Steampunk Fashion Guide: Mermaid/Fishtail Skirts

This tight fitting skirt is very similar to the trumpet skirt. While the trumpet flares above the knee, the mermaid skirt flares at the knee or below. Fishtail skirts usually (though not always) have a small train at the back, similar to a fish or mermaid tail. This can be left down to trail on the ground, or bustled with buttons, hooks or ribbons at the back of the skirt. Eventually this fit-and-flare style was taken to ridiculous extremes with the invention of the hobble skirt, which literally hobbled the wearer. A restrictive band was worn just below the knees (either over or under the skirt) to keep the wearer from taking too big a step and ripping the skirt. Although it was a short lived Victorian fad, modern versions of hobble skirts and dresses pop up every now and then in Goth and BDSM influenced fashion. Fishtail skirts are very popular in Steampunk cosplay, often worn with trains that are bustled low in the back.