5 Beauty Secrets from Mermaid Meridian’s Boudoir

NO MAKE UP.

I have been using Mermaid Minerals exclusively for over a year. I get complements on my skin, how I do my make up, and I am always being asked what products I use.  Now, I am giving you my insider tips and tricks for staying beautiful through the harsh chlorine, heavy stage make-up, and rough sands of mermaid life and beyond!

Save Your Skin

• My favorite way to unwind and get all bubbly clean after a long days swim in a chlorine pool is a long hot shower with Shea Butter Body Gel by Mermaid Minerals.  The light scent brings me back to a calming place while the bubbles incase my body with their rich moisturizing lather that leaves you feeling clean with no residue only your naturally moisturized skin! The Shea Butter Body Gel is made with red marine allege that improves your skin’s hydration and natural peptide to help repair and condition the skin! Finish off with Coconut Oil or any of Mermaid Minerals fine lotions for touchably soft skin! (My favorite everyday all over body lotion the Shea Butter Body Lotion!)Sun, Sand and Saltwater we love them, but our skin doesn’t necessarily love them!  A day on the beach the wind whipping your hair, the salt water dripping from your tail and the sun to warm your body, what a lovely image but to our delicate skin it is a nightmare! The salt dries out your skin and hair, the sun wicks moisture away and our skin is left dry, itchy, and ashy. This makes me feel scaly, as if I need to shed my skin like my snake, but alas that is not an option. Instead I use an exfoliating body wash, a yummy new favorite is the Chocolate & Coffee Mint Body Polish! Do not be turned off by the Saccharin sweet scents of Chocolate or Coffee or Mint, because there are none!  Nothing but foodie scent found naturally! Love the smell of fresh ground coffee or fresh picked mint? How about the rich scent of raw chocolate? Then I highly recommend this to you!  The exfoliating part comes from the bits apricot seed and vanilla bean found wrapped up with this sumptuous body polish. Use this after a hard day on your skin to wash off the dirt and the dry and dead skin cells that make your skin look dull and dry. Follow up with your favorite lotion or oil to keep your skin soft and hydrated throughout your day or night.

Sleeping Beauty

• Having trouble sleeping or unwinding after a stressful day? Lavender is a natural calming scent that will put your mind at ease and help you drift off to sleep.  I have been fighting with insomnia since I was in highschool, so I have tried just about every natural remedy you can think of and I have found that lavender is always a key factor in products that work for me. Then one day a package arrived on my doorstep with Mermaid Mineral goodies, inside I found several lavender products and decided to formulate a new bedtime routine. Here for you is a little bedtime pampering that you can indulge in whenever you feel the need! Just before bed or after a hot shower or even in the middle of the day, you can do this. The La La Lavender scent is available in both body butter and roll-on essential oil and of course I use both!  After a shower and exfoliating my hands and feet I lather up with the La La Lavender Body Butter. The extra thick rich cream hydrates and penetrates the tough skin on your feet and hands. Remember to exfoliate your hands/feet first, that way you have removed any dirt, dead skin, or ick that you do not want on your hands or feet. The fresh exfoliated skin will thank you and love the soothing lotion that will repair and soften your delicate toes. Just because we are mermaids does not mean we can ignore our feet, even the water Gods of old are said to have been known by their beautifully manicured and well-kept feet.  Dab on a little La La Lavender essential oil on your wrists, neck and between your breasts so the scent will be with you throughout the night and will carry you off to sleep.  You can also add a dab or two to your pillow or blankets or dilute several drops of oil with water and put in a spray bottle to use as a room, linen or garment spray! Now for an extra added bonus to my Sleeping Beauty routine I use the Super Firming Cream, especially around my eyes, to help to tighten and firm the skin.

