Get it on, bang the gong - Top 5 ways to wear a sarong!

Unless you've planned a trip to a sunny resort somewhere far, far away from London, you probably won't get much of a chance to show off the sarong skills I'm about to teach you. But if you do happen to be in the middle of packing your suitcase for a beach holiday, the single most important accessory is a sarong. 

Depending on your style, you can get a traditional batik sarong from Indonesia, a Tahitian pareo with bright flower patterns, an eye-catching kanga from Africa or an extra large scarf with a tie-dye or animal print. Here’s how to fold, wrap and tie this versatile garment so that you’ll look stylish during your beach holidays!

 

Beach skirt

The nonchalant beach wrap is probably the most famous way to wear a pareo. An elegant way to achieve this look is to fold the fabric into a triangle, place it around your waist and tie the long ends together above one hip. If you prefer an ankle length straight skirt, don’t fold the pareo before you wrap it around your body.

Maxi dress

You can easily turn your sarong into a sexy maxi dress. Tie two adjacent corners of the sarong behind your neck so that it drapes in front of you like a cowl neck. Grasp the edges of the sarong at hip height behind your back, forming two small bunches of fabric. Pull them to one side and double-knot the bunches so that the sarong is wrapped tightly around your hips.

Wrap Dress

This flattering knee-length dress looks good on every woman. To create a wrap dress, hold the sarong behind your back horizontally like a towel. Bring the left top corner in front of your body and hang it over your right shoulder. Wrap the right side of the sarong underneath your bust, around your back and to the right shoulder, where you tie it to the other end.

Bandeau or bandeau dress

If you fold the sarong into a wide strip, you can wrap it around your chest and tie it behind your back. If you prefer a bandeau dress, extend your pareo behind your back and tie the edges together against the bust so that the extra fabric cascades down.

Halter dress

This sophisticated cocktail dress is surprisingly simple to create. Start with extending the pareo behind your back just below you shoulder blades. Bring the top corners forward below your arms, cross the ends over your chest and tie them behind your neck. 

The options are endless. Just keep playing around until you've found a method that hides your weaknesses while emphasizing your best bits.

6 Remedies for Mosquito Bites that Really Work

Eating lots of garlic, burning citronella incense, rubbing spit on the itchy area or carving a cross into it with your thumb nail… we all know remedies against bug bites that don’t work. But what do you need to know if you don’t want to let mosquito bites spoil your beach holidays?

1) Wash your feet several times a day – Did you ever wonder why mosquitoes mostly attack ankles and lower legs? It’s because our sweat is derived from our blood, and blood-thirsty insects have learned to find us by picking up the scent of carbon dioxide and octenol - in other words, they like body odour. Especially the smell of human feet. If you wash your feet several times a day, you will make it more difficult for the insects to find you.

2) Wear insect repellent – The only thing you can do to make mosquitoes dislike your smell is wearing DEET, Icaridin or Picaridin. Citronella and Lemon Eucalyptus Oil are safe, natural alternatives to DEET, but they are less effective. All scientific studies to date have found that dietary changes don’t have any influence on whether you are bitten or not, so don’t worry about garlic, vitamin B or thiamine supplements. Apply the insect repellent after your sunscreen.

3) Whatever you do, avoid blue – Wear khaki and earth tones. Much as this might disagree with your fashion sense, it’s best to opt for neutral colours as bright and dark colours attract insects.

4) Isn't there an app for that? – Of course there is. I haven't tried the iPhone app yet because the mosquito season doesn't seem to have kicked off yet in London - touch wood - but I'll probably just check the iTunes store and download the best-rated free one when I need one. It actually seems the Android app Mosquito Repellent by Atticapp gets more good reviews than any googleble iPhone app, so I might get Freddie to install one instead. 

5) Medication – Some people have a stronger reaction to mosquito bites than others. If you suffer from severe reactions, hydrocortisone cream can help reduce the itching, swelling and redness. Topical antihistamines and anesthetics such as Ibuprofen gel or Xylocaine gel are ideal for quick temporary relief.

6) Home remedies to relieve the itch – If you don’t have the aforementioned medication at hand, you can always try one of the many home remedies to relieve the itch. Effective tricks include wetting the skin and rubbing baking soda, salt or a crushed aspirin tablet on the itchy lump. Other people apply dry soap, toothpaste, vinegar, honey, tea tree oil, lemon juice, raw potato, onion, nail varnish, crushed basil, Vicks VapoRub or a hot tea bag to the affected area. These home remedies work best when the bite is fresh and you usually have to repeat them more often. Whatever you do, don’t scratch – scratching will make the allergic reaction worse and if you damage your skin, you run the risk of an infection.

Illustrate my stories & WIN!

"Most people think there are only seven Canarian Islands,” says the old fisherman, “but they are wrong. There are eight.”

That's how The Ghost Island starts, one of the stories I wrote for Fly Thomas Cook Kids Club. I'm well chuffed about being published by Thomas Cook, and guess what - they're running a drawing competition to promote them!

Let one of my travel stories inspire you, upload your artwork onto your own blog and post a link to it on Red Ted's Art Blog and who knows, your illustration might be published alongside my story!

Apart from world fame, you can also win a Kid’s Travel Kit including a VTech Kidizoom Plus Multimedia Digital Camera, a Trunki Tiger suitcase, Kidz Gear Wired Headphones for Kids, a quality doodle book, Crayola shark fin case, sunscreen and goggles!

