Mermaid Parade (Patreon)

I haven't marched in the Mermaid Parade for five years. Part of the reason why is that I didn't think I could ever top my sea foam costume.



But Bambi's theme this year was Coney Island Babydolls and she mentioned I could do a Lolita mermaid and I couldn't resist ther challenge.
A lot of costumes in the parade are clever puns so I decided on a maid cafe uniform so I could be a mer-maid and Johnny would be a sea urchin (like, Oliver Twist type urchin.) I couldn't do a *real* Lolita style dress because it would be waaaaaaay too hot so I decided to figure out how to give the impression without all the weight of the frills. And I was trying to only use fabric I already had.

I made it too complicated, is what I'm saying.

So I spent all of June and this damn thing and then a miscommunication meant that I ended up rushing my makeup. So I just ended up being really disappointed with my final results.

I mean, look how great my friends looked





But I still had fun because the Mermaid Parade is one of the best things about New York. It's a super inclusive celebration of weirdos. People of all ages and races show up to march or cheer for the marchers. Anyone can wear a costume but no one *has* to wear a costume. And unlike more mainstream celebrations in New York, people don't use it as an excuse to get asshole-drunk.




It's an incredible day and I'm so glad I went.

But next time I'm going to wear way less clothing.