The Sea Green Journal

Penguins, as defined, are flightless aquatic birds and they live exclusively (almost) in Antarctica. All penguin species (order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae – Yeah, smarty pants) are native to the southern hemisphere – although interestingly enough, one species (the Galapagos Penguin) can be found living near the equator.

Penguins make me giddy too!

A couple of interesting facts about penguins (for those who are fascinated with them like I am) that you might like (you can even share them with your kiddies too!) -

Awww, what a cute baby penguin!

Penguin Facts

1. Unlike other animals (especially other birds), daddy penguins are quite involved in the process of hatching their eggs and taking care of the baby penguins.

2. Baby penguins have really dedicated parents who take turns in warming their egg and looking for food.

3. Penguins are dressed in “classic black and white”.

4. Penguins greet each other by a variety of ways. A good example is “billing” –  wherein pairs approach each other and tap their bills against each other. Other penguins may just grunt or do nothing at all.

5. There has been at least one study of Adelie penguins in which the male offers pebbles (as part of the nest) to the female. It has been theorized that this “gift” is actually a demonstration to the female that the male is capable of building a nest and would — by some property — be a good mate and “father”. This act is uncommon to other animals however.

Fluffy Penguins! (Pau, you are such a girl.)

These adorable creatures are popular all around the world and they are said to have “no special fear of humans”. We see them (even just the name itself) in film, in animation and yes, in the design world.

Penguin Inspired

Kokô Lights by Gio Colonna Romano

These lamps were launched in Europe a few years back and were designed by Gio Colonna Romano for Slide Design, an Italian light manufacturer. It was said that a percentage of the proceeds from purchasing the lamps went to the penguin foundation to help little penguins (please support this if it is still ongoing at present). They also have a “baby version” of the Kokô Lights aptly named as Baby Kokô.

This amazing wallpaper from Isak features an adorable penguin design. It is quite vibrant and perfect for a kid’s room. (I wouldn’t even mind having it in my mine. I wouldn’t mind at all.) Each roll is  10 meters long and 52 centimeters wide. It is available in the following colors – white and wasabi green, white and silver combo, white and plum.

Named after the Penguin

Penguin’s Poems for Love – Front and Back Covers (Penguin Classics)

Penguin’s Poems for Love – Inside Pages

This particular book (I love books!) features poems selected by Laura Barber. The beautiful cover is by Coralie Bickford-Smith who is a senior cover designer at Penguin Books. (I’ll write more about her  and her beautiful designs on a separate post.)

The Penguin House by Japanese Architect Yasuhiro Yamashita (of Atelier Tekuto) is located on a corner lot (322 sq. ft.) in Tokyo. With only 899 sq. ft. floor space, it is quite small (this is one of their solutions for Japan’s smaller areas). It doesn’t feel claustrophobic in the inside however and the illusion of  openness in the space makes it amazing. Architect Yamashita was able to achieve this by – 1. Ceiling height manipulation (higher ceiling in interiors make them appear larger than they actually are), 2. Streamlined natural light (the corners of this modern Japanese home were cut off, giving way to natural light coming in from all four corners), 3. An efficient use of the space (innovative kitchen placement and stairway design). It is composed of three floors – the first floor features a music room, you can find a bedroom and bathroom at the second floor and living.working area on the third floor. (National Geographic was able to feature this and they offered a more detailed view of the construction.)

P.S. This makes me laugh because it is so cute (I’ve been saying cute a lot in this post).

“Are you sure my name is not on the list, Mister?”

P.P.S. This is me making friends with penguins in Sydney. The penguins were quite friendly and  they had recently enjoyed snacking on a couple of fishes.

Hello Penguins! It’s nice to meet you.