Even Tones and Flawless Finish

• Every girl has her secrets; every girl has a make-up trick that is not seen but necessary to her look.  My two secrets, Eye Fix and HD Setting powder, neither one is noticeable but both are essential! First off, I don’t sleep often and don’t sleep well, so the Eye Fix by Mermaid Minerals is a dream come true! It blends in perfectly; it covers the dark circles, and evens out my skin tone. As an added bonus the Eye Fix also acts as a base for your eye shadows helping to ensure you will have beautiful eyes all day! The Eye Fix is a perfect base for all of the iRAVE colors (My favorite: Tinkerbelle) and loose mineral powders.  And secondly, I have never really understood the use of setting powders, but apparently I had not found the right one.  After I have done my make-up, but before I put on lipstick, the HD Setting Powder comes out!  Swirl and tap a large powder brush into the container and brush over your face to give you a finished glow and an even toned flawless look.  The powder is made from Chamomile Flower Powder, which very light and airy, and is invisible once on, but will it reduce the appearance of fine lines giving you a visibly smooth look! I have worn the setting powder with heavy make-up and light make-up, every time I get complaints on how smooth my skin looks! One of the most important things about makeup is getting a compliment on your skin, if you use makeup that is healthy and natural people will notice you before they notice your make-up.

A Good Face Forward

• My sister is the reigning Inland Empire Zombie Beauty Queen and when she asked me to tag along to play the role of a zombie mermaid at a comic book store grand opening, I jumped at the chance!

  

  INLAND EMPIRE ZOMBIE BEAUTY QUEEN MYRA MAINS AND HER ZOMBIE MERMAID!

  The day started with both of us firmly planted in the make-up chairs, latex, fake blood, heavy stage make-up,  glue, food coloring, you name it, it went on my face!! My sister and I had talked about how the grease paint and stage make-up was taking a toll on her skin, but I was not prepared for all it all at once. That evening, when it was time for the make-up to come off I grabbed my Mermaid Mineral Face Wash Kit! This is a kit I put together, you cannot buy all the products together, but you can buy all the products individually and build your own face wash kit that works exclusively for you!   I start with a makeup remover cloth, then splash on some warm water to rinse off the now loose and smeared make-up. Then the fun part begins, I start with Limu Facial Cleanser to get rid of the rest of the dirt, oil and makeup, rise with warm water then I move to the Papaya Crème Enzyme Polish. The enzyme polish will remove any dead skin, scabs and even dried-on fake blood, who knew!? Wash it all off with warm water and pat dry your shiny new face, now that you scraped off the zombie blood and latex scars, spritz your face with  ZEN Hydrating Mist & Toner (this is my Husbands favorite part, he absolutely loves the scent.)
• This will help firm and tone your buffed and polished skin and finally finish off with face lotion. My favorite is the Herbal Silk Moisturizer, perfect to soothe my skin! I also highly recommend using the Restorative Marine Moisturizer to help repair tired, dried out skin or to maintain your healthy skin, like I do! By the end of the night, my sister was raving about how her face felt smooth and clean and soft ….Mermaid Minerals is NOT just for Mermaids!

The Perfect Pout

• The perfect pout starts with hydrated lips that look and feel kissable soft! To get this begin by using lip protectant with sunscreen every day, every time you go outside, instead of licking your dry lips use a lip protectant.  Mermaid Minerals carries a line of lip balm with SPF 10; the Key Lime is to die for! You can also pick up any generic SPF Lip protectant like SoftLips to carry with you at all times. When finishing your look, you need the perfect lip, but there are so many options! I will admit I am lazy with lipsticks, stains, and pencils.
  I do not own very many shades because I like to keep it simple.  My typical everyday perfect pout consist of lip balm and lip gloss, I like to use Mermaid Minerals Hint of Mint lip gloss or the NEW Diamond Gloss lip gloss! (I love the extra sparkle)
  However for photo shoots or performances, I use the Go Brazilian Lipstick. It is a great long lasting lipstick with Cupuacu butter which contains vitamins A, B & C. which also help hydrate your lips, so you don’t get crease lines and lipstick smear! Go Brazilian Lipstick comes in 11
  shades from evening wear to everyday.
  To spice things up I will go the extra mile and fill in my lips with one the Soft Fill Lip Liners, to complement my lipstick and pat on a little Puttin’ on the Glitz glitter for that extra mermaid shine. Always remember to finish your lips with Mermaid Minerals Lip Seal to water proof and lock in the color, your mermaid lips will always be the perfect kissable pout!

