Rainbow Mermaids

Rainbow Mermaids

Are mermaids all the rage at your place right now? Grab your free printable to make your own rainbow mermaid out of cardboard and salad spinner art.

Let me tell you about how the idea for these rainbow mermaids developed.
It is a tale of mermaids hatching out of eggs and salad spinners.

My 4-year-old went to the museum with her aunty. She took some of her pocket money to spend at the souvenir shop.
She came home with a “Hatch-A-Mermaid-Out-Of-An-Egg” kit.
Despite there being no mermaid exhibits at the museum.
Apparently the souvenir shop was quite the highlight.
Nothing like the adrenalin hit of some souvenir shopping.
The mermaid craze has officially hit our household.

At the same time, I became a bit obsessed with acquiring a salad spinner.
Not to make any fancy salads, but to make some salad spinner art.
Anna from the Imagination Tree blogged about salad spinner art back in 2010.
I’m just a bit late to the party.

So this is an art and craft project borne out of the latest obsessions in our house.
Here’s how to make your own rainbow mermaids.

Watch how it’s done

Print your mermaid body and mermaid tail here.

Cut out the templates and trace around them onto thick cardboard. An old box will do nicely.
Paint your mermaid (if you so desire!)

Follow Anna’s tutorial to create your salad spinner art.
We used colours that sat alongside each other on the rainbow.
EG Red with orange and yellow; blue with green and yellow.

Once your salad spinner art is dry, fold the circles in half.
Cut a curved design out of the art. Cut in half. You will layer these along the mermaid’s tail.

Before gluing, I placed all my coloured art on the tail first to ensure I liked the design.
Once you are happy, glue in place and don’t worry about the overhanging parts.

Coloured artwork on cardboard rainbow mermaids

Once you have covered the tail, trim the overhanging excess away.
Use any scraps to create a top for your mermaid, as well as some hair.

Use markers to add details onto the tail and face.

And there you have it! A rainbow mermaid perfect for some imaginary play.

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Text overlay Rainbow Mermaids with photos of colourful mermaids made from salad spinner art and cardboard.