#soggylife

The soggy blog

Salty stories, gear guides, and dispatches from a life lived half underwater.

Dive boat on the Red Sea with bare desert mountains rising behind the water

Newest28 July 2026 · Travel

The Red Sea Is Closer Than You Think

Egypt gets written off as the beginner destination. It isn't. Here's how to pick between a liveaboard, the Sinai, or a hotel with a house reef, and what to check before you book.

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Dive deck of a liveaboard with gear stations under a canvas roof

25 July 2026

Let's Talk About Tipping on a Liveaboard

The envelope at the end of the week makes almost everyone uncomfortable. Here's how we think about it, including the part most guides leave out.

Close-up of the printed prototype fabric with the ocean in the background

21 July 2026

The Hard Part Isn’t the Socks: Our Hunt for the Right Factory

Emails into the void, minimum order maths, certificates with fine print. What we’ve learned trying to get our socks made properly.

Diver equalizing ear pressure while descending along a mooring line

30 June 2026

Happy Ears on a Dive Trip: Equalizing, Rinsing, and Knowing When to Stop

Ten dives in three days is a lot to ask of two small ears. How we keep ours happy on long trips, and the one rule we never break.

View along the dive deck of the Jaya, a wooden liveaboard, open sea beyond

9 June 2026

Our Honeymoon Was a Boat: Crossing the Banda Sea from Ambon to Raja Ampat

Eleven days on a wooden liveaboard, from Ambon through the Banda Sea to Raja Ampat. We spent our honeymoon underwater, and we'd do it again tomorrow.

Bare feet next to open-heel fins and neoprene booties on a wet boat deck

12 May 2026

Blisters from Fins: Why Your Feet Suffer and How to Stop It

Raw heels after two dives? It’s not your feet, it’s the friction. What causes fin blisters and what we do about them.

Hands rinsing a dive mask in a bucket on a dive boat deck

14 April 2026

How to Stop Your Dive Mask from Fogging (For Real This Time)

New mask fogging up every dive? It’s almost never the mask. The factory film, the spit myth, and the routine that keeps our glass clear.

Person at the stern of a dive boat holding the railing and watching the horizon

5 March 2026

Seasick on a Dive Boat: How I Make Peace with Day One

I get seasick like clockwork on the first day of every trip. Here’s what actually helps me, and what turned out to be expensive nonsense.

Three hand-sewn dive sock prototypes drying on a boat railing, Kicker Rock on the horizon

10 February 2026

Galápagos: Three Islands, Three Weeks, and Our First Hand-Sewn Soggies

We took our very first sock prototypes to the Galápagos, hung them next to Kicker Rock, and gave them to friends. A trip report with sea lions.

Liveaboard dive deck at golden hour with wetsuits drying on the railing

20 January 2026

Your First Liveaboard: What Nobody Tells You

Booked your first week on a dive boat? Here’s the stuff the brochure skips: cabins, rhythms, dive family, and why less luggage wins.

An early dive sock prototype lying inside out on a cutting mat next to a ruler

3 December 2025

I Learned to Sew to Make Our First Dive Socks

No factory would touch a tiny unknown brand. So I printed my own fabric, got the print orientation completely wrong, and ended up with three sewing machines on my desk.

Yuliia's finished Galápagos marine pattern: hammerheads, rays and marine iguanas on deep blue

5 November 2025

How We Found Our Illustrator (and Turned Birds into Hammerheads)

We had a brand and no idea how to draw it. The story of finding Yuliia on Behance, Caroline's moodboard, and adapting a Galápagos pattern for the water.

28 August 2025

Stay Soggy, Stay Safe: Why UV Protection Matters

The sun’s no joke on the water. Why UPF 50+ rashguards belong in every dive bag.

14 July 2025

What’s in Our Liveaboard Dive Bag: The Soggy Edition

Seven days, one boat, zero dry socks. Here’s the gear we never board a liveaboard without.

Caroline and Jonas underwater in full dive gear, looking into the camera

24 June 2025

How soggylife Started: Blisters, a Boat, and Bright Socks

Every brand has an origin story. Ours involves raw feet, a wetsuit that would not budge, and two divers who made getting dressed look easy. Here's the whole thing.