Real mermaids! On the boardwalk! Can it be? Well, almost. This past weekend, the 32nd annual Mermaid Parade hit Coney Island, just in time for the summer solstice in New York. A seemingly infinite number of mythological sea creatures (1,500+ to be exact) flooded the city’s Surf Avenue and famous boardwalk, as girls in seashell bras and similarly dressed onlookers showed off their wave-ready craftiness.
We fought through all the shells, clams and deep sea crowds to chat with some of the parade’s most decked out mermaids. Who knew they’d have so much to say about beauty and style?
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Lauren Chan
Photography by Taylor Hill/WireImage
1/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Sivan
Age: 30
City: Hoboken, NJ
“My costume is very bright, so with that and the pink hair, I thought that my make-up should be minimal. I used a purple lipstick that came in my Birchbox and some reusable fake eyelashes.”
2/10
Coney-Island-Mermaid-Parade-09
Name: Samantha
Age: 4
City: New York, NY
“I love mermaids. My favourite is Ariel.”
3/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Stephanie
Age: 23
City: Rowley, NC
“I used CoverGirl Outlast Lip Stain in Plum Pout. My sparkly magenta eye shadow is by M.A.C to compliment the gold in my mermaid costume.”
4/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Erin, Cassie
Age: 22
City: Carmel, NY
“Our inspiration was that we just emerged from the water. We glued craft jewels and beads to our face to look like droplets. On our lips, we used a Bare Minerals shimmer gloss for a similar effect.”
5/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Vallyn
Age: 25
City: Rowley, NC
“I thought to myself: This is an opportunity to not wear a shirt. It’s the Xtina 2002 MTV Video Awards mermaid look.”
6/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Anne
Age: 32
City: The Bronx, NY
“I love pinning make-up on Pinterest and I had seen a lot of the ombré lip. I used a combination of [dark blue] eyeliner and [a bright blue] eye shadow. I filled my lips in with the eye pencil and dabbed the shadow on top.”
7/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Names: Marika, Ashley, Anna
Ages: 28
City: San Francisco, CA
“It’s our first Mermaid Parade, but not our first time dressing up as mermaids. We have a band—a mermaid band—called Seashorses Forever.”
8/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Annalise
Age: 25
City: Seattle, WA
“This is a shrimp head that was made for a previous event. The rest was made for today—and the fanny pack is for practical use.”
9/10
Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Name: Trinity
Age: 41
City: Hoboken, NJ
“I ordered some gold bronzing powder for the parade. I laid a fishnet stocking on my skin and applied the bronzer over top, to create a scaly look.”
