Kojii Helnwein :: Musician :: Model :: Actress

And Scene

Posted on January 26, 2012 by kojiihelnwein

I know, I know – I suck at blogging.

I always promise to share a post once a week but then I disappear into the abyss of Mamahood and work for months on end.

Well, here I am stealing 5 minutes while the baby naps, on the first day off I’ve had in ages. I should probably be cleaning my loft, but in my defense the laundry is ON so I’m having a cup of tea and a wee chat to y’all on here.

I can’t share all the wonderful work I’ve been doing lately as it hasn’t been released yet. I can however share this little scene with you.

While I was in Ireland I had the opportunity to join a Scene Study Workshop at The Actor’s Place in Dublin. It was my pleasure to work with one of my favourite Irish Directors, Jason Figgis and to meet actresses Joan Fleetwood and Mary Callaghan.

We shot a short and the scene above in record time.

Seriously, if you’re in Dublin and want to keep your acting cogs turning get your arse into The Actor’s Place.

Tell them I sent ya!

Feel free to peruse the oul video section here on my site – it’s filling up and there’s heaps more to come.

Happy Thursday my friends!

Posted in Acting, ART, Film, Ireland, Recommendations, Video
Tagged Acting, Acting Workshop, Dublin, Film, ireland, Jason Figgis, kojii helnwein, Scene Study, The Actors Place, Video
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Cyril Helnwein art sale now on

Posted on December 11, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

The following framed photographs are now available at a 30% discount until the end of 2011. These beautiful prints are framed and hanging in his studio in Los Angeles. If you are interested, please contact Cyril through his website and he will get back to you as soon as possible.

price range 1 (~~$1800~~ $1260).
approx. image size 39″ x 31″. Signed, limited edition #1/10:

"Olympic Blvd I"

"2nd Street Tunnel"

"LA Public Library"

"LA Times & City Hall I"

"LA Times & City Hall II"

"Olympic Blvd II"

"Central Avenue"

"4th and Beaudry"

price range 2 (~~$800~~ $560).
Prints are approx. image size 30″ x 20″. Signed, limited edition of 10. These prints are beautifully mounted on thick plexiglass, ready to hang on your wall:

"Three Little Pigs" (triptych)

"Down the Rabbit Hole"

"Pandora"

"Eternal Love"

"Sunbathing Mermaid"

"Faerie"

"Amazon"

"Amaterasu" (Shinto Sun Goddess)

"Rapunzel"

"Bride of Frankenstein"

"Thumbelina's End"

Posted in ART, Artistic Photos, Photography, Uncategorized
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Benefits of Lavender

Posted on October 4, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

Lavender Essential Oil is something you will always find in my bathroom, baby’s room, even my purse. I use it for so many different things. I use it for skin care, healing and even cleaning and laundry. Read how I use Lavender in my skin care routine, and for healing.

Lavender is:

- analgesic (relieves pain)
  - anti-inflammatory
  - antiseptic
  - antispasmodic
  - antiviral
  - balancing
  - cooling
  - detoxifying
  - fungicidal
  - relaxing
  - sedative
  - tonic
  - uplifting

It is effective for use on all skin types and conditions – balances sebum in oily skin, promotes cell growth and rapid healing for scars and stretch marks, antiseptic for insect bites and stings, burns, sunburns, wounds, healing for dermatitis and psoriasis.

It eases skeletal conditions such as rheumatism, and is great for soothing muscles and relieves aches and sprains.

Lavender is beneficial for the circulatory system. It lowers high blood pressure and other stress-related conditions such as palpitations.

It’s wonderful for balancing emotions and can lift depression. It’s been known to relieve stress, insomnia, anxiety and relieves headaches, migraines, tension and shock.

It even helps the respiratory system – it relaxes breathing, eases bronchitis, laryngitis and has an antiviral effect on flu and colds.

If you remember only one thing….

The WHOLE body can benefit from lavender.

So as you can see, one little bottle of Organic Lavender Essential Oil is really one big bottle of holistic magic.

Tips for Buying Essentials Oils: When buying your Lavender Essential Oil be sure you buy organic and read the ingredients. In the past I’ve accidentally purchased oils only to later discover they’re not pure and have been mixed with other oils.

N.B. Essential Oils should not be abused. LESS is MORE in this case, treat Essential Oils like medicine and keep out of reach from children. Be sure to research the correct amounts to use and consult a licensed aromatherapist if in doubt. I will be posting a “How to use safely” article soon.

Be sure to Subscribe HERE so you don’t miss out.

Posted in BEAUTY, Childrens Health, Health, Holistic, MAMAHOOD
Tagged analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, benefits, burns, buying, detoxifying, Essential Oil, flu, fungicidal, healing, Lavender, oily skin, organic, skin care, Tips
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Squeeky Clean

Posted on August 30, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

Girls (and boys) often ask me what cosmetics I use.

I guess they find it interesting because they know I’m an advocate for Chemical Free/Natural EVERYTHING. I also don’t like to spend a freakin’ fortune on “stuff” and do what I can on a budget.

There are so many reason’s for finding cosmetic products that are chemical/toxin/paraben free. All of which I’ll attempt to explain in future posts (if you can’t wait get googling now!).

However the point to this post is to simply share the products I do use and how.

Starting with Make-up Removal, here goes.

When I’m removing my make-up at the end of the day:

I pour a blob of Vitamin E Oil or Jojoba Oil into my hand then rub it into my make-up getting right into the eyelashes. I use Trader Joe’s Vitamin E because it’s mixed with Coconut oil to make it a little smoother. Pure Vitamin E is very thick and tough to spread. Then using tissues or cotton pads I gently rub the make-up off. I use a new tissue/cotton pad each time so as not to rub the old make-up back on to my face.

