New FinFun mermaid tails!

This post comes a little late, since Summer is almost gone.  But what can I say, I had to take advantage of the end of Summer sale at Fin Fun!

I bought two tails and one pair of leggings.  Allow me to show them to you.

Aquamarine Mermaid Tail:

It is absolutely gorgeous!  It is mainly made in hues of blue and green, and the printing of the scales is out of this world. 

Detail of the scales

The body of the tail is beautiful, but the when you see the transition to the fluke you wonder if the scales are actually in 3D, they are so realistic that they deceive the eye.  I felt like a kid passing my hand over the scales to actually checked that they were not real!  I assure you, pictures do not do this tail justice.

Detail of the transition to the fluke

Fluke with the monofin inserted in place

I snatched it on a very good price for a Limited Edition tail.  The size is perfect for me (I got an M).  This tail now has a new feature, and it's 3 little pieces of Velcro along the opening for the monofin, so you can close it up and the monofin won't be visible while swimming:

Two pieces of Velcro visible in the pic

Mermaidens Barracuda Tail:

Detail of the scales

Detail of the fluke with inserted monofin

 

I had had my eye on this tail for some time.  I bought the first edition of the Barracuda in 2016, and the design has changed drastically.  If you want to see some pictures of the previous model you can do so in my review.  Needless to say, the new model is beyond amazing.  Not only the colors are more nuanced, the scales have changed form and texture (they look like they have a border), the fluke transition does not have a seam anymore, and the design of the fluke looks more like a fish.  Also, this tail also has incorporated Velcro, 1 piece in the middle of the opening for the monofin:

Ice Dragon Leggings:

These are just so nice and comfy!  I own almost all the leggings from this collection, and they are some of my favorite pieces of clothing.  You can use them in Summer, Winter, inside, outside, for exercise, or just chilling with a book, or in the sofa watching TV; they look great with any t-shirt, short or long, or any top.  And best of all, you can rock your mermaid self while doing everyday stuff.  

I use an L on these, and size is perfect.  They also have a tiny pocket at the waist, with just enough room for a key, some money, or a small MP3 player - if you still have one of those.

Very happy with all my purchases.  Looking forward to next releases from Fin Fun!

New Magictail skin! With extra fins!!!

Wow, I am so, so excited!!

Three weeks ago I went to take a look at the Magictail website, to see if they have something new that I could fancy.  Well, apart from the fabulous Marina Pro that will be mine someday, I was so surprised to find that they offer now tails with add-on fins!  

I was hooked.  The good thing about this feature is you can send them your previously owned Magictail and they will incorporate your chosen fins - this option is certainly cheaper.  But I was worried that my fabrics would not match, and that it would be a kerffufle to send my tail and get it back - it can always get lost in transit.  Besides, it was a good moment to get a new Marina skin, which was my first and most beloved tail.

And so, I ordered a Marina with hip and dorsal fins.  You can also add lower fins, but I chose to omit those.  Why?  Because the Magictail monofin is very bulky at the ankles, and I wanted to draw attention from it using the other two sets of fins.  You can get just one set of fins, or any combination of the three.

It took a little more than a week to ship, but I already knew that as it was specified at the time of purchase.  It arrived today in the mail, and I am over the Moon with it:

Front view; hip fins.  Monofin was inserted

Detail of the dorsal fin

Back view

The colors are absolutely out of this world.  It has changed a lot from my last Marina Magictail.  The fabric is not shimmery anymore, and the black/grey hues are totally gone.  Now we have vibrant blue and purple hues everywhere.  The scale design is also different - the scales are less rounded and more elongated:

Scales detail

Fluke detail.  Notice the difference in colors.  The fluke still has the extra fin tips that look gorgeous while swimming

The fins are not just a piece of fabric attached to the tail.  It actually has some kind of thick fabric insde - you can squeeze them, and they are mushy.  The fins have consistency and they keep their form.  However, they are not rigid; they are bendable and will not cause harm or inconvenience while sitting.  I cannot wait to see how the dorsal fin looks while swimming!

I have tried it on for the size - I got an L.  It fits me perfectly.  Another thing that they have modified is that the waist now has a pull cord to adjust the tail to your waist, so it won't slip down while swimming.  I have never had that problem, but I guess some people did when the tails got stretched after a lot of use, and they took that into consideration:

This time the tail did not come with matching bikini top and bottom - if you want those you have to get them separately now.

In any case, I am eager to try it out.  Hopefully I will be able to get some pics and maybe video next week.  I'll keep you posted!

FinFun Mermaid Barracuda black tail skin review

My dear husband gifted me with a new tail skin, the FinFun Mermaid Barracuda Black, from the Mermaidens Collection.  When the new designs (red, black, Celtic green and rainbow) came out, I wanted to give them a try.  So, here is how everything went.

