Mermaid Factory

The Mermaid Factory is too cute! I’ve been in here twice with my family and it’s such a great time. It’s just under $ 30 to paint & glitter a mermaid or dolphin. You can also buy extra embellishments such as a crown, shells, or tutu for a bit extra. I definitely recommend making a reservation, especially on the weekend. They also sell kits to make your own mermaid at home and a bunch of other mermaid themed gift items. Much better souvenir than anything you can buy in one of the gift shops down at the beach!

Will definitely be back again! So many choices and options, one mermaid isn’t enough :)

It was my first time there and we were celebrating my cousins 30^th bday! The place was cute and small. They can hold a group session for any occasion. If you have 6+ people in your party it’s $ 20 per person. Less than 6 it’s $ 25.
They provide the object to paint which is a mermaid or a dolphin, they provide the paint, glitter, and other accessories (fees may apply to other extravagant accessories). They also have other mermaids that have been made already all painted and dressed up for sale too.
The thing about this place is that you can be creative and show your personality through how you represent your work.
The owner or employee was very helpful and provided all the tools we needed for our lil party shindig. She was very professional and kind in us staying a lil later after the shop was closed. I would recommend this place for any ladies celebration or occasion, and also to men! ;) lol

The Mermaid Factory is the one stop shop for all the fin things!
The studio fee is $ 25 and includes: base (stand) + mermaid + paint + sand/​glitter. Parties of 8+ can do a session for $ 20! All other props such as seashells and gems are of extra cost. The mermaids are plaster made so it dries fairly quick and ready to take home day of!
It’s an interactive experience for all ages and there is also an option to paint dolphins! Tapping into a creative outlet is definitely therapeutic especially if you pair it with wine & food!
The mermaids are not only pretty for display but they are functional! Use yours as a jewelry holder to drape your necklaces and bracelets, a friend of mine used hers as a prop for a pirate/​mermaid themed party, save it as a keepsake or give it as a gift!
Nobody represents Norfolk better than mermaids!

Love it ! Great selections and perfect ambience. The wine and food was delicious. I’m addicted will be surely back

Came in today with my wifey for the first time. The place is awesome and there are so many options to choose from to customize your mermaid or dolphin. The girl working was super nice and helpful. She did not rush us at all and it was a really relaxing experience. Definitely will go back!

I took my goddaughter here as a birthday date. We came on a weekday right after she got out of school so it wasn’t too busy. The lady working there did warn us that reservations are still the best way to go. Lucky for us, we got a table to ourselves and got set up to start painting a mermaid.
The studio fee includes the mermaid, paint, and glitter. There weren’t any limitations on how many colors to use so my goddaughter went to town with the painting. The paint you get to use is really forgiving so I got to help make my goddaughter’s mermaid look even better. I somehow also got to put glitter on the mermaid since I’m sure my 5 year old goddaughter would have covered the entire thing AND got glitter all over me anyways. But that wasn’t enough for her, we also hot glued some colored shells and she added a tutu to her mermaid. Note: the colored shells cost 10 cents a piece — I totally limited the amount of shells she could put it on it, naturally.
My goddaughter had a blast and she couldn’t stop raving about it to her sisters. I was really glad she got to take it home immediately to show it off instead of having to wait like when you go to those pottery places. I really want to go back and make a mermaid myself.

The mermaid factory is FUN FUN FUN.
If you have an artistic bone in your body, check this place out — it’s a ton of fun!
We did a walk in for three people on the 4^th and were very fortunate that we were able to just sit right down and get to it.
Its a very economical venture as well. Sand, glitter and paint included in price and other little knick knacks are pay as you go. Very reasonable. I’m not going to repeat what others have said because as you can see from the reviews this place really KICKS a$$. That said, please enjoy our creations.

Fantastic day at the mermaid factory! I really enjoyed my first visit and plan to do another around Christmas! Painting mermaids is fun!
Staff was very informative and gave great instructions.
One tip. Make sure that you make reservations for your party. The Facility is not large and the business gets quite busy. While at the location we were told they recently opened another location in Virginia Beach.
Thanks again for an enjoyable day!