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My beauty routine is now yours to try! You can purchase Mermaid Minerals from our website http://www.mermaidminerals.com/ or from our Etsy Shop https://www.etsy.com/shop/MermaidMinerals.

Not wanting to commit to a new product line? Join in on our monthly Mermaid of the Month Contest on Facebook for your chance to win a free goodie bag with samples from some our favorite products.

And make sure to follow me on Facebook,
whenever I am out and about with samples, my Facebook friends are the first to know! I hope you have enjoyed my insider secrets, be sure to leave a comment or ask a question.

Love, Peace, & Mermaids,

Meridian Mer-Gyver

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A Tale of My Tail

It all began one hot spring day at the Renaissance Faire, I was introduced to a fiery old man with a wit and sense of humor that is sure to keep anyone on their toes.  Our conversation was fun and light hearted, we parted ways and would wave whenever I would pass by the booth he was working with. Fast forward several years to 2012, another fiery old man enters my booth, a lot of time has passed and it has changed us both, but a few minutes into our conversation we both remembered that season of faire.  

First night with Thom, he let me
 wear Ashley's tail! I was excited and so
nervous, Ashley was top mermaid to me
so this was a high honor! 

We spent hours catching up and before I knew, my husband and I were visiting the home of the great and wonderful Thom Shouse!!

<3 Thom and I <3

So much excitement, so many “fan-girl” moments that I try to keep hidden, so many tears, both happy and sad, Thom and I have unique relationship, a father/daughter slash comrades /emotional artists bond.  From the day I stepped foot into his home, I knew I was home and I would do anything for this man and his family.

Turns out, Thom felt the same way about me and mine and asked me to be part of the Mermaid Rentals Pod, I began swim training almost immediately and began planning my new career as a professional mermaid.

Working for Thom meant I got to wear a lot of different tails and learn how to care for, repair, and paint tails. I have worn tails that have been seen on Animal Planet, Comedy Central, and even the TV show Charmed. The most famous tail I have worn to date! The gold “Charmed Tail” was created for an episode of, you guessed it, Charmed for actress Alyssa Milano. Who it turns out doesn't swim and doesn't really like water… The Charmed Tail came into my care and I have worn her ever since, proudly at all the events Thom and I do together.

The Charmed Tail, Dana Point 2013

Despite my best efforts the tail is old and worn and Thom began talking about retiring her, but not until I had a tail of my own. Well as mermaids often find out tails are expensive and I had to go with what I could afford.

My Mother shelled out the cash to pay for a “silicone” tail so I could begin booking regular parties/gigs to help fund the tail I really wanted from Thom.

Re-gluing Scales and
patching holes...

While the white tail was never finished to my specifications and not to the standards that I was used to with Thom’s tails, it had one redeeming quality, it looked incredible on camera! Every time I put on the white tail the scales would loosen and holes would begin to appear in the "skin", the fluke was never fully cured and was never put together properly and if experience taught me anything this is not a Dragon Skin Silicone Tail with a Neoprene lining as advertised.

Re-gluing the Fluke...Again!

It is home improvement store silicone and neoprine, which is tiring and stretching, making the tail bigger than its original size. Learn from my mistakes, research you tail makers, their material, and talk to previous customers.  I used the knowledge from Thom in learning tail repair in order to keep the white tail together and just kept on swimming.

January 2014, my Mom once again, presents me with a gift so great all I can do is cry. She made a down payment on a Thom Tail….I cannot believe it, this is happening? Oh my god, this is really happening!

 For the past 8 months I have been waiting, watching, and wondering. This is my adventure with Thom, Tails, and the Mer-Family who made it all possible. 

