Mermaid in Summer
One of my all-time favorite projects is the mermaid. My daughter still loves mermaids. I know how they connect with children in a magical and delightful way. And they inspire swimming! Because mermaids learn to put their faces in the water and hold their breath for swimming. Merfolk are perfect for summer adventures.
Our first book included a tutorial with photos and patterns for a mermaid and a fancy mermaid (with more colors in the tail). I recently found the mermaid that appeared in the book. And she charmed me all over again.
One of my puzzles with creating her was figuring out how to make the tail without a lot of sewing. By modifying the same design as our pants-patterns, the tail could fold over for success with beginning sewers. My second puzzle was her hat, because I couldn’t imagine a mermaid wearing the tall triangle-shaped hat. A crown, though, that would be perfect for mermaids. I know that the hair can be on its own, but it can look a little clunky with glue, so a crown or hat helps to make the top of the head look better. In fact, I made one where I didn’t glue the crown on their head, and the child loved taking the crown off and putting it back on their mermaid. So that’s an option, too.
Of course, these felt mermaids don’t go swimming in water for real. Felt and glue and wood doesn’t enjoy being wet. They still enjoy many summer adventures, including building them houses beside the water.
Another thing that I’ve learned while raising my own kids is that boys love merfolk just as much as girls. Boys tend to be a little more self-conscious about the fascination at a certain age where they may feel more judged for loving water-folk. This may not be the case for children in your world, and certainly don’t make an issue of it if the kids around you don’t resist the idea of boys getting to enjoy merfolk as much as girls (it may be a cultural bias that may or may not be in your community).
Boys may be just fine with a mermaid (after all, who says they have to play with gender-matching toys?). Girls get to play with boy dolls without issues. So boys can play with mermaids if they want. Or you can make a merman by giving it shorter hair (or no hair) if that matches their idea of “boy”. Though they may be just fine with boys with longer hair, too.
I encourage asking children how they want to make an idea their own. Black felt? Zombie face? Why not? Let them make their own toys and see what ideas they bring into the world. I look forward to their creativity.
Make your own mermaid doll with tutorials, photos, and patterns in the Forest Fairy Crafts book by Lenka Vodicka-Paredes and Asia Currie
Happy summer!
