7 adorable mermaid toys and gifts that have nothing to do with Ariel Barbie

What’s that old adage about how spring is coming, and a young girl’s thoughts turn to mermaids? Oh right, that’s not an adage. Still, my girls seem to be extra interested in them these days, and I’m happy to see so many cropping up that don’t have a wide-release animated feature tie-in.

Here, six adorable indie picks for a mermaid-loving little girl. Or hey, little boy. And I wouldn’t blame him one bit. -Liz

The Su Chi mermaid t-shirt at Tea Collection (above) is inspired by a Balinese wood carving. Call me stodgy, but I kind of like finding a mermaid on a kids’ shirt that doesn’t have Double-Ds popping out of her starfish bra. ($26)

We recently found Giddy Giddy’s supergirl hair clip holder, and now there’s a mermaid version too. Ridiculously cute on the wall, and totally handmade. ($30)

For a fabulous travel toy, we we’ve been entranced for years by this mermaid magnetic doll set made from the beautiful drawings of artist Lorena Siminovich. Who knew a mermaid could change tails for a fancier occasion? ($14.95 at Mudpuppy)

For a real paper doll–or just some original decor for the walls–I’m loving this amazing mermaid paper doll from Etsy’s Paper Acorn. It’s 8″ tall and the hinges allow you to bend her to your will for all kinds of imaginative play possibilities.

Blabla makes a few adorable mermaid dolls, all handcrafted in soft cotton by Peruvian artists. Pick from pink or blue–if picking just one is even possible. ($42/12″, $52/18″)

A funky little Barcelona shop on Etsy called mmmfantasiadealgodon makes “arty underwear for kids” including this mermaid tank top with a vintage Sirena illustration on the front. ($20)

For an alternative to that other mermaid movie, my kids have totally fallen for Ponyo, the gorgeously animated feature from CMP fave Hiyao Miyazaki. An adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s original Little Mermaid fairy tale, it comes to life with Japanese animation and voices from the likes of Tina Fey, Cate Blanchett, and Liam Neeson. And lets just say Ponyo doesn’t have to lose her voice for her dreams to come true. ($19.99 from our Affiliate Amazon; see clips at the official Ponyo site.)