Fairytale Style Crush: Mermaids

Fairytale Style Crush: Mermaid 1 by quirkichik featuring nautical home decor

I haven't done a 'Fairytale Style Crush' post a second time yet and I thought I would like to write another. Here it is! I did recieve a request to write a 'Little Red Riding Hood' post, but I don't really feel inspired to do that right now, so I thought I probably wouldn't put as much thought into it as I would like. I am definitely hoping to write one for that character in the future though. The idea behind these posts is to create everyday outfit inspiration from fairytale characters, but if you wish to use these as ideas for fancy dress go right ahead.

INSPIRATION:

When I was a young child I had a Video of 'The Little Mermaid'. It was the 1975 cartoon of the original story where the mermaid turns into seafoam at the end. Later on, my sister and I obtained a taped copy of the 'Sabrina Down Under' movie where Sabrina from 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch' goes to Australia and meets two mermaids. This movie was much more cheerful and a whole lot of fun. I never saw the Ariel episode on 'Once Upon a Time' or really paid that much attention to Disney's version of 'The Little Mermaid'. However, I did watch 'Splash', the 'H2O' TV series, part of 'Mako Mermaids' TV series, And, a movie called 'Aquamarine'. I also think that Courtney Love had a very bohemian mermaid-esque look during 1998, but that could just be me wanting to relate things to celebrities that I think are cool...

mermaid palette by quirkichik on Polyvore

COLOURS PALETTE:

Above I have posted a palette of colours that I think are very mermaid-y. The colours don't look as bright as I had hoped. I tried to go for colours I had seen mermaids illustrated as or dressed up as, as well as colours found on the beach or in the ocean. In 'Aquamarine' the mermaid's tale is the same colour as her name (and yep the movie is named after her), while the girls off of 'H2O' have gold tales, And, the Merman on 'Mako Mermaids' has a blue tale.

 I included several shades of blue and blue-green to match the sea, Coral colours to match the shells and starfish, bronze colours to match the sand and the rocks, And, Mauves because of the sunset.I would also include some more neutral colours such as white, beige, black, navy and grey. As well as metallics like pearl white, gold and silver. I don't think that an outfit has to be limited by this colour palette, to show that it is mermaid-inspired, but I think these colours definitely help.

TEXTURES and FABRICS:

I think shiny fabrics like Satin, as well as flowy fabrics like chiffon and plain fabrics like cotton or polyester are appropriate. Denim would create a casual look and fit in well with the colour palette. Cool textures would be textures that give off shine or a pattern that resembles scales such as beaded textures, sequins, glitter and lace. Modern attempts at 1920s fashion seem to suit this style especially well, because some of the ruffles, scallop cuts, scallop patterns and art deco patterns are very suited to creating a scale effect.

fairytale style crush mermaid 2 by quirkichik on Polyvore

CLOTHES:

I think a lot of 1920s and 1930s silhouettes suit this look. Some of the bohemian styles that were re-introduced in the mid 00s were also very suited. Detailed tank tops, art deco style lace tops, maxi skirts, oyster skirts, flared pants, crocheted cardigans, And, formal/semi-formal dresses that have a form fitting bodice and a flared skirt are all items I consider (with the right colours, accessories and details) to be suited to that look.

SHOES:

Well, mermaids didn't really wear shoes, even in their land form. I would probably go with some sandals or embellished flats, but each to their own. You can do what ever you want.

JEWELRY & ACCESSORIES:
Clam-shaped clutch bags are cool and very mermaid-like. Other cool mermaid inspired jewels or accessories could include a belt with a shell clasp, starfish brooches, sea themed bracelets, locket necklaces and scarves with sea-style print. 

mermaid style crush 3 by quirkichik on Polyvore

HAIR:

Hair set into curls or waves is very traditional for a mermaid. I would also suggest a braided up do or a wet-look hair style set with gel. You could also include sea-themed hair accessories or put beads in the hair.

