There’s not a girl I know who didn’t want to be Ariel from ‘The Little Mermaid’ when she was young – I’m pretty sure some would still want to be her now. The good news? This year you can be and still be on trend! Mermaids have moved from animated onscreen goddesses to the fashion runways for us to replicate in our individual ways.

You can create your own transformation from everyday girl to magical mermaid, which doesn’t require a tail. It’s as simple as adding a splash of whimsicality, a pop of colour, or a swish of sparkle to our look.

The mermaid trend exploded onto the scene as a princess myth and has transformed itself into the ‘urban mermaid’. Walt Disney’s fairy-tales made mermaids, oysters, pearls and glitter desirable, and the fashion pack have claimed the look as their own and given it an urban edge.

The palettes for this trend are sparkly clean with an array of creams, powdery blues and shimmery metallic shades. Wet and glistening hair accentuates the underwater urban mermaid image. Twist in some dewy ringlets, work into the slicked back look or pull it back into an (appropriately named) fishtail ponytail to bring to life your interpretation of what a mermaid should look like.

If you’re feeling brave or creative, use an embellished pearly decorative accessory to add an oceanic twist to your look. However, if you’re someone who doesn’t wear their hair up, free-flowing long hair is sure to bring out your inner sea-goddess.

Fast and easy ocean-approved look
The obvious option for a mermaid look is the metallic eyes and dewy skin – the challenge is to create a look that stands out from the crowd while also keeping it fresh and subtle. This summer has been all about the whites, shimmery silvers and metallic greys, with just the small glimpses from deep down in the ocean blue.

Be wise when choosing eye shadows, as although you are replicating a princess look from your youth, you don’t want to look like your ten year old self who has just put on the entire contents of their makeup bag! The trick is to line your upper eyelid – as close to the eyelash line as possible – with a shimmering eye pencil and make sure you don’t dab eye shadow all-over your lids.

As mentioned previously in last month’s column, the fast and easy ocean-approved look is all about the sea salt spray in your hair. Give it a spritz, a rough blow-dry (with no comb) and run your fingers through the strands, messing it as you do, and you’ll have your ‘metropolitan mermaid look’.

So, whether you’re more of a metropolitan mermaid, an urban mermaid or sea goddess, get ready to ride that wave, because the time is now to bring out the inner mermaid in you!