Bean had to have a Mermaid Barbie just like her friend. In an effort to please, we now have 6 Barbies in our house (4 mermaids and 2 ballerinas).
The mermaids don't bother me too much as they don't seem to have a massive amount of accessories. And The Belly has a kind of cool one with a tail that turns into a surfboard. Of course, The Bean wanted a mermaid with a removeable tail, and, importantly, it has to be able to go into the water. I knew I could sew a tail no problem, but I didn't feel like packing us all up to go the fabric store.
Inspiration struck! I found a bathing suit the girls don't wear anymore somewhere in their closet. A few snips here, some sewing there, an elastic waist, and violá: free, removable mermaid tail.
The bathing suit was a 2-piece tankini with boy shorts. I wanted to add a bit of style, so I made the waist and fins frommthe polka-dot shorts and the main tail from the plain pink top. I put the doll down on the fabric, drew a rough pattern, cut and sewed.
She loves it. I definitely got some major mom points for that crafty sleight of hand.
