Helena Bogucki's Cameo Rings

2012 has been a year full of promising opportunity on the horizon, and for jewellery maker and designer Helena Bogucki the new year has brought her a special gift; the Australian has had her work displayed in the magazine Instyle Australia and worn by actress Katherine Heigl!

I've previously shown her work on my blog for her collabortation with Edition X and cat shaped jewellery but I am really pleased to see her still going strong and toiling away at her studio space in Adelaide. She'll certainly be reaping the rewards for this little appearance:

Perth designer Helena Bogucki’s stunning hand made ring can be seen adorning the finger of Hollywood’s Katherine Heigl in this month’s Instyle Magazine.
The sterling silver Cameo, Cameo ring was handpicked by the star’s stylist for the shoot.
Designer Helena Bogucki said its an honour and very exciting to see her work on such a respected and stylish actor as Katherine Heigl.

“It’s not everyday that you open an international magazine and see your work on someone of her calibre,” Helena said.
“I hope this exposure helps to raise my profile internationally; I’d love to see my work on red carpets and maybe some of Katherine’s colleagues.”

Bogucki has recently exhibited at the Art Gallery of WA and her pieces are stocked at discerning stores nation-wide, such as COTA in Sydney, e.g.etal Edition X in Melbourne.
The cameo ring is taken from a collection featuring the traditional cameo motif in contemporary settings.
Helenas works combine found and formed objects and are inspired by times, places, people and their stories. 

The rings shown above were made available to Instyle by the Sydeney gallery, COTA (Courtesy of the Artist) so if you have an interest in these metal bad boys or simply want to imitate Katherine Heigl's style, head on over to: http://courtesyoftheartist.com.au/

Bogucki’s current collection Enter the Brave was born from a series of uncanny events in Central America and embodies the notion of sacrifice and power.
“These pieces are brave; they are amulets that offer protection, they are pieces of a time and a place, but most importantly they are beautiful,” Helena said.
Bogucki continues to use her signature historical motifs and wooden tags to reference religious symbols and tribal marks interrogating these themes in silver and brass with industrial finishes.

Wearers of the pieces are encouraged to adorn themselves with these amulets to protect against unwelcome sacrifice and embrace the power of the individual.

Twin Envy

 

The great thing about having a twin would be having someone to help out as well as twice the amount of clothes but sharing a wardrobe. Since I'm currently struggling to clear out my room I blame the fact that it's raining and horrible outside and I'm right where I want to be- inside in the lounge room going between the computer and the television. I should really be a little more motivated to clean up my room and make it a nicer place to inhabit. But maybe I would be been more motivated if there were an extra set of hands to help me out or at least someone to hassle me and remind me of my sloth-like ways.

As well as the twin factor I'm pretty jealous of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen's hair; I would kill to have lovely and luscious waves like that. Let's face it a lot of people would be jealous of these celebrities, they made a fortune in their child years as actors and still enjoy and reap the rewards of lending their name to products. While I'm here, slaving over a hot keyboard and working my fingers to the bone in the name of blogging.

Although nothing really beats having the real thing in the flesh and I can never really recreate a photo to this extent and clutch someone in my exact image, a favourable Phtotoshop effect is to have a mirror image split right down the middle when taking a self portrait and it's something I would really like to try. I have a free downloaded version of Photoshop but nothing saves with the right quality so it's only really good for practice and I'm unsure as to whether the mirror-image effect is something achievable through a laptop built in camera.

It's because of their similarity the Olsen twins were able to become child actors, playing the same character due to tight child labour laws. While it may seem like a shortcut to success as well as a fortune, there's no shame in being a working-class citizen and doing things the old-fashion way. Still, it would be nice to be able to enjoy paparazzi treatment or at least have some great photographs produced. Looks like I'll have to take the long way into creating a name for myself and if that means taking my own self-portrait photographs; so be it.