I had no problems while purchasing on the website.  Once I selected my size (I chose size M)  the system recommended a monofin that would fit me.  I was hoping that my Magictail monofin would fit into the skin, so I selected "none".  I wanted to try, and if the monofin finally did not fit, I would purchase a FinFun monofin in the future.  Also, being a USA import to the EU, buying skin and monofin separately would save me the import fees.

I paid through PayPal, as usual, but credit cards are also taken.  The package shipped in less than 24 hours and it came in 10 days (in the middle of the Christmas season), which I thought was pretty fast - I selected the cheapest shipping option, which was $10.

The tail skin came packaged in a cardboard box, inside a lovely blue organza bag, with tags and a mermaid sticker.  When I tried to fit the Magictail monofin in the tail skin, it actually fitted, which was a nice thing.

Here is a video showing the tail:




And here are some pictures:

Unboxing

Detail of the dragon type scales

Detail of the fluke

Comparison with the Magictail skin

Detail of fluke with the Magictail monofin inside

It really fits!

 Looking forward to using it!

Mermaid school opens in Spain

I just heard about it, thanks to a co-worker.  It is called Sirenas Mediterranean Academy, and here is a promo video:

If you live in Tarragona and you try it out let me know how it goes!

First underwater video!

We are back from our holidays in Peñíscola, and here is my first underwater video, shot with our new aquatic camera.

I hope you enjoy it!

Another update on the Magictail Monofin

It has died!  It finally broke on the third day of use.  Here are some pics of the damages in stages:

Day One

Day Two

Day Three

I seem to remember that it was the guilty party: I think I bumped it against the side of the pool when I was coming out.  In any case, I won't be using it anymore, and I will try my new monofin this Friday.

I'll let you all know how it goes.

Another visit to the pool

So today I went again for a swim at the town pool.  

It was almost empty, I spent all the time alone in my lane, just swimming up and down.  No kids today.  

But I had two staff members coming to check out my mermaid tail.  One of them asked if she could take pictures, and we chatted a bit about how I began to swim like this.  They had never seen, or even heard of, mermaid tails and I referred them to YouTube for videos.

A good thing is, I was not very tired when I finished my session; I mean, my core and leg muscles were a bit sore, but my lungs and diafragm were not tired after all the breath holding, which I found very rewarding.  Last week I was able to swim all the pool lenght in one breath, which was also exhilarating.  Must try that again tomorrow.  Almost 8 years without swimming can put a strain in your lung capacity.  Mine used to be great, but not anymore.  I am trying to improve on that...

And, remember I put pearls on my toes?  They were fine after one hour of swimming with the monofin on, which was great.  I will be doing the mermaid scale manicure again this week, sans the pearls.  Hubby does not really like them.

Happy mermaid-related news

Today I went to a town-regulated pool.  Yesterday I had asked if swimfins were allowed, and was told yes.  And sure enough, today I brought my mermaid tail - after all, it has a monofin in it, right?

Well, the pool was almost empty when I arrived, and I sat just by the water to put my feet inside the monofin, and I finished pulling the tail up in the water.  It was exhilarating when I began to swam with it, after one year of not using it.  And this time, there were no waves, no muddy water and no sand to bother me.  So I swam one length of the pool and when I was coming back I saw a staff person waiting for me by the side of the pool.  My first thought was that I was going to be asked to take it off, but then the girl just kneeled down and asked "Would it be OK if I took a picture of you?".  I was so relieved it was not against the rules!  And of course, I sat in the edge and she took the pics.  We chatted for a bit; she said a co-worker had said to her "You have a mermaid in lane one".  She was curious and she came by to check; she said she had never seen something like it.  

After some minutes more staff came - some were literally speechless; one asked if she could touch my tail (my fabric tail!) and she kept saying "It´s so cool!".  

But the best part was when the kids came for a lesson.  The staff said "Hey guys, look, we have a mermaid in the pool!"  Oh my... It was all shouts, mesmerized looks, questions... One kid said "It's a real mermaid" and his friend said, "No it is not, she is wearing a costume", but the kid insisted ""It's a real mermaid!".  That was so so sweet.  They asked if they could touch me, asked me to swim for them, how do I get out, it is really real... It was so much fun.

Now that I have seen it is not against regulations, I will keep bringing the tail to the pool.  Hell yes!  I need to perfect my movements.  I was exhausted when I left, so hopefully I will begin to develop strenght in my core muscles and legs.

I have seen that some parts of the tail have suffered a bit with friction when walls or bottom where touched.  But I rather have a worn-out tail that a like-new one.  Now that Kirsten Söller sells replacement skins I can buy another one if mine breaks.

I'll let you know how things go tomorrow!

Happy mermaid is happy!