Monthly Archives: April 2011

Greetings from Halong Bay Vietnam!

April 25, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Eco-Friendly & The Environment

Hello all! Sorry if the posts have been a bit sporadic lately! I am on a mini adventure vacation with my friend Kate at the moment who you will know from her open water video with Swish!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s0Wg9kKiwc&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]

We are traveling in Vietnam at the moment and are sending you some greetings from Halong Bay.

photo credit: Los viajes del Cangrejo

We have recently bonded over a rat murder and are now headed onto a 15 hour death bus to Hue! Check in here for recent updates and photos of our adventures in Vietnam. As always you can reach me at victoria@swishsuits.com with any questions or comments. Or send me your travel stories and pics and you can be a part of our blog as well!

Cheers my lovely readers! I have a bus to catch!

Eco-Friendly Beauty Products we Love

April 21, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Eco-Friendly & The Environment, Sexy & Fashion

Living on a beach can be rough. . . on your hair skin and nails that is! (Come on, what did you think I meant?) We here at Swish like to look beautiful, natural and fresh, but not at the expense of our beautiful environment that we live in. So we have compiled a little list of our favorite eco-friendly beauty products that we use to keep ourselves beachy fresh and aquatically fashionable!

SUBSERIES HAIRCARE LINE:

Subseries is a revolutionary new brand for divers and anyone who does ocean sports. They use all natural ingredients and there products are biodegradable! The Subseries line consists of three steps:

1) Protectant: This is a lightweight spray that you put on your hair before entering the water. I have super long thick hair and I am always afraid for salt water damage. This spray really protects your hair! I have not lost any of mine and I am in the water constantly! The spray also helps me with the tangles that I have after diving. When I use the spray my hair stays smooth and I do not have to rip it out to comb through it! Awesome!

2) Shampoo: The shampoo is a gentle clarifying shampoo that rids your hair of impurities. . . Oh and it smells superb of mint and rosemary which gives your head amazing tingles and shivers. Super eco-friendly!

3) Conditioner: The rich conditioner puts moisture back into your hair and quick! I saw the results, having fuller more hydrated hair in 2 weeks! Plus, no harm to the environment.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KLZ7GKMA0c[/youtube]

We love SubSeries Hair Care and cannot wait to see their new skin care line that is out soon. Three cheers for companies committed to eco-friendly fashion.

SHAKA LAKA LIP BALM

We were first introduced to this incredibly tasty lip balm at the US Open of Surfing. We were out in the hot sun and the beach all day and this eco-friendly product really protected our lips! No burning and no peeling! We are especially fond of the Hula La stick which is specially geared towards women. All Shaka Laka products come in 100% recycled packaging, and the Hula La line is also a proud sponsor of the National Breast Cancer Foundation as well as Keep-A-Breast.org and 5% of their sales go to help breast cancer prevention.

Soleo Organics SPF 30

We trend towards living in hot places such as Miami, Thailand, Mexico, and Roatan, Honduras. As such we have to be very careful of our sun exposure, and protect our skin! However, we do not like slathering our bodies with toxic chemicals for our selves and the environment. That is why we love Soleo Organics SPF 30. We put it on anytime we are in the sun! It is not smelly or runny and it is water resistant! All natural ingredients are used as well with coconut and grapeseed oil providing a super smooth and delicious application. . . mmm. . . Rub some on, grab your friends, and hit the beach… eco-friendly and guilt free!

OK so I know that you all do not need to be more beautiful, you blind us already, but we hope that these products will keep you & the environment healthy, happy and loving life in the sun!

Our Favorite Movies About the Ocean

April 15, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Eco-Friendly & The Environment

When you are as passionate about something as most of us are about the ocean, it tends to encompasses your whole life. Thus, it stands to reason that we love movies about the ocean here at Swish Suits. While it is hard to discern because most films about the ocean are beautiful. . . here are our top pics!

The Big Blue

The Big Blue is a film by Luc Besson about two rival freediving champions. The film has a tranquil almost melancholy score, and has been criticized for being a bit introspective and slow. However, I really likes the cinematography and how it exhibited the competitive nature of freedivers and how those who strive for greatness are often very obsessed on the one thing they love.

“You go down to the bottom of the sea, where the water isn’t even blue anymore, where the sky is only a memory, and you float there, in the silence. And you stay there, and you decide, that you’ll die for them. Only then do they start coming out. They come, and they greet you, and they judge the love you have for them. If it’s sincere, if it’s pure, they’ll be with you, and take you away forever.”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82onGmBx9ZM[/youtube]

Morning of the Earth

If there was ever a movie about the ocean that would make you want to surf, not to shred, but just to surf, to feel the ocean below you and to catch that one wave. . . Albert Falzon’s 1972 idyllic surf movie is it. Shot in Bali, Hawaii, and Australia the scenery is stunning. I recommend to sincerely chill out, relax, and watch this epic film that will make your heart ache. . . In the most positive way.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIO9sw1w9vI[/youtube]