This is definitely a fun, creative environment to have a blast with your girlfriends! I would highly recommend this business with no doubt. Check it out with your friends and make some #GoodMemories

I came here with a few of my friends on a weeknight and we were the only ones in there. It was an awesome experience! The staff was very helpful! Everyone’s mermaids turned out fantastic too!
Definitely make a reservation if you plan to come during the summer months. If you are a local just come during the off season.
You can bring your own beverages and cups. We definitely enjoyed wine with our projects.

So much fun! Great for a party! The girls we had helping were great. Very friendly staff. Our mermaids turned out beautiful

This place is the same concept as Color Me Mine but with instead of offering dishes, various figurines, vases, tiles, etc. to paint, they offer the notably known mermaids seen throughout Norfolk. The moment I walked into the place, I fell in love with it. There’s a section of already painted mermaid figurines that you buy as gifts. I loved all the options they had because it gave us ideas on how we were going to paint our mermaid. There was only one girl working the store when my boyfriend and I arrived and she immediately accommodating and was very upbeat and friendly. If we had any questions on how we should adhere certain bits and pieces or what we should do to achieve a certain look, she was more than happy to help and was full of creative suggestions. While we painted, she was also painting the mermaids that would later be put in the for sale section so it makes me think that she was the owner of the place. She knew we were going to fly the mermaid home with us so she used extra precaution when securing the mermaid in its box. Unfortunately, when we got back home to San Diego and took the mermaid out of the box, a bit of the paint on the base of the figurine had smeared — probably because it was boxed shortly after we finished painting it (but we finished very close to closing and we were leaving Norfolk first thing the next morning so we couldn’t leave the mermaid behind to drive and be picked up later). I called the shop asking the girl what the names of the paints were so that we could purchase the paint ourselves and do some touchups. She not only provided me with the names but she also took a picture of the paint bottles and texted me the image. Unfortunately, after going to so many paint shops, we haven’t been able to find the same brand and colors. Even though our mermaid has a few blemishes on it, we’re very happy with the figurine and are so glad that it came out beautifully because it’s a lovely reminder of the deployment my boyfriend and I got through together. Thanks Mermaid Factory!

I am in love with this place. My girlfriends recently held a surprise birthday party for me at Mermaid Factory and I could not have asked for a better day.
Its like one of those places you paint pottery, sans the pots and kiln. Its Mermaids only. They have paint, glitter, sand, rocks, shells, moss, you name it, they have it so you can customize your own undersea princess. Everything dries extremely fast, so you walk away with your mermaid the same day, in a nice box, packaged perfectly. My friends were able to set up a table with hor d’oeuvres, cake, WINE and we had our own little private party while letting our creativity flow.
Its $ 22 per person. All the extras are about $.50-​$ 1.00 each so you end up spending about $ 30 after its all said and done. I loved the way mine turned out and since I am slightly obsessed with mermaids, I will probably go back to paint and add to my collection. The girls that worked there were really helpful and its in Ghent, so ill take any excuse to spend time in that neighborhood.
Not only did I walk away with a fantastic piece of my own art, but I bought a few pieces of mermaid memorabilia for my daughter and Christmas tree. They sell REALLY cute stuff! Absolutely recommend this place if you have nothing to do or want something different to entertain.

I am by no means a skilled artist, but I do enjoy the occasional «paint your own _​_​_​_​». When my friends and I (we are all in our early twenties!) heard that we could paint our own Norfolk Mermaid, we could not get to the Mermaid Factory fast enough!
It is a small studio, but just the right size for mermaid painting with a group of close friends or family. Unlike other painting places, they have so many different options for things to add to your mermaid. Shells, fabric, jewels, sand, GLITTER! It was so much fun seeing what creation each person came up with.
If you call them and reserve a table, they will tell you it takes about two hours to finish your mermaid. They aren’t lying! It does, but you don’t even notice because you are so focused on painting. (BONUS: you get to take your mermaid home that day, AND they put it in a safe take-​home box for you!)
The owner (and family) came in while we were there and they were all very nice! They were interested in the mermaids we were painting, and talked to us about their new business. I highly recommend the Mermaid Factory to everyone. Yes, even men. There was a guy that went in with his girlfriend when I was there and he did paint his own mermaid (/​man)!