Fish Scale Pattern

Make a fish scale pattern, also called a scale, scallop or mermaid scale pattern: rows of equal circles, each row moved across by exactly half a scale and laid over the row below, so every scale shows one rounded edge. Set the scale width and the row step, choose one colour, rows, diagonal stripes, a scattered mix or a gradient, add an inner ring for a mermaid look, and download a seamless SVG tile, a 300 DPI PNG or a PDF at full size. Tick the extra pages for scallop border strips to cut out and a scale stencil whose cut lines are held together by bridges. Every scale edge is an arc of its circle, the tile repeats edge to edge and the stencil has no loose pieces (all tested). Nothing is uploaded.

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How to make a fish scale pattern

1. Choose a preset or set the scale width and the row step.
2. Pick a style (filled, no outlines, inner ring or lines only) and which way the rounded edge points.
3. Choose a colour scheme and the colours, or a gradient from colour 1 to colour 2.
4. Download the SVG tile for fabric, wallpaper or the web, or the PDF to print at full size.
5. For trims, tick the border strips; for painting, tick the stencil, print at 100% and cut out the grey slots.

What you can use it for

• Mermaid party decorations and invitations
• Fabric, gift wrap and scrapbook paper
• Scallop tile and backsplash layouts
• Painted walls and furniture (stencil)
• Cake, cookie and craft templates
• Website and slide backgrounds (SVG tile)

The 14 presets

#	Preset	Scale width	Row step	Colours	Style	Seamless repeat
1	Classic fish scales	1 in	50%	One colour	Filled scales with outlines	1 × 1 in
2	Mermaid scales (gradient with rings)	1 in	45%	Gradient by row (colour 1 to colour 2 and back) (6)	Filled with an inner ring	1 × 4.5 in
3	Flat scallop shingles	1.5 in	30%	Colour by row (2)	Filled scales with outlines	1.5 × 0.9 in
4	Navy line scales	0.75 in	50%	One colour	Lines only	0.75 × 0.75 in
5	Gold lines on black	1.25 in	45%	One colour	Lines only	1.25 × 1.13 in
6	Pastel scatter, 4 colours	1 in	50%	Scattered (repeats every 6 scales) (4)	Filled scales with outlines	6 × 6 in
7	Three-colour diagonal	1 in	40%	Diagonal stripes (3)	Filled scales with outlines	3 × 2.4 in
8	Small two-tone rows	0.5 in	50%	Colour by row (2)	Filled scales with outlines	0.5 × 0.5 in
9	Large wall scallops	6 in	40%	Colour by row (2)	Filled scales with outlines	6 × 4.8 in
10	Rounded edge up	1 in	50%	One colour	Filled scales with outlines, edge up	1 × 1 in
11	Sunset gradient	0.75 in	50%	Gradient by row (colour 1 to colour 2 and back) (8)	Filled scales with outlines	0.75 × 5.25 in
12	Tonal, no outlines	1 in	50%	Diagonal stripes (other way) (2)	Filled, no outlines	2 × 2 in
13	Scallop border strips	1 in	50%	One colour	Filled scales with outlines + border	1 × 1 in
14	Scale stencil with bridges	1.5 in	50%	One colour	Lines only + stencil	1.5 × 1.5 in

Each preset only fills in the fields; change any size or colour afterwards.

Row step and scale size (1 in scales)

Row step	Row height	Rows per 12 in	Scales per square foot
50%	0.5 in	24	288
45%	0.45 in	26.67	320
40%	0.4 in	30	360
30%	0.3 in	40	480
20%	0.2 in	60	720
15%	0.15 in	80	960

Smaller steps overlap the scales more, so more of them fit in the same space.

