***MERMAID TALES***

Store:  Vintage mermaid, vintage mermaids, bathing beauties, vintage mermaid jewelry, and  many more unique items added soon.  Visit often and shop.

NEW STORE ITEMS:  Keep checking back with me.  I will in the very near future be adding more nude pinuups, vintage mermaids, vintage mermaid reproductions AND beautiful handcrafted mermaid jewelry made from images of vintage mermaids.  There will be other exciting jewlery tooooooooo:P I won't tell you yet but you will LOVE what I will soon be offering here in the jewelry line in particular for those searching for fine, handcrafted jewelry.  Have a great day. 

My Store & Photo Album - Be sure and check those out. The title depicts some of the brands of vintage mermaids that I own.  I am always on the prowl for new ones.  As my collection grows ever larger, I am still finding space to accommodate them all.  And yet, some still live in boxes.  I will get around to those when I decide exactly where I want to display them.

I will be listing more vintage mermaids and vintage mermaid reproductions in my store soon.  So bookmark my web and visit often. 

I have to sign out for now.  More mermaids to paint.  Until next time.......

My journey collecting vintage mermaids began some years ago, and to be perfectly honest,  I did not have a clue!  I just loved the ones I had seen in my friends' powder rooms. Each time I would pay a visit, de'ja vous'  took me back to nana's house and a time long ago.  Her walls were filled with beautiful mermaids, fish, starfish - you name it and she had it.  Back then, they were five and dime items that she enjoyed collecting.  Who could have known that some years later, you would have to mortgage your home to own some?

So, my quest began.  I searched auctions sites, estate sales, and even yard sales.  I acquired some at reasonable prices and others I paid top dollar for.  Those that I got from auctions were sometimes disappointing.  I realized I needed to do my homework.

I stumbled upon a book written by Arleen Smith titled:  Ceramic Fish, Mermaids & Seahorses:  Bathroom Decorations of the 1940's & 1950's.  This book has since become my Vintage Mermaid Bible!   For anyone not familiar with this book who perhaps wants to start a collection, it is a wealth of knowledge.  Filled with beautiful pictures and so helpful to me were the names of the companies that made them:  Bradley Exclusives, Japan; Norcrest China Co., Japan; DeForest of California; Ceramicraft; Lefton;  Py;  Freeman McFarlin; Joty;  NAPCO;.  The list goes on.  This helped me to become familiar with and be able to identify and discriminate between authentic vintage and vintage reproduction mermaids.

My vintage mermaid collection is ever increasing.  I have many by the aforementioned companies - most long ago out of business.  I love them all but my favorite mermaids - and they are mostly figurines (wall plaques are rare and hard to find) are those made by Kay Finch California.  These are the most beautiful mermaids I have ever seen.  Should you decide to own some of these beauties, be prepared to pay several hundred dollars for each.

I enjoy arts and crafts and have engaged in many different types but then I found my niche.  Ceramics.  I started out with 100 molds.  I knew practically nothing about this art but fortunately my neighbor did.  She taught me how to cast, clean, and fire.  I had an array of different molds to play with.  I have always been fairly artistic but I knew nothing about painting ceramic bisque.  She tried to teach me as much as she knew but she wasn't the greatest at painting.  I learned through much experimentation and trial and error.  Practice does make perfect.  I grew better and better and my love for ceramics grew. As I continued to buy molds, I really got lucky and found someone who had some mermaid molds - of actual vintage mermaids!  I continued to search and now have quite a few.  I consider each  one that I create a piece of art.  I like lots of bling on mine and so do my customers.  Stay tuned:  I will be opening my store in the very near future.