Before leaving for NCMerfest, a mermaid convention being held in North Carolina in January, Thom had already cast the fluke portion of my tail, he and my Mom had been plotting this for a few months, and on the way home from North Carolina we discussed casting the body.  We talked lots of options, styles, colors, and then Thom says to me, How about the Splash Scales? ...Excuse me? You want to cast a tail for me using the Splash scales….HOLY FREAKING COW! (It is really hard to keep “fan-girl” moments to a minimum in a crowded airplane!) 

Mermaid Ashley working on my tail.

But, before we landed in LA, we had it all planned out and Thom and Ashley (My sister Mermaid) would begin casting my tail soon! I would get pictures and emails with updates and I sketched constantly, trying to find the right colors and pattern.

Drying in the molds!

Every time I went to Thom’s, I had to fondle the pieces of tail that were out of the mold. The call came all too quickly for me, the tail skins were finished and ready to be assembled and I was still sketching and coloring!

Mermaid Fruit Roll Up! 

Thom reassured me that there was still time and that it would all come together and we picked a weekend to start fitting and assembling.  My Husband and I headed over one evening, I mostly giggled and played around in my tail skins and then we got down to business!

First fitting 

The first fitting is the easiest part, the cutting is the scariest part and second fitting is even more nerve racking. It’s time to find out if you measured and cut properly… so nervous! Thank god I have friends who do Math, because I don’t trust my math skills and the tail body fit perfectly, thank you Crystal!

Second Fitting and Fluke Placement

Then we fit, marked, cut and secured the fluke with a Rapid Monofin snug inside the tail body. This was it the moment of truth, the tail was complete and it fit!

BUBBLES! 

 Now it was bath time for my naked, dirty tail. We washed the tail down and let her air dry in the warm beach air. As the tail dried, Thom taught me some of the finer points to mixing paint and pigment, combining colors and using primers. The hardest thing to remember was which jar of cleaner to put the used brushes in! Fortunately, I had finally picked which one of my sketches was going to be my jumping point for painting the tail.

All the paint and test strips!

I had been looking at lot of different sea creatures for inspiration and looking closely at the SPLASH Tail. I knew I wanted to keep some of the gold from the Charmed Tail and I wanted the markings to mimic the markings on the SPLASH tail.  I settled on a design I had created using the Octopus from adult to juvenile as inspiration. Everyone agreed that the octopus tail design was made for me!

My original stretch 

Together Thom and I put on the primmer and then he let me lose… gulp, ok painting skills don’t let me down now. I will admit, I was so nervous to put brush to tail I pranced around and whined a little before really getting into it. It took two days to paint the entire tail all by hand with a little help from the Mer-family!

Blocking colors for the base coat.

Layer by Layer, the colors and pattern started to come together, I kept telling myself not to get discouraged, it wasn't finished. It’s so hard to be objective, when you are your own worst critic. I was unsure of my skills with this new kind of paint and I was so worried it would be ugly or weird looking or markings wouldn't match up, AH!

Day Two: Painting the Fluke

But once I settled into it and just let the paint and brush work for me and listened to Thom’s stories and memories, it all flowed. I was still scared by day two, but I knew it would be ok.  On day two my Husband came with me to spend the day with Thom and I, he brought his giant didgeridoo and serenaded us while I painted!

<3 Torleif, my Landsmen <3

 By midafternoon, I had my husband painting alongside me as we layered the colors on the fluke and before the night was out, I was honored to have Thom’s wife, Susan or Mom as we call her, lend a helping hand with the final clear coat.

Torleif putting on the final wash of copper!

All in all I am honored to have the Mermaid Rentals’ core people; Thom, Susan and Ashley help bring my tail to life. I am deeply grateful to Crystal and Emmalee for helping with the measuring and math skills and so happy to have shared this experience with my little sister Mermaid Alex and her family who came by to help and support me and to Merman Christian who I gossiped with, teased and asked advice of during this entire process. I cannot say Thank You enough or in too many ways to my husband and my Mom, for making my dreams a reality, I would be nothing it was not for them.  And can I just say to all of my internet friends, FINS, and supporters, you never stop continuing to amaze me! I am overjoyed with the outpouring of love, support, friendship, and joy that you bring to me each and every day, I smile often and laugh more because of all of you…..THANK YOU, EVERYONE EVERY WHERE! 

