Showing posts with label swimmable. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swimmable. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Review: FinFun Mariana's Tidal Teal Mermaid Tail

Now that Summer is over, I can finally review my new tail skin: FinFun Mariana's Tidal Teal tail

Yeah, call me childish, but I have been reading the Mermaiden Tales that come up every once in a while at the Finfriends website.  I LOVED Scarlett's story and personality.  As a fan, I wanted to buy a Scarlet Red tail, but I did not really see myself in a red tail, even though it was gorgeous.  When her story took the turn it took, and she became Mariana, I wanted her new tail.

So this Summer I bought it as a gift to myself.  As always, buying at FinFun is easy.  I picked the Adult M size, chose the cheapest international shipping option, paid with Paypal and waited for it to arrive, as I was hoping I could take it with me for my holidays.  I think it took about a week, and it arrived in perfect conditions, in a sealed envelope, inside a plastic bag - no organza blue bag anymore - and with a Mermaidens sticker as gift.

The size is spot on, and let me tell you, it is GORGEOUS!  The tail itself has no front and back - same design on both sides - and it features the Mermaiden logo in the right fin tip (on both sides); I find it cool, it looks like a mermaid tatoo (!).  Now it has a smooth transition between the body of the tail and the fluke - no seam like in my Barracuda tail - and the colors are shades of blue, turquoise, and a bit of green and white.


Transition between tail and fluke - flawless!
Scales detail
As you can see it makes quite an statement!

The one thing that got my attention is the new reinforced tail tips.  I had seen a video on their website where they talk about this.  I was skeptical, until I saw my new tail had the new tips.  Mind you, none of my tails had ever had holes in their tips, but it is because I am totally paranoid over not scratching them anywhere.  That being said, I noticed the new tips are stronger, because they are covered in a kind of hard plastic (I don't really know what it is, but it feels like plastic to the touch).  Even though they stand out on land, they are invisible once in water.  With them, putting on and getting out the monofin is harder, but I would venture to say they really make the tips stronger.  The only bad thing I have to say about them is that they do not have drainage holes (like silicone tails use to have on their flukes), and so the water tends to accumulate in them when hung to dry.

See the white Mermaiden logo and the new reinforced tail tips
One of the good things about this tail is that it is longer, or has a new, different fluke pattern, than my Barracuda tail, and my Magictail monofin now is completely covered by the fabric - no white cover showing in the front or the back (yay!).

Regarding people's reactions, everybody said that it has a more vibrant color than my blue Magictail skin, and that the design is prettier.  It became everyone's favorite, and I find that it is competing hard with my blue Magictail in my heart - I am torn between the two.

Looking forward to using it next Summer!

Monday, February 3, 2014

New Magictail tail skin!

So, since I am using my Magictail so much I decided to order a new tail skin, as birthday gift to myself.  You do know you can order tail skins separately, right?  I wanted to order a new one to have as a replacement, since Magictails are made of swimsuit fabric, and eventually, all swimsuit fabric gets ruined by chlorine.

Well, since I was doubtful between the Marina and the Arielle the first time I ordered, I chose an Arielle skin this time.  I ordered it on January 27th, and it was already here on the 31st.  Here are some pictures of the two tails together:

Monofin on the blue one
Monofin on the green one
Fluke detail
Compare colors

Comparing sizes
The blue one has stretched a bit with the use
As you can see, there is a noticeable size difference between the two.  I contacted Kirsten Söller to check if there was a mistake with my order, although I did not think so.  Everything was marked very clearly with my chosen sizes; the monofin fits perfectly, and the tail fits me.  I was informed that there is a tag inside the tail skin with the size, and indeed, mine is size L.  So you can see that tails stretch quite a bit after some use.  I have had the Marina for almost 2 years, but I have used it a total time of maybe 2 months of daily use, about 3 or 4 hours per day.

Both tails are not similar in color.  The Marina is definitely a darkish blue with shades of black, and the Arielle, despite having shades of turquoise, it has a predominant soft green color.  I love them both, but the Marina is still my favorite.  I will probably buy more blue skins when mine has been completely worn out.

I will shoot a video comparing the two shortly.  Stay tuned!

*UPDATE*
Here is the promised video.  Enjoy!