Olsen Twins

The two Olsen twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley have been in the public eye since they were but babes doing television shows, and their celebrity status has endured throughout the years by continuing to do television shows, book deals, interviews, attending fashion shows and by endorsing products. They were popular figures for the preteen market in the 1990s and 2000s ie. during some of my childhood. I remember watching their show 'Mary-Kate and Ashley in action' some weekend mornings as well as reading their preteen books, although the character I liked the most from the book series was one of their friends named Phoebe who wore vintage clothing. I never did see the movie in which the two starlets graced but I think you get the picture when I say that the two are incredibly rich, in 2007 Forbes declared them to be the eleventh-richest women in entertainment and estimated them to have an estimated net worth of US$100 million. That was four years ago, closer to five. I can only imagine their wealth growing.

It cannot be denied that they have matured in their adult lives and have different styles, Mary-Kate was declared a fashion icon of New York by the New York Times no less, for 'pioneering her signature "homeless" look.' To me that seems to be somewhat like an unfair appraisal but I can sort of gather the style of clothing, ie. loose hanging clothes made of sweatshirt and jersey material, a bag strung loosely over an arm, sunglasses to hide from the glare of paparazzi cameras and loose fitting coats, jumpers etc. 

The style, sometimes referred by fashion journalists to as "ashcan" or "Boho-chic" or bohemian-bourgeois, is similar to that of Bohemian chic popularized in Britain by Kate Moss and Sienna Miller. The look consists of oversized sunglasses, boots, loose sweaters, and flowing skirts all with an aesthetic of mixing high end pieces with low end.

Moving away from the most recognisable blond hue of hair comes new and edgy dark chocolate brown worn with an understated black coat as well as natural make up and cheeks with a bronze tint. Her eyebrows match this hair colouration better than blond, but the stint was short-lived as I suppose the Olsen twin went back to being blond. I still really like this look; it brings out the colour of her eyes and the smokey eyeshadow helps as well. Maybe I prefer the dark brown colour since I myself have dark brown hair, although it's most commonly named by my peers as black hair.

I should be opposed to the black fur coat worn in this photograph since I am an animal lover and have been since I could talk, but I do like the carefree look; the bowed head and the scraggly blond hair soft-lifted by the wind. The bag is old and worn, with discolouration at the corners as a sign of age which oddly matches the geometric and vibrant skirt. The boots are a nice touch too, with sort of peek-a-boo slits on the sides and straps at the ankle as well as along the boot. She looks like a thing of distinct style with a devil-may-care attitude, true beauty in motion.

This is one of the most clever photographs I have seen that emphasise the double act of the Olsen twins. The different styling of black and white as well as eye make up and lipstick makes them ying and yang; good and evil. On the right one seems to radiate warmth like the sun and the regrowth seems more like textured fur in contrast to a pair of ears perched on her head. The bright red lipstick is a nice touch as well as the golden tones of the eyeshadow.

On the right striking the same pose is the other dressed in black with smokey eyes which matches the outlines of a pair of large ears and the blond hue of her hair seems to be more silvery. If I had to name them as two animals, the left would be a lion, a creature of magnificence which seems to have a mane of luxurious hair and is like the sun and the other would be a wolf most traditionally associated with the moon.

The Olsen twins seem to fit in so easily with the models, their pose and attitude is perfect but you can sort of see the difference in facial structure; theirs being a bit more broad and less slender. That's not to detract from their appearance, both of their cheekbones look so striking in this photograph. I like the one pictured on the right, the hint of pink and red throughout her hair, a result of temporary dyeing over the blond which matches her lipstick shade. The leopard print jacket is also fantastic; I've been lusting over one for a while and had a chance to buy one many months ago and I sort of regret not getting it. The jacket is matched perfectly with the soft and graceful full length black skirt and a pair of leather boots. On the left the other twin's hair is a bit bright and more yellow than blond; her clothing is less spectacular then her biological counter part's.