Before you print out and cut these patterns. I would recommend not printing the tail pattern and just printing the fins. The tail pattern can be easily done without the pattern. Of course, if you feel more comfortable using the pattern and don't mind printing and taping all the pieces together then by all means, that's what it's there for;-)
Here are the files for a younger child 1-5.
Here are the files for an older child 5-10.
For the 1-5 year old pattern yardage is as follows: 59" length soft minky fabric
1 yard for tail
15" for waist fin
1/2 yard for tail fin
For the 6-10 year old pattern yardage is as follows: 59" length soft minky fabric
2 yards for tail
20" for waist fin
1 yard for tail fin
Step 1: If you are making the smaller mermaid tail and are only using 1 yard then unfold your fabric and refold it so that it is 59" long and 18" wide. If you are making the larger mermaid tail then keep your fabric folded as it was folded at 72" long and 36" wide.
If you are using the tail pattern then skip to step 3.
Step 2: Fold your fabric in half again lengthwise.
Step 3: If you are using the pattern then just pin your pattern down onto your fabric and cut.
If you are not using the tail pattern....
For the younger child's blanket, if you're not using the pattern then start cutting at the corner of the top raw edge and slowly taper down to a tip at the bottom tip.
For the older child's blanket, if you are not using the pattern then measure out 11.5" from the folded line. Then measure down 67" and make a mark. Start your cutting at 11.5" and taper your cutting down to 67" mark.
Step 4: The tail is cut onto your fabric like so. For the second cutting, flip the pattern and rotate 180°.
Step 5: Lay the waist fins on the fold (use pattern to know which edge to place on fold). Be sure to leave enough room to cut 1 more. You have to cut 2 so after you cut the first one, place your pattern on the fold again and cut. And remember to cut the second one slightly shorter on top as per the pattern guide.
Things are looking a little messy by now. Oiy!
Step 6: Place right sides of tail fins together and sew along the curved edges. Clip curves when finished. Repeat for second tail fin.
Step 7: Turn right side out and repeat with second tail fin.
Step 8: Now here comes the tricky part. Starting at the bottom of your tail, sandwich one tail fin between your tail pieces. Tail pieces should be right sides together. The bottom edge of the fin should be lined up with the bottom edge of your tail point (make sure you don't accidentally sew the fin upside down!) Now sew along from the point of the tail to the waist with the fin sandwiched in between.
Step 9: Repeat for the second tail. It will be much harder this time since the fins are stuffed between the tail pieces.
Step 10: Turn right side out! Finally looking like a mermaids tail!
Step 13: Turn right side out.
Step 14: Pin the smaller of the two fin pieces to your tail, right sides together and sew.
Step 15: Then using a slip stitch (here's a good tutorial by Positively Splendid on how to sew a slip stitch *ie blind stitch* by hand) sew the raw edge of your waist fin to the raw selvedge edge of your waist. This will encase all your raw edges inside your waist fin.
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22 {comments}:
NICE!
What a great pattern! Thanks so much for sharing!! I'm going to (attempt to) make it for an adult so I will have to enlarge it a bit. :) Although I could not find how you sewed the seam from the fins up. Did you hand sew or use a sewing machine?
@Bella EllasofairyBoth. I machine sewed the outside waist fin and hand sewed the inside waist fin. I link to how to hand sew that stitch. Steps 14-15.
What size is the one pictured? Seems a little long for the little girl, so I am wondering if it is the bigger one.
I want to make one for my daughter but she is 26! lol!
Seriously though, If I double the amount of everything for the 10 year old will it fit a 20 something year old?
i mean....why not?
This is so cute! Thanks for sharing.
can someone PLEASE help me understand how to put the bottom fins on. I am so confused.
How do you sew the second fin on if you sew up the bottom hole with the first fin?
