

I would totally try this but I would need the money and the time.

okay but the amount of commitment for this is insane and I support it lol

Take a shot everytime she said “I’m literally so exhausted”

You did exceptionally well, and have staying power, I applaud you. If you want to form straight lines of silicone, wet your fingers and form it into a clean line, wipe your finger with a rag and repeat.

gurl get it together like take a nap and eat someting.

Hey! don't get discouraged, you just used the wrong paint!! you can get rubber paints, and paints made just for latex so it moves with the material it's on top of, you can stop chipping with a top coat and base coat as well to help prime the tail. You should look up cosplay tutorials on these things, they would have so much more info for you! :D DO NOT GIVE UP, you did so well!!!!!!

I just want to say that this is your first time.and sometimes it doesn’t work out the first time but you will get it next time

You are the most impressive human ever! Amazzinnggg JOB!!!!!!

If you don’t mind me asking, why don’t you just get the tails for sale on amazon and stuff? They have more expensive ones that look nicer, but my sister has a fabric one that looks great and has lasted 2 years now.

I love the design, but the paint wouldn't stick is because you have to layer the paint. After you lay down a layer of silicone and let it sit paint it then repeat until the tail is opaque enough or you could mix the paint with the silicone and just keep layering that until the color is dark enough for you

It's alright to have mistakes that's where we learn our lesson

I understand the frustration. I’ve never made a tail or anything like that. But I once did wainscoting in my house, and my wall wasn’t level in some areas. And it looked MESSED UP. It’s sucks when you invest money into something you’re super excited about, and it doesn’t work out like expected. At least your end product looked great! And know you know how to make it better!

Nobody: Her: I hAvEn'T sLePt In 8 DaYs

The cat scared on the big fish aw tail of a fish hahahaha good girl nice one you make....❤❤❤❤❤😊😊😊😊😊

Cat: whoa dats one big fish there buddy.....can I eat it when ur done?

Well one it probably hasn’t finished drying and too you said you were gonna repaint it so don’t cry, it’s gonna be okay. Like you said it’s a learning experience 💙

Cats: wtf this gall doing? It looks weird let meh just inturumt her Girl: OMGGGGGG SOOO CUTE CAT MONTOGE 2019 ENEYONE

OMG!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW WELL YOU DID!! I ALSO FEEL SOOOOO BAD ON HOW MUCH YOU SUFFERED!!!! BUT YOU DID AMAZINGGG!!!

If you take latex seal it will not remove no paint it’s waterproof

She’s so cute😂❤️❤️

I’m soooooooooo sorry that it didn’t work out I really hope that you can get or make a new tale in the future I love u and I have faith in u

Thank you for posting your process, including the challenges you had and the ultimate disappointment. Everyone watching to the end must have broken hearts at that moment. I’m looking forward to seeing your next attempts. Hugs!

I feel like her brain was melting while she was doing this

@Mermaid Twins- hey sweetie, please don't beat yourself up over your mermaid tail. It was your first attempt and you did a great. You *did* make the tail🧜‍♀️! On your 2nd try you already know what adjustments need to be added so I'm very confident you'll get it done. You got this!!🧜‍♀️🧜‍♀️🥰🥰🥰

32:55 my parents when i come home with c’s:

You did so amazing I love your mermaid tail

i bet some msc(mr super clear) would help the paint at least a little

Girl you were so close!! im ready to see you try again even tho it must have been soo much dedication and work. i recommend maybe heating up the exacto knife for cutting out the monofin so it could glid through. Good luck !!!

First of all when I get a mermaid tale I would go to the bathroom first tho

This is wonderful for a beginner. I honestly had hoped it would work out and fit..