MAKE-UP:

Mermaids are most often illustrated sitting on rocks, brushing their hair and looking into mirrors. Don't ask me where the mirrors come from, but with all that sitting in the sun, with light reflecting off of the water and sand particles stuck to their bodies, they ought to look a bit bronzed and shimmery. I suggest a bronze, pale apricot or  mauve blush. I also suggest a natural to medium colour on the lips and a shimmer applied to the cheek bones. While silver, gold and bronze shimmers can be used to accent parts of the face (like the lips in the board above) darker, more intense shimmers would look nice on the eyes. I would choose a clear or dark brown mascara. 

NAILS:

I've seen a lot of really nice nail-art as shown above, There are sand designs, scale designs and shell designs. 

That was all folks. I hope you enjoyed my Style Crush post and I look forward to hearing any requests you have for these posts (fairytale or not) I promise I will get around to them all at some stage.

Your Favourite Blogger,

Natalie

Update/Haul: Minnie mouse is taking over

Hi guys,
I was going to skip doing a haul this week, but I had a few things I wanted to share with you. Now that I think of it I actually do have a few bits and pieces accumulating, so maybe it was a good idea to do a haul anyway... I mainly received purchases over the last couple of weeks and I wanted to share some of the things that were bought for me.

-I received 'The Fiery Heart' by Richelle Mead (Bloodlines Book 3) in the mail from Penguin. I am really excited to read it, I just hope those book trailers on youtube were dramatised a bit because I am not in the mood to see Sydney and Adrian get Days-of-our-lives-soppy. Sorry if you are a fan of that show.

-Remember this movie? My sister and I used to have it on tape and watched it over and over and over. I thought it would be fun to watch it again, so I bought it. And, it's always good to have a few g-rated movies floating around the house when young relatives visit.

-I got these 45s online: 'LaBamba' by Los Lobos and 'Bittersweet' by Hoodoo Gurus. Even being a bit of an 80s fan I've never really gotten into anything by the Hoodoo Gurus before. I am not ashamed to say that a youtube video of Courtney Love performing this at Big Day Out introduced me to the song.

 -I adored the 'Who's That Girl' movie and I liked the song. I also wanted to get the song from 'Desperately Seeking Susan' but I can't seem to find it (maybe it wasn't made into a single?). There was also a Eurythmics song with the same title.

 -I got these records from a seller on etsy. I haven't listened to them all yet (as you can tell the packaging is still on two of them. I got 'Elvis Christmas Album' by Elvis Presley, 'Live from Earth' by Pat Benatar, 'The Best of Sonny and Cher' by Sonny and Cher and Bruce Springsteen's 'Born in the U.S.A'.

-I got the 'Grease' soundtrack, Petula Clark's 'All-Time Greatest Hits' and The Sunset String's 'Roy Orbison Songbook from another etsy seller. I bought 'The Rock and Roll collection' at the op-shop. I used to watch 'Grease' a lot in primary school and our school choir sang one of the songs from the soundtrack. 

 -One of the records parcels had this stamped on it which I thought was hilarious.

 -I bought these perfumes: Disney Fairies 'Pixies and Posies' and LV 'Gold Rush'. They were both fairly cheap and smell pretty.

-This is an early Christmas present from mum. It's a Minnie Mouse cushion and the back of it is a sleeping bag. It's actually a kid's sleeping bag, but she thought it would be a good idea for winter when I'm sitting on the couch at night. 

-I also got a clock for my library. Isn't it cute? Minnie Mouse is taking over. I've got a mask hanging up in my room, and a heap of Minnie Mouse plush toys on my bed. 

^This was my nail art for the week. I tried to go with a 20s Gatsby style design I had seen on facebook, but I went with brighter colours.

Incase you didn't already know, my blog's facebook page made it to 800 likes. It's actually at 900 now! I think I shared a page or two and then those people shared my page and I ended up with a heap of likes. Now I get people actually sharing the pictures that I put up or tagging their friends in them, which is really cool. 

Image Source

I finished watching Gilmore Girls last night so there will be a review/post thingy up soon.

Image Source

I'm on Christmas holidays from work, but I'm not entirely free to do what I want. I've got a course to work on and jury duty to attend.

How was your week?

Your Favourite Blogger,
Natalie

P.S I have also noticed the search engine on my blog is not functioning properly I will try to have it up and running ASAP. In the meantime you can try clicking on a tag or label at the bottom of the blog or you could go on to google and type in "Quirky Vintage" and whatever you are looking for.