Colour schemes

Scheme	Colours	Repeats after	Tile for 1 in scales at 50%
One colour	1	1 scales × 2 rows	1 × 1 in
Colour by row	2 to 4 (3 here)	1 scales × 6 rows	1 × 3 in
Diagonal stripes	2 to 4 (3 here)	3 scales × 6 rows	3 × 3 in
Diagonal stripes (other way)	2 to 4 (3 here)	3 scales × 6 rows	3 × 3 in
Scattered (repeats every 6 scales)	2 to 4 (3 here)	6 scales × 12 rows	6 × 6 in
Gradient by row (colour 1 to colour 2 and back)	3 to 12 steps (6 here)	1 scales × 10 rows	1 × 5 in

Scallop border strips

Scallop width	Depth	Circle radius	Shape	Scallops per strip (Letter)	Strips per page
1 in	0.5 in	0.5 in	half circles	7	6
1 in	0.25 in	0.63 in	shallow arcs	7	7
1.5 in	0.75 in	0.75 in	half circles	5	5
2 in	0.5 in	1.25 in	shallow arcs	3	6
3 in	1.5 in	1.5 in	half circles	2	3

Each strip is the width of the page; join strips end to end for a longer border.

Stencil sizes

Scale width	Default slot	Default bridge	Smallest bridge	Slots on the page	Bridges
1 in	0.06 in	0.19 in	0.125 in	312	156
1.5 in	0.06 in	0.19 in	0.125 in	128	64
2 in	0.06 in	0.19 in	0.125 in	72	36
3 cm	0.15 cm	0.4 cm	0.3 cm	220	110
5 cm	0.15 cm	0.4 cm	0.3 cm	72	36

For a stencil from your own picture, use the Stencil Maker. For big prints over several sheets, try the Poster Tiler.

Which tool to use

You want	Use
Fish scale, scallop or mermaid scale repeats, borders or a stencil	Fish Scale Pattern (this page)
Traditional Japanese motifs with concentric rings	Japanese Pattern Generator
Hexagon cells	Honeycomb Pattern Generator
Straight-slat trellis and lattice panels	Lattice Pattern
Simple CSS background patterns	SVG Pattern Generator

Also handy: the Japanese Pattern Generator and the Honeycomb Pattern Generator.

Frequently asked questions

What is a fish scale pattern?

A repeat of equal, overlapping circles in rows. Each row is moved across by half a scale and lies over the row below, so you see one rounded edge of every scale. The same pattern is called a scale, scallop or mermaid scale pattern.

What does the row step do?

It is how far each row sits below the one above, as a share of the scale width. At 50% the scales are as tall as they are wide; lower values give flatter, more overlapped scales. Above 50% gaps would open between the rows, so the maker stops there.

Are the curves exact?

Each scale edge is an arc of a true circle, and where one scale goes under another the line stops exactly where the circles cross. In the PDF and SVG the arcs are drawn as curve pieces of at most 45°, which stay within 0.001% of the circle.

Will the tile repeat without a seam?

Yes. The SVG tile is one full repeat of the scales and their colours, so copies placed edge to edge join with no seam. Our tests compare the pattern one repeat over at thousands of points.

How do I make mermaid scales?

Choose the mermaid preset, or a gradient scheme with the inner ring style. The gradient runs from colour 1 to colour 2 and back over the rows, so the tile still repeats.

What are the scallop border strips?

A page of strips with a straight top and a row of arcs along the bottom, for shelf edges, cake bands, cards and trims. Set the scallop depth up to half the width for half circles.

What are the bridges on the stencil?

If every scale line were cut right through, the scales would fall out. Every stretch of line between two crossings that is long enough keeps a bridge of the width you choose, so the sheet stays in one piece. The maker checks every stencil for loose pieces before it draws it, and refuses sizes where the bridges do not fit.

How is this different from the Japanese pattern generator?

That tool draws traditional Japanese motifs, with concentric rings in each arc. This page draws plain single-arc scales with a row step, colour schemes, border strips and a stencil.

Is it free?

Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit.

Is anything uploaded?

No. Everything is drawn by JavaScript in your browser and nothing is sent anywhere.