Meridian Mer-Gyver, 2014

Love, Peace, & Mermaids,Meridian Mer-Gyver

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Nuclear Mermaid Bath and Instruction

Earlier this week a friend sent me a link to http://www.funathomewithkids.com/ were this interpid and ingenious Mother has found safe and sometimes edible ways in to infuse the magic of black lights into her childrens lives.

HOAX
http://www.snopes.com/photos/food/mountaindew.asp

I am a sucker for all things glow in the dark and UV reactive, I just knew I had to experiment with it. I'll be honest I was sure it was going to turn out like glowing mountain dew hoax.  We tried it! We went out on special 7-Eleven run and everything. Only to find that it was an internet ruse. :(

When setting out to being this nuclear mermaid project, I had my doubts...how could a few vitamins and a black light really do this....

Well, it did! It freaking worked! All be it a little dangerous, this is how we went about creating my dream bath!

This is all you need! 

I used Balanced B-50 B-Complex pills, you have to make sure it the pills are high in THIAMIN. This bottle of pills continues 55% thiamin in each pill! It is actually the thiamin that makes the water glow, it won't work at all with some of the B vitamins, because they contain little to no thiamin.

Now, I have a whole room dedicated to UV reactive paint and decor, so I was not short on Black Lights. (Note: One Black Light is will work just fine, we needed more lights for the photos) My husband ended up rigging four of the bar Black lights around the tub...now here is the scary part. When working in and around water the last thing you want is extension cords, cables and bar lights hanging all around you. Fortunately for me, I married an electrician!

Torleif the Mad Electrician! 

He carefully taped, rigged, attached, and hung the lights around the tub. He taped up the random cables that were everywhere and covered portable power supply that had the light plugged into it with towels. As cautious and as safe as we could manage getting the bathroom, my husband and I both had our trepidations.




I put about 8 pills into a mortar and pestle and easily crushed up the pills, if you don't have mortar and pestle, you can put the pills into a ziplock bag and crush them with the bottom of a glass. Mix the powder into your bathwater and you are ready to glow baby glow!

 
 And, that's it! Seriously! I do insist that if you try this and you are working around water and electrical equipment, to be safe and smart about the whole adventure.

The aftermath! (Draining the tub)

Thanks for checking out my process! If you try this at home please post pictures to  https://www.facebook.com/TenTicklesArtPage

Love, Peace, & Mermaids,
Meridian Mer-Gyver

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The Celtic Compendium of Merfolk

The British Isles, Home too many a strange creature. Ireland home of the Banshee, Pooka, and Leprechauns; Scotland home of Nessie, Brownies, and Doonie, the shape shifting fairy; England home of Jenny Greenteeth, Hob Goblins, and Changelings.  Born in the States and impressed upon by my very British Grandparents, these creatures are quit familiar to me, but it is the creatures of the water that peek my interest.  I come from a long line of sailors, seamen, fishermen, and dockside workers; basically my family lived and died on the waters of the North Sea. I have a strong tie to these places and these stories and I hope that I can give you a little of that old world magic that I grew up with.

The Selkies

Selkies, one of the most recognized of the water creatures.  Hailing from the Orkney Isles of Scotland across the Irish Sea and into Ireland, Selkies are also known as Seal People. When in the water Selkies look just like common seals, but they can shed their seal skins to walk on land. 

Often times a fishermen will stumble across a female Selkie in human forum, if he hides her seal coat she will be his forever, unless she can get her seal coat back. Often times the Selkies will fall in love with the lands people, they give birth on land and after seven years they return to the water, unless their Seal Coat has been hidden.  I have heard some tales state that if the Selkie’s Husband comes for her while she is on land; she is powerless and must return with him.  