You did this in the most complicated way ever and you did a lot of things wrong 😱 I feel so sorry for you haha! This could be made in like a couple of hours if you just used clay, plaster and dragon skin silicone... Also I don't think the silicone you used is safe for skin, and it won't last long because it's tin cure silicone. You need to use platinum cure silicone, it will last for decades and is skin safe. 😕 Also the paint you used... to paint silicone you have to use silicone mixed with silicone pigments. The only thing that sticks to silicone is silicone. You can't paint silicone with anything except silicone. This is how I would do it. 1. Take plaster bandages and put around the legs to make a mold (just like you did with plastic wrap) plaster is stronger and you will need it to be super strong for this. 2. Let the plaster cure and take it off from the legs. Sand it to make it smooth. 3. Use wed clay to sculpt the fins and scales etc on top of the plaster mold of your legs. You can use cardboard to cut out the fins if you want them more symmetrical etc, then sculpt on top of the cardboard. 4. When you have sculpted the whole mermaid tail, seal it using super clear by krylon. 5. Pour plaster over it to make a mold, brush it on to make sure you get all the details, strengthen the plaster using plaster bandages in between the pours until you get a thick plaster mold. 6. Open the plaster mold, remove the wed clay from it. Now you will have mold with an empty space where the clay was before in between the mold of your legs and the mold of the clay sculpt. 7. Mix up the silicone, tint it with the lightest color you want the tail to be in and pour it into the plaster mold so that it fills up the empty space in the mold. 8. Once cured, take it out, clean it with acetone and then you can paint it using the same silicone mixed with pigments. Now you are done! This is the cheapest, safest, best and easiest way to do it actually. You have to use wed clay because other clays will inhibit the curing of the silicone. Yes, the silicone is expensive, but it's worth it because it's made for skin and it will last for decades! I am an SFX makeup artist and have been making a lot of silicone masks, costumes and props, if you need any help feel free to ask! ❤️

You have inspired me so much. Your hard work and creativity was so impressive, and the fact that you stuck it out even when it seemed like it wasn't all coming together truly says a lot about you, considering you lost sleep, stressed, cried, and ached over this tail (a very good first attempt). It may not have worked out this time, but you are definitely on the right track. I recommend putting a lot of extra space between your feet and the tail fin next time because it will look more realistic when you swim. Mermaid tails tend to look kind of boneless when they swim and the extra softer length will help achieve that affect. Looking forward to seeing the next attempt.

When she said mako mermaid's I was like 🥺😳

For future reference if you need to make another one, cut out the monofin with a hot knife. No specific kind of knife, probably just a razor heated with a torch. The heat will melt the plastic as you cut, so the edges will be smoother and it will take less time. 😁

i like how her shirt says “bbf blonde best friend” om day 4 and she’s not even blonde 😂

I can't wait till it is done I'm about half way through already and it looks great

Omg so persistent and soooooooo dedicated someone get a h20 tail and give it to her

I'm in awe. I know it didn't end the way you hoped after working so hard on it but you need to applaud yourself on it regardless. This is fantastic, especially considering its a first attempt and you did it all by yourself. Well done! :)

no one: literally no one: ABSOLUTELY NO ONE EVER: her: makes a homemade mermaid tail that she would probably only wear once and cries over it because it doesn't work out... why was this on my recommended page? im concerned

Wait you feel so like a good friend!

Nobody: Nobody at all: That one girl that wants to be a mermaid

That takes pure talent. PURE FRICKEN TALENT

13-yo child creating a mermaid tail: *im so stressed😭* Me having my final exams: 👀

This video was not for nothing girl, cheer up. I loved this video and I enjoyed the learning experience of seeing how you made it. You did really good on it and should be proud. Don't get discouraged by the paint not working out, you learned something new and are growing and will be able to perfect your tail even more on the next run. Remember mistakes when it comes to art is part of the learning process and the more you mess up the more you learn to do better. ❤

So I'm getting mermaid tail, and I don't have a pool in my backyard. I'm too nervous to wear it in public because I'm worried of what people will think of me. Tips?

that is so creative ill already be in stress after 5 hours

Stop crying!!!!! Just because the paint is chipping off doesn't mean the tail is useless

You are awesome I can't believe u did all of this, I could never dream of doing that!