Here's my attempt to draw one of the crucial scenes from The Magic Mirror. Don't worry - I won't quit my day job ;)

Terms & Conditions

1) Open to UK entrants only

2) All entrants must link to their post on http://www.redtedart.com/2011/07/11/get-crafty-and-win/ by Thursday 28th July, 8pm British Summer Time

3) All blog posts must include information about the Thomas Cook site and the competition, as well as a craft relating to one of the Thomas Cook Stories

4) The reserves the right to select a winner and their decision is final

5) Thomas Cook reserves to right to use any images of your crafts or drawings in their promotional materials (even if you did not win)- should your craft or drawing be selected your child’s name and age will be credited.

GOOD LUCK!

Start your new job with a Holiday!

Start your new job with a Holiday!
My first two days as a copywriter, I have done nothing but pondering the holidays. And my boss will be happy to hear it. Still, it’s not what you’d call a flying start, but only because it’s all about nostalgic, nationalistic and environmentally friendly holidays: aka not going abroad. I’ve been writing Google Ads for... well, you’ll find out what company. No need to mention them even more – I need to sort of sound objective, right?
The tricks I’ve tried to use:

1. Putting in a pun, such as:
Great British Breaks with kids – Haven Holidays from £99 per family
Egg-cellent Holiday Deals – Easter weekend breaks from £194

2. Referring to the time of the year:
Have Hot Cross Buns at a Haven Park – Book Now! Last Minute Offers!
The Easter Bunny goes to Haven – Why don’t you? From £194 per family!
Join our Easter Egg Hunt – Now! Haven weekend breaks from £194!

3. My rhyming skills:
Beautiful British Beaches – Splendid Summer 2010 Deals!
Great Getaway in the UK

4. Creating an emotional bond:
Get away with the kids in 2010 – Haven Holidays from £99 per family
Enjoy Easter with the whole family – Now £194 at Haven Holiday Parks!
Chill while the kids let off steam – Guaranteed Best UK Holiday Deals

5. Mentioning Money:
Best summer breaks with kids – Active Holidays from £99 per family
UK Number 1 Holiday Parks – Book now for 2010 and save £20!

6. Making it personal:
You deserve a weekend break – Free and Easy Online Booking
Catch a Tan in UK Top Holiday Park – £20 off Sunny Break in Haven Park

Personally, I think the funniest thing is that I’m advertising for You Know Who without a Google partnership. But hey, the greatest investment I can make is... (dramatic pause)... my time. Compared to that, the fact that I’m also spending some blog space on the matter is irrelevant (^_~)

Topsy-Turkey

The new year is so cold, that I can't help but think back to my summer holiday in Antayla, the fourth largest city in Turkey. It's the greatest city at the Turquoise Coasts of the Mediterranean and features a picturesque historic city centre that curves down to a Roman harbour, amazing archeological treasures, beautiful beaches, haute cuisine from all over the world and overwhelming views of the sea and mountains.The mere memory of it warms my cockles.


Our hotel was on a sweeping shingle beach called Konyaalti, where I bumped into a group of warm locals who were there enjoy the sunset. They took me to a terrace bar in a five-star hotel, where we had some brilliant cocktails, fresh seafood and a whale of a time on the dance floor. The next morning (aka 12 o'clock), I indulged in what a doner kebab ought to be like: fresh, tasty, big and ridiculously cheap. After that I felt for a swim, so I went to Aqualand, a nearby water park with spectacular slides. Apparently, there's an even better park near Lara Plaji, which even has dolphin shows, but I never managed to fit it into my busy holiday.


That night, I met up with my new friends and went for a pint down at the harbour front in Kaleici, the historic centre where the night life takes place. We ended up dancing and drinking the night away in Club Arma (Kaleiçi Yacht Marina).


The next morning, my mates went to the Bridge Canyon National Park for a hike. I decided to go with them, but what I didn't know was that they were planning to go white-water rafting. I had no intend of going home on crutches, and regretted coming along. Fortunately, one of the guys offered to show me the overwhelming Mediterranean scenery. We visited the Temple of Zeus and explored the ruins of the city walls. Raoul and I got to know each other a lot better while he showed me the classical clock tower, the triumphant Hadrian's Gate and the famous Kesik Minare Camii, a 5th century Byzantine church that was ruined and later converted to a mosque. That night he took me out for dinner by candlelight in a secret garden at the Gizli Bahçe (Selçuk Mahallesi).


The next morning we all met up again and took a bus to the golden beaches of Phaselis, an ancient port in a national park. It was absolutely gorgeous, but I started to realize that my holiday was almost over and I hadn't even explored Antayla properly yet. I decided to rise early the next morning and make up for that. The hill in Kaleici is very steep and the narrow streets are lined with restored Roman and Ottoman mansions which now serve as houses, designer boutiques, jewellers, cheap fashion shops, carpet emporia, inns and restaurants. I bought so many nice things that I had to book in an extra suitcase on my way back!


On my last day, Raoul and his friends took me on a day excursion to Olimpos. I remember the magical mix of forests, secluded beach resorts and ancient ruins clearly. It was almost like walking through a fairy tale. That night, he wanted to take me out for dinner again but, because it was my last night in Antayla, I insisted that we all went to Ally's (a club on 40-46 Selçuk Mah) together.


"Do you like ballet and opera?" Raoul asked. It was getting light already when he took me back to my hotel on Konyaalti beach, and I was afraid I'd still be drunk on the plane back to England. "If you do, you should come back next year in June or July," he said. "There's a festival in the Aspendos Roman theatre every year. Please come back next year."
Raoul and I haven't been in touch since but I'm starting to warm up to the idea of going back for some ballet. Flights to Antayla are extremely popular that time of the year, though, so I'll have to book my ticket early.