It is said that when an Irish child is born with dark hair and eyes, they are of Selkie blood.  (I am of European descent, Scottish and Spanish with dark eyes and dark hair, this part of the legend always fascinated me! It’s fun to think that I could from Selkie Blood.) Selkie Males are said to be very handsome and can seduce a human woman with ease and grace.

If a woman wants to catch a male Selkie for a mate, she must shed seven tears into the oceans water. The more the women are unhappy in their marriages or dissatisfied with their lives, the more tempting their tears become. Selkies males will seek out these women, to seduce and ravish, if it is only for one night, it will be a night she will never forget!

The Kelpies

Kelpies, also known as the Water Horse, dark creatures hell bent on devouring anyone who attempts to ride them.  Kelpies are known throughout the rivers and Lochs of Scotland and Ireland, they are said to be seen wandering the banks.  

They will appear as lost ponies along the river banks and shorelines, if you attempt to ride one, you better hold on tight! Sometimes Kelpies look like normal horses and if you can bridle one he will do your bidding but if you drop or loosen the reins he will drag you to your watery death.  Other times Kelpies are easier to spot, they are described as having pale blue or white skin, the easiest way to identify Kelpies is by their hair and skin.  Their mane always seems to be dripping water and their skin is similar to seal skin and is cold to the touch.  

Horses in general play a big part in Scottish history, recently a Sculptor out of Glasgow, Scotland created these two 100 feet tall horse heads out of 600 tons of steel and can be seen from the M9 (major highway). Out of reverence for the working horses of Scotland and their rich folklore, there two have been named THE KELPIES. 

The Merrows

Merrows are a large race of fairy like mermaids hailing from Ireland and Scotland. Merrows are all female their male counterparts, the mermen are rarely seen and for good reason! It is said that the male Merrow are extremely ugly with pig like features, sharp pointed teeth and scaly green skin.  The females however are said to be extremely beautiful, often described as having green, or white skin, and sea-colored hair. They have delicate white webbing between their fingers and their feet are flatter than humans when on land. The have impressive mermaid tails and a few articles of clothing to allow them to travel at great distance and depths underwater.

Merrows are most recognized and known for their red caps or cape; this allows them to dive beneath the waves and at great depths with ease.  If they lose this cap or cape, it is said that they will lose their power to return beneath the water. This magic cap is sometime made from red feathers other times red fabric and it is called a cohullen druith, in Irish Gaelic. Much like the Selkies, Merrow’s must remove their cap or cloak to come on land in human form. If a mortal finds her cap or cloak, he may hide it and claim her as his bride.  This is fortunate for the man, because Merrows are often extremely wealthy, she will have much wealth do to all the shipwrecks she has plundered over the years! However, like all Merfolk the Merrow will recover her cap or cape and return to the sea leavings her human husband and children behind.

There underwater home is known as The Land beneath the Waves (Tir fo Thoinn) Merrows are cousins to the Fairy World, they are members of the Sidhe or people of the mounds. The Sidhe are descendants from the "Tuatha de Danann" who settled in Ireland eons ago. They were defeated by one of the three warring fairy clans, the Milesians (this is where my blood line comes into play) after their defeat some retreated to the mounds and fairy hills and others retreated to the sea.  Ireland has a two sides to their history, in the beginning it was the fairy clans who fought which eventually gave away to fairy and human interact and soon the human tribes where adapting the fairy names into words of their own. The Milesian tribe became the Milne Clan and that is one of my family names. My Great-Great Grandmother was of the Milne’s; perhaps she knew a Merrow or Fairy in her day! However, I should say that not all Merrows are welcome visions or happy lovers in some parts of Ireland seeing a Merrow can mean death and doom.  