This is so adorable. I'm almost done....but am stuck at steps 14-15. I'm sure I'm reading this incorrectly or just missing something. It seems your instructions and then your comment to @bella may be contradicting? So top fin is slid on top of and around tail/waist....the smaller fin is on the inside and the right side of the fin is touching the right side of the tail. I sew that by machine. Then what do I do with the outside/longer fin. I think I'm getting lost with which piece of material is the other part of the ladder stitch. Every way I configure it I still have raw edges showing.... Thanks for your time. I'm soooo eager to finish this!
@kaylaI'm so sorry I just saw this now. Did you figure it out? If not, I'll try to explain further.
OK. So is your tail currently still inside out? It should be. You have to add the first (purple) fin to the bottom hem on the left side and tuck the it in so that it's INSIDE your tail that's currently inside out. The fin should be sandwiched between the two tail pieces. Sew across the hem so that the sandwiched fin and left tail are sewn together.
Then repeat for the second fin. The second fin with be a lot harder because there isn't a lot of room in the bottom of the tail once you sew the left side hem.
It's tight but I managed to do it.
Does that help? Let me know if you need further assistance.
@Julie : )Sorry. Just seeing this now. Did you figure it out yet? If not, I'll try to explain further. This is one of the more difficult parts to explain. I wish I could do a video but it's so time consuming.
Ok. So first your are right. The smaller fin is on the inside and the right side of the fin is touching the right side of the tail and then you sew that by machine.
So you have the longer piece. You're just going to fold that so that the wrong sides of each waist fin are touching. Then you're taking the raw edge of that top longer waist fin and folding it over the raw edges. BUT you're also folding the hem of the longer waist fin in so that you don't have any raw edges showing.
Then you are hand stitching the folded hem of the longer waist fin to the "ditch" of the tail. When I say "ditch" I mean the line of stitches you made when you were sewing the smaller waist fin to the tail.
Sorry if that's confusing. I try not to use too many technical words since I'm always unsure of what a reader may or may not know but sometimes it makes things sound even more confusing.
Let me know if you need further assistance. Thanks!
Are the seams on the inside of the tail finished? If not, doesn't the soft and comfy fabric shed all over the child's legs when they are inside?
@ellenIt's true they could shed. If you're worried about shedding you could zigzag stitch the seams or use a french seam. Just remember to add another half inch to the seams if you do a french seam.
Im sorry but I need help, I am stuck at step 12 and then on to finish. "Step 12: Open out your fins so that the sewn edge is in the middle and sew the right edge of your pieces together." Does that mean the right edge of short piece and long piece together or right edge of short piece and then long piece separately. And from there on...I'm totally lost.
I'm sorry, I need help with this. I am stuck at step 12...."Step 12: Open out your fins so that the sewn edge is in the middle and sew the right edge of your pieces together." Does this mean sew the right edge of the short piece and the long piece together, or sew each one separately?? And from there on I am just totally lost.
making 20 as party favors for my granddaughter's birthday! Thank you so much pinning this! It is great!
I am stumped. I make elaborate custom crib bedding from my home and the fins are giving me a fit. Is there a utube or tutorial?????
@Cindy McGheeSo sorry! Do you mean the waist fins or the tail fins?
Thank you so much for your free pattern...I made the smaller ones for my 2 grand daughters, one is 4 and one is 7..they were suppose to be for Christmas, but when I was finished they looked a little small to me so I let them try them today...they went crazy..the 4 year old kept telling me "I love my mermaid blanket gramma" :) they fit ok, but kids grow so fast..so we went to the store and they got to pick out there own fabric...it was such fun seeing them flop the tails around...thanks again.
My wife would really like to know in the older child fin pattern you have a part that says cut 4, but in reading your directions, you do not reference what to do with these parts. Could you give us a hint?
@Crystal RodrigueOh that's so great to hear! Thank you for sharing!!!!
@EricYes. Cut 4. It's steps 6 and 7. You have to sew two together and turn inside out for both fins.
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