Death by Doxie : Elfi Chases the Sun

Whilst Ferdi swelters in the heat, Elfi laps up every bit of sunshine she can find. She often pushes her cushion around the apartment, following the shafts of sunlight as they move about throughout the day. 

I think I'm a bit like Elfi, chasing the sun. But my husband is more like Ferdi - even though he adores Summer and sunny days at the beach, he completely falls apart in the heat. It's not a pretty sight...

Are you a (SPF gazillion+, long sleeve wearing, hat happy) sun chaser? Or do you shudder with dread when you think of those sticky Summer days?

Three Etsy Things : Neon Triangles

I know some of you have mixed feelings about the return of neon, but I've been embracing it wholeheartedly - at least when it comes to the things I'm favouriting on Etsy anyhow... 

1. Neon geometric hanging ornaments by SketchInc 

2. Lovely Llamas paper ornament PDF kit by happythought 

3. Neon zipper pouch by Pamplemouss

Collecting Colour : July is Navy

Finally! July is Navy! A surprisingly sparse colour in our home, but I'm quite happy with the collection in the end (not so happy with the square crop though, I used a tape measure and all for this one...). 

In this collection are a deco glass jug from Retro Vertigo; some lovely blue glass from Alessi and Iitalla; a Croc (yes, I own a pair of Crocs, the shame!); a little Le Creuset pot that I often use for chicken pot pies or 'single' serves of mac 'n' cheese (yum!); some winter woolies; a paper whale; some cocktail stirrers from MSC, pilfered on one of last years cruises; buttons new and old (those giant ones are from my mother-in-laws amazing craft stash); and my passport. 

Speaking of my passport, I need to leave for the airport in an hour and I'm still in my pyjamas. Oops. 

The husband and I are heading to Hong Kong for our weekend-bonanza-third-year-wedding-anniversay-apalooza! We kind of both completely forgot about years one and two so we figured we'd do year three in style. Plus, we tied the knot in Honkers. Plus, it's Hong Kong. Have I mentioned I love Hong Kong? I think I probably have. Maybe more than once. Anyway, there will be super delicious tastiness, lazing by the pool and maybe even a facial (for me, anyway). I am quite excited!

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Every month through 2012 I'll be 'collecting colour', and you can join in too!  Link up below, and/or add your photo to the Flickr group here.  And go here to get all the information you need.  

Seoul Walking : Summer Umbrellas

It's summertime in Seoul, hot and humid. And that means it's umbrella time. Which also means that for me it's chasing-elderly-ladies-down-the-street-with-my-camera time. I've been a bit obsessed with capturing the passing parade of umbrellas...

There's something about a brolly that makes one look just a little more lady-like isn't there? Especially when it's one of these gorgeous floral ones that the ladies of Seoul seem to favour.

(Okay so no umbrella in that last one, but she is rocking the floral, so...)

Gyeongju

Over the weekend we hopped on the KTX and spent a couple of ridiculously lovely days in Gyeongju. Gyeongju is about 2 and a bit hours south of Seoul and is renowned for it's historical significance. It's quite the tourist spot, which is a good thing as it means stuff is wonderfully preserved (plus it also means lovely hotels and tasty restaurants too! We stayed in a recently renovated room in the Hilton and it was great).  

Day one we visited Bulgaksa, a temple situated in lush forest at the base of a the Toham mountain. Everything was so green and pretty, I could have spent a whole day following the various pathways through little courtyards, over stone bridges and past traditional Korean buildings - some filled with lotus lanterns, some with praying visitors, some with little stone piles. 

We also checked out Daereungwon Tumuli Park - a cluster of burial mounds, including one that you can walk into. These ancient tumuli are dotted all around Gyeongju and, despite some in our party (the 11 year old) wondering why they didn't bother to gussy the tombs up a bit more, I think the perfectly grassed mounds made for a beautiful, almost magical, landscape (there's a hint of Dr Seuss about them, yes?). 

As we started the day at a water park (very much not a highlight for me, but thoroughly enjoyed by everyone else), I stupidly left my trusty Canon at the hotel on day one so I've only got the Instagramed photos in the collage below to show you (or you can have a look here and here for some better images).

Day two was the museum (suprisingly enjoyed by all - amazing level of craftmanship on display in the archaeology hall, plus awesome 'traditional' 70s architecture and lots of gold trinkets and duck-shaped stoneware to keep us all entertained). And then there was Anapji, a park featuring lakes and pavilions and general loveliness. I fell a bit in love with the enormous lotus ponds, so beautiful! 

Gyeongju - more wonderful than I expected and well worth a side trip if you're visiting Seoul.