Mermaid Costume Tutorial

Mermaid Costume Tutorial

The nights are getting darker, and there’s a chill in the air; that can mean only one thing- Halloween is coming! Autumn always seems to me to be such a melancholy time of the year as Summer draws to an end, but planning Halloween shenanigans with my friends is my favourite part of the season! 

I have so many ideas for fun Halloween costumes, so I’m going to share some of my favourite costume ideas, along with free downloadable sewing patterns and tutorials. The first Halloween costume I’m sharing is the humble mermaid. You can use this pattern to go classic ‘Ariel’, or you can use darker fabrics to create an evil sea siren look. I’ve created two different versions myself to give you some inspiration. 

You can download the free PDF sewing pattern here. 

The pattern shows you how to make the crop top (which can be worn over a bra) and fishtail skirt. The crop top was decorated using plastic seashells from a fancy dress shop, beaded necklaces that I already owned, and a starfish hair clip. I painted the shells with spray paint from a local hardware store. You can use whatever aquatic things you can get your hands on though to decorate your own top! 

The plastic shells I bought had holes in the sides and top, making it simple to stitch them onto the crop top by hand. The starfish has a clip on the back, so it was easy just to clip it onto the centre of the top. To attach the beads, I found a couple of necklaces and fastened them to the top with safety pins. Make sure you try everything on before you stitch and pin into place, because you will want your shells to cover up the safety pins that hold the beads in place.

Instructions:

1. Cut out pattern pieces. The skirt pattern will need to be taped together as indicated on the pattern. 

2. Pin the side front pieces to the centre front piece, right sides together. Sew together with a straight stitch, carefully following the curves. Use a zig-zag stitch or overlocker to secure the edges.

3. Pin the back piece to the newly made front section, sew down each side and secure edges.

4. Neaten up the top and bottom raw edges either by overlocking, or trimming with scissors, Use the pattern to add the marker points for the straps. The marker points for the back can be seen in the photo below as white dots.

5. Make the straps by sewing your pieces of fabric in half length-ways, right sides together, to create two long thin tubes. Turn these through the right way. Safety pin your straps in place and try them on to figure out your desired length. Trim if necessary.

6. Manipulate the seam of your straps so that it runs down the side of the strap. Position it onto the wrong side of your top, level with the marker points, and 0.5 inches away from the top edge. Do this for both ends of the straps.

7. Hem the top, making sure that the strap is secured under the top edge of fabric as you sew. Use a stretch stitch.

8. Flip your top over the right way, and run a straight stitch along all four points where the strap meets the top. This will provide extra security.

9. To create extra ruching at the centre bust, stitch a piece of elastic to the inside centre. Stitch a piece approximately 2 inches long on to the wrong side of the centre bust panel.

10.  Pull the elastic tight as you stitch it down.

11. For the mermaid skirt, pin the front and back pieces right sides together and stitch down the side seams. Secure edges. 

12. For the waistband gathering tube, fold the piece in half vertically to form a tube, stitch down the side and turn through the right way. Position seam to the side, then pin the tube to the centre front top of the skirt.

13. Fold the waistband piece in half, so that the short edges meet. Stitch along the short edge to form a loop, and secure with a zig-zag or overlock stitch. Turn right way, then fold in half horizontally (wrong sides together) to form the waistband. Pin so that the waistband holds it’s shape. 

14. Pin the waistband to the top raw edge of the skirt so that the raw edges of the waistband are level with the raw edges of the skirt, ensuring that the waistband seam is positioned at the centre back of the skirt, and that the waistband gathering tube is sandwiched between the waistband and skirt. Stitch in place with a stretch stitch, making sure that the gathering tube is securely stitched down under the waistband. Once the waistband is in place, fold the gathering tube over the top of the waistband, and stitch it down to the inside seam at the top of the skirt. Be sure to pull it tight enough that it creates a ruched effect to the waistband. Trim any excess gathering tube left over. 

15. For the tail of the skirt, fold your lining fabric in half, right sides together so that the short edges meet to form a loop. Stitch and secure edges. Turn right way round. If you wish to use multiple layers of fabric for the tail of your skirt, then repeat this process for the second layer. 

16. To gather your skirt, sew a long, straight stitch around the upper edge of your tube, being careful not to back stitch the beginning or end (for a double layered skirt, position the secondary layer under the top layer, right side to wrong side, and sew the straight stitch through both layers). Start your stitch roughly 1 inch away from the skirt seam, and finish it 1 inch in front of the seam.

17. Hold the top layer thread at the beginning and end of your straight stitch, and gently manipulate the fabric so that it gathers up.

18. Work the material, until your gathered tail fabric is the same width as the opening at the bottom of the skirt. Tie the ends of thread up so that your gather stays in place, then pin to the bottom of your skirt, right sides together. Stitch in place with a stretch stitch.

19. Hem the bottom of your skirt by folding the raw edge under and stitching it into place.

Here are a few more pictures of the finished costume:

Have a happy Halloween folks, and don’t forget to share your photos with me on Instagram (@LolaNovaUK) if you use this tutorial to make your own mermaid costume!