The Dinny Mara

The best I could find to represent the Dinny Mara, sigh...
Source: http://hundredmythologyhaiku.blogspot.com/

Dinny Mara also spelt Dooinney Marrey means “man of the sea”, they are the mermen from the Isle of Man, nestled in the northern waters of Ireland and Scotland. Dinny Mara are only male, from what I can find, there are no females in this tribe. Dinny Mara speak the Manx or Manx Gaelic language, it is a dying language that only a few humans still speak on the Isle of Man.  It is told that these Mermen are kind benign creatures despite their horrible appearance.  Much like the male Merrows the Dinny Mara have pig like eyes and noses, their noses are usually bright red from drinking too much of the Brandy they salvage from sunken ships.  

Their breath has a pungent smell at all times from all the raw fish they consume.  These Mermen are known to be kind and one source said they make good fathers, however I have not been able to corroborate that info yet. It is a known fact of the Dinny Mara is sensitive to the sound of humans whistling, the pitch of the whistle will anger them. The Dinny Mara will raise a terrible wind to try and rock them off course or sink the ship, all to get rid of the noise.  A sailing ship called The Boys Boat was manned by seven young men; each day they set sail they also gave an offering of fresh herring to the Dinny Mara. In return the crew was blessed with heavy fishing nets and a warning of an impending storm that saved the ship and the crew, when all other fleets were lost, it was said that the Dinny Mara appeared to their favorite ship in order to save them.

The Wildman of Orford

Artist: Michael Wickwar

In England off the Suffolk Coast, there is a land completely shaped and reliant on the sea, over the century’s whole villages and towns have been overtaken by the sea while other areas like Oxford are almost completely landlocked. It is a place of many curious happens, but none have been more curious then the Wildman of Orford. In the 12 century a merman or Wildman was caught in the nets of a fishing vessel, the crew hulled the merman a board and brought him to Orford Castle (built for Henry II) where he was imprisoned as an oddity.

Orford Castle

 He was observed and tortured; he never spoke not even during torture. The Wildman had the strange eating habit of only eating fish by pressing it between his hands to drunk the juices and then eat the raw fish.  He was noted to be quit hairy with a long straggly beard and wore no clothes, he also showed no reverence for God or the Church when he was brought in to the local church.  After some time passed the merman’s captures decied to let him go for swim, they hung nets round to keep him from swimming away. Thinking was a safe bet, they let the Wildman frolic and swim, a few moments later he jumped the nets and was free in the open water.  Some stories tell of him never returning to the Suffolk coast and others still that say he returned twice for short visits and then was never seen again.  What remains is rich history that the local people adore, if you travel to the area you will find a memorial to him on the Market Square, he is featured in a famous local restaurant, and can be seen on the busy streets in many forms.

The Wildmann of Orford

There are also a few wild looking men on the font in St Bartholomew’s Church, which I find very interesting since the man who imprisoned and tortured the poor merman was named Bartholomew de Glanville.
 In 2003 a local artist, Michael Wickwar, created a life sized depiction of the Wildman of Orford. The statue was displayed for a series of events held in celebration of the merman in and around Orford Castle.

The Book of Kells

The Book Kells housed at Trinity College

Book of Kells was written around 800 AD, it is an opulent, yet unfinished manuscript containing the four gospels of the New Testament. Full of incredibly detailed illustrations, this book is considered to be Ireland's finest National Treasure.
 I mention this book for two reasons, if you have never seen it, you must! The other is of course a mermaid. I have talked in previous blogs about how the Church took over the mermaid image and used her to represent the impure woman. However, the Book of Kells is much older and the mermaid image still held a great fascination. It is believed that mermaid depicted in the Book of Kells is to represent two of the contributors, Iona and Columba. It is found on a page about genealogy, swimming up the center of the page. (Page (Folio): 213r)

The Mermaid Song by: Great Big Sea

Click here for video! 

Seeing how this blog is all about Celtic Folklore, I thought I would close with this song. Not traditional but a great drinking song, give it a listen and you might get a laugh! I wanted to have this finished by St. Patrick’s Day, but life gets in the way, so here is my day late and dollar short season’s greetings! Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all of you who are Irish but once a year and to those who are Irish all year! May the luck of the Dinny Mara raise to meet you and may the love of the Selkies always be in your heart.

Love, Peace, & Mermaids,

 Meridian

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