The Cove

The Cove was one of those truly shocking films that came out of left field and opened people’s eyes to horrors that they did not know existed. Most people who I talk to have a strong feeling of affection for dolphins, even those who have not been in the ocean. Maybe it is due to the extreme intelligence of these creatures that we almost mark them as our equal. The cove depictes the slaughter of 23,000 dolphins and porpoises that happens in Japan every year. The film had critical acclaim, even nabbing an Oscar.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KRD8e20fBo[/youtube]

Sharkwater

No mention of underwater movies would be complete without mentioning Rob Stewart’s revolutionary documentary “Sharkwater” in which he portrays a creature that we have been conditioned to hate as a noble creature worth saving. Rob’s documentary shed light on the horrific shark fin trade and the dwindling shark population which is so relevant to human survival as well. This film has it all- beautiful creatures, action, adventure, danger, and above all great heart.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggtxA4wuXzY[/youtube]

Disney’s Oceans

Just in general a really happy and informative film with beautiful cinematography shot around the world! Grab your kids or nephews and nieces and have an adventure from the couch next time the weather is bad with this fantastic ocean kids movie!

Sign Up to Be First on the Swish Waiting List!

April 12, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Sexy & Fashion

Hey guys!

I do not know if you have heard, but the rumors are true, due to your amazing support and unexpectedly high demand, we are currently sold out of our stock of our sexy women’s wetsuits. There will be a BRIEF wait while we replenish! We assure you that we are doing our best to bring our suits to the world of women’s aquatic sports, and most importantly to you, as quickly as possible.

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In the meantime sign up here http://info.swishsuits.com/wetsuits-sold-out/ in order to be first on the Swish Suits waiting list!

Want to tell us where you want to wear your Swish Suit? Tell me your story at victoria@swishsuits.com and you could have a chance to be featured on our blog!

For now, dear reader. . . Swish on!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObjxwTyLf9E&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]

Swish Cave Diving Diaries: Part 3, Stealth Missions

April 8, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Eco-Friendly & The Environment

So after dives at Tajma Ha, Minotauro, Xunaan-ha, Dos Palmas, and Dreamgate- the French Cave Diving God and I were starting to really function as a team. This is helped by the fact that we were both trained by the same person and had the same kit configuration. We were starting to feel as though we were on a stealth mission through the Cenotes gilding along. Cheesy I know, but I still wanted my own theme song.

Day 6: Cenote Zazil-Ha

Zazil ha was amazing! Zazil-ha is a closer Cenote than Carwash to get to the upstream section of Aktun-ha, meaning that we did not have to go through the cavern zone at carwash to reach the cave section. This allows a bit further penetration as one does not have to recalculate their thirds after going through the cavern.

We did two cave dives this day with the goal of seeing two famous rooms. During dive one we penetrated to Adriana’s room and further beyond into the cell block. Dive number two we set out with the goal of going to the room of tears. This was by far one of my favorite dives of my caving spree.

To get to room of tears you take the upstream section then make a jump down through a slight restriction. The jump is a bit dark and narrow but it makes coming up into the room that much more special. It is truly a sublime feeling to see such a highly decorated place. After the Room of Tears we entered into a large bedding plane which was fun and a great test of trim, buoyancy and propulsion due to a decorated ceiling and sediment bed below!

All in all another great day banging out the Cenotes caving diving greatest hits!

Ban’s Diving Produces PADI Members of the Month

April 5, 2011 by Victoria Berg

Posted in Active Lifestyle & High-Peformance

Ahhh Ban’s you have done it again! Swish would like to congratualte Marcel Van Den Berg who is the “PADI Professional Member of the Month.” Marcel is a Master Instructor at Ban’s Diving Resort, and the second employee in a year to be given this honor. In September 2010, Tim Hunt was also named “PADI Professional Member of the Month.” Swish has done most of it’s professional training with Ban’s Diving so we are very proud of our instructors!

Marcel took his open water 9 years ago and has been diving ever since. he has worked at Ban’s for 4 years. Recently Marcel has been doing some technical diving courses with Ban’s Tech Team, including a trip to the freshwater caves of Koh Sak.

Tim has been diving for 20 years, and has been at Ban’s for 10 of those years and has over 2,000 certifications. Anyone who knows Tim, knows of him simply as “The PADI Man” as he has such a great love and dedication to teaching people not just how to dive, but how to teach diving and make it into a career. Tim is currently involved in the development of Ban’s Tec.

Ban’s diving resort is one of the biggest dive centers in the world, and the most popular dive center in the Asia Pacific Region . They won PADI’s “Outstanding Business Award” in 2009 and then did it again in 2010.

Outside of Ban's Diving Resort

Chelsea did her IDC with Ban’s in 2008 while I completed my divemaster program with them in 2009. I am currently back to complete my IDC! Through all these programs Tim has been our instructor and we know Ban’s and their staff to be worthy of the recognition they have received.