What Is a Mermaid Dress?

Every girl wants to be the most attractive and feminine, especially when it comes to an event, whether it is a graduation party, dinner party, or even a wedding. For such events, it is necessary to have in your closet evening dress. But what style? After all, there are so many of them, but not everyone will fit exactly under your height, figure, body structure, and so on. Today we will talk about the evening dress mermaid.

The mermaid dress is a canon of femininity and captivating beauty. Silhouette “mermaid” - a variation of the dress with a gode skirt, tightly hugging the hips and diverging down like a fishtail. The style is called in different ways: “mermaid”, “fish”, “fishtail”, “gode”, etc. It is difficult to say whether Andersen's Little Mermaid assumed that earthly women are ready to give up freedom of movement for the sake of extremely narrow dresses.

Nevertheless, mermaid dresses are favorites of designers and stylists: the past couture shows (e.g. Schiaparelli) and the Golden Globe Awards are proof of that. Given that awards season is in full swing, we are sure that shortly we will see a parade of fashionable mermaids - it's time to remember the main “tailed” dresses in the history of fashion and try to establish the source. Who will suit such a dress, what are its main features, and for what events it is best suited? To these and other questions today we will gladly answer you.

The curving outline of the mermaid dress silhouette is a modern fashion phenomenon that first appeared in the 1930s with the advent of the oblique cut. An important role in achieving the desired effect played a tight satin or silk crepe, which cut the plume of the skirt, reminiscent of a fishtail. A distinctive feature of this silhouette is - the tight skirt, which slightly tapers at the knees and ends more or less lushly flared hem, depending on the properties of the fabric and the overall style of the dress.

In the era of laconic elegance of the 1930s, many couturiers, including British court fashion designers Norman Hartnell and Victor Stibel, attached the slightly crimped “mermaid tail” to mid-calf length silk dresses with floral designs. She was called “the architect of fashion” for a reason, because it was thanks to her wide use entered the oblique cut, as well as the silhouette “fish”, characterized by great romanticism and femininity.

In that period, a wide hem was balanced by a straight shoulder line, and now this style is preserved in modern fashion along with the popular tea dress. In evening fashion silhouette mermaid dress was more expressive, the necessary volume was achieved with the help of wedges gode, cut on the oblique, or skillful pleating. The design was balanced by the shape of the neckline and the cut of the sleeves or a cape with ruffles made of the same material.

This style gained wide popularity in 1931 when the fashion magazine Vogue presented an image of Madeleine herself as an antique statue in a snow-white dress. Years later, this image inspired such famous designers as Christian Dior, John Galliano, and many other fashion designers of different decades to create masterpieces in a similar silhouette.

In the 1950s, the narrowing of the skirt to the knees became so extreme that it began to interfere with walking, almost as much as Paul Poiret's “limp skirt” in the early 20th century. The difference was that the later style had a hemline that then extended to the ankles. A dress with a “mermaid tail” and a strapless bodice or an American armhole became a favorite outfit of singers Peggy Lee, Della Reese, and other entertainers. Often it was complemented by a pelerina of black-brown fox fur and gloves to the elbow That is curious, the fashion designers had nothing to do with the creation of this image - it was a spectacular stage dress, not a demonstration of high skill couturier for the elite clientele.

The extravagant silhouette “mermaid” usually comes into fashion at the same time as the return of the silhouette “hourglass”, and enjoys continued success on the red carpet and other similar events. The taper at the knees gives a provocative twist to the classic hourglass silhouette and enhances the undulating movement of the hem when walking.

Now the mermaid dress style is very much in demand and popular - the most beautiful wedding and evening dresses are regularly seen by world-class celebrities. It is also chosen by our brides who want to look spectacular and stylish on their wedding day - in this they are helped by the wedding fashion brand Pollardi, which offers a variety of actual mermaid-style dresses for every taste.

There is a big difference between the clothes of today and the clothes of the past. In the olden days, more wore mostly fitted tops and flared skirts. This did not surprise anyone, as they looked great on the body as well. Talking about high fashion, the dresses most sought after by brides such as mermaid wedding dresses, tight and flared dresses, trumpet dresses, etc. They are very different from each other as we will see in the next section.

The main differences between mermaid and trumpet
A mermaid dress is a type of dress that is close to the bride's body, while a trumpet wedding dress is such a dress, once worn, the texture of the bride's body and natural curves come out.

The basic style of a mermaid dress is that it enlarges the front, widening the lower part of the knee, and looks like a fishtail, while the basic style of a trumpet dress is that it starts at the hip and forms a trumpet silhouette.

Silk, satin, and taffeta fabrics are used to make mermaid dresses and the trumpet dress is made up of silk fabric.

The mermaid wedding dress was designed by a French designer and first appeared in the late 19th century, while the trumpet dress was first designed in 1897.

The mermaid dress has large pinches, while the trumpet dress has small pinches.

One of the most important decorations of the mermaid dress is the back, it can be completely open, have an asymmetrical neckline of original shape, various kinds of weaves, and the like. In addition, such dresses can have cutouts on one or both sides of the waist, which looks very nice on girls with slender figures. Most often there are sleeveless gode dresses with a long tight sleeve, which is perfectly combined with a rounded neckline or stand-up collar.

The main secret of mermaid dresses is that most often the style assumes the presence of a sewn or separate corset, which beautifully tightens and accentuates the waist, making the figure similar to an hourglass. The silhouette visually tightens and slims the figure, so it is perfect for girls with different body features, for example, for the figure type “pear” or “rectangle” with quite lush shapes.

Mermaid style also emphasizes the hips, so if the bride does not want to bring to the forefront of this part of her body, such a wedding dress is better to refuse. Because of this, mermaid dresses do not always sit well on girls with a figure of “full pear” or “apple”. Also, do not recommend such models for girls with broad shoulders and figure “inverted triangle”: the tight upper part of the design of the outfit too clearly emphasizes the narrow hips, disproportionate to the broad shoulders.

One of the important requirements of the mermaid dress is considered an elongated silhouette, so harmoniously the most traditional models look most harmoniously on girls of high and medium height. Those who have a small height, too, can choose a suitable style, only to harmonize the image should be complemented with high heels.

If you have always been attracted by the romance of the sea and its legends, summer 2023 is the best time to immerse yourself in the beauty of the fabulous underwater world: the “mermaid-style” is the main trend of this season. Although the “mermaid” dress does not belong to the category of universal models for every day, it has many advantages that attract many women to choose and wear it, which led to the formation of the “mermaid-core” style. This dress has several advantages that are reasons to choose it over other more conventional dresses. Below we list a few reasons why you should choose this dress, including:

Femininity. The dress is able to transform every representative of the beautiful half of humanity, giving her grace and sophistication.

Variety of options. Thanks to the range of styles, the bride will be able to pick up a garment in accordance with her wishes.

Good combinability. For a dress of this cut, it is easy to pick up shoes and accessories.

Especially good look for classic boat shoes or open sandals. An open neckline can be decorated with a necklace. If you choose a “blind” dress with a bare back, the neckline can be complemented with a pendant on a long chain.