Then with a little more Vitamin E Oil on a Qtip I gently roll the oil into my eyelashes to remove the mascara as thoroughly as possible.

Then I use a Natural Soap to wash the excess oil off. I can’t tell you the brand I’m using right now as we lost the packaging but it is handmade, SLS Free (See why HERE), totally natural and smells of Lavender which is known for its antibacterial and calming properties. When I’m rinsing the soap from my face I fill the sink with a little warm water, add a few drops of Organic Lavender Essential Oil and splash with this. (More on the benefits of Lave nder).

Tip: when buying Essential Oils buy Organic, buy Local and read the ingredients to be sure your Essential Oil is NOT mixed with anything else. I recently found a label that said “100% Pure Lavender Essential Oil” but I found that it was mixed with at least 4 other oils.

Every other day I use a facial scrub. I like the scrub from Earth Science.

If I still feel that my skin is a little too greasy from the oil, I use a cotton pad with some astringent. Right now I’m using Earth Science Clarifying Herbal Astringent but I usually use Thayers Organic Unscented Witch Hazel with Aloe Vera Formula.

Then moisturise.

I like the Earth Science Almond & Aloe Fragrance Free. I personally hate perfume – it makes me sneeze. I find it invasive when people are loaded with strong scents – the sense of smell is a tough sense to switch off if someone is wearing too much perfume. So with this and the fact that fragrance makes me sneeze I buy everything fragrance free or fragranced with only Essential Oils or Plant based scents.

So there ya have it folks… a simple, inexpensive cleansing ritual for you sensitive types.

As for Make-Up. Well, I’m still experimenting with brands.

Check back soon for posts about the affordable chemical-free make-up, baby and hair brands that I like using.

What natural cleansing products have YOU tried and love??

Much Love

Kojii

Posted in BEAUTY, Health, Recommendations
Tagged Chemical-Free, Cleansing, Earth Science, Essential Oil, Face, Jojoba, Lavender, Moisturizer, Perfume, Products, SLS Free, THayers, Vitamin E Oil, Witch Hazel
1 Comment

LemonLove

Posted on August 22, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

On a hot Summer’s day there’s nothing more refreshing than a big glass of yummy, cool lemonade!

Here’s my sugar-free, nutrient rich pitcher of Vitamin C scrumptious-ness and how to make it.

You’ll need:
4 large ripe Organic Lemons
Filtered water
2 teaspoons Organic Grade B Maple Syrup (learn why Grade B is best)
Sprigs of Fresh Organic Mint or Basil

Squeeze your lemon juice then add it to the jug. Stir in 2 teaspoons of Maple Syrup, drop in your sprigs of fresh mint or basil. Then simply top up the pitcher with water and stir!

Feel free to add more syrup if you like it sweeter.

You can even pour the lemonade into BPA free Ice Pop molds and freeze it for the kids!

Health tip

If you feel a cold or flu coming on you can add half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Drink a pitcher of this (or two) alongside my other Home Remedies and you’ll be right as rain in no time!

You can also try:

To restore electrolyte balance and counter dehydration.

1/3 cup Fresh Lemon Juice

1/3 cup Organic Grade B Maple Syrup

1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt

1 Calcium Tablet (I use 1 teaspoon of CALM for this. )

Filtered Water to make 1 quart.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Posted in Childrens Health, Food, Health, MAMAHOOD, Recipes
Tagged Calm, Homemade, Icicles, Lemonade, Lemons, Maple Syrup Grade B, Recipe, Rehydrate, Sugar-Free
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Baby Language

Posted on August 15, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

Our four month old baby girl LOVES to smile. There’s no keeping a straight face around here because it’s just so infectious!

I’ve had a lot of people comment on how quiet, happy and calm she is. Don’t get me wrong it’s not like she never cries, she does but it’s not often, for long or without reason.

I generally say “She’s calm when she gets what she needs and wants otherwise – it’s a WHOLE other story.”

A friend recently asked me how I can tell what it is she needs before she cries/screams. To be honest I wasn’t quite sure how to answer because, at that point, I hadn’t really figured out how I was doing it. All I knew was, 7 times out of 10 I found myself knowing exactly what she needs and heading off any upset. Sometimes I’d be changing diapers before she’d even started pooping and have to stand at the changing table to wait for her business to be done. Other times I had myself sitting comfortably and ready to nurse before she hinted at hunger. Maybe it’s in the timing (I do loosely track her key actions throughout the day: feeding, sleeping, pooping. I’ll post about that another day) or maybe I figured out her body language?

Then I came across this interesting video clip about the Dunstan Baby System’s and the 5 words that babies naturally use to convey their most common reasons for upset.

(link to their Blog with more info)

I thought this info might be useful so I had to share it with all you new Mama’s out there.

I’ll definitely be remembering these “words”!

I might also try Baby Sign Language with her too.

Have you tried any wonderful ways to help the communication between you and your little one?

Communication is the key!

Click for another video on Baby Language

Posted in Baby, MAMAHOOD, Recommendations
Tagged baby, Calm, Communication, Crying, Dunstan, Hungry, Language
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To share or not to share?

Posted on August 8, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

I’m sitting on a bench at the playground watching my little girl having fun. It gets a little boring at times so I found myself listening in on conversations around me. Couple that with my love of people watching and you have one curious kitty here

The two mothers on the bench next to mine just had an exasperated discussion about how hyper, wild, bad mannered and unmanageable their kids are.
I was feeling bad for them thinking “I’m so lucky Croí is such a good girl.”

Then the kids in question arrived alongside mine.

All three children were thirsty and hungry. I pulled out a bottle of water, a small box of rice milk, dried dates, an apple, orange and some nuts and seeds.

The other mothers each pulled out a can of coke, potato chips, chocolate bars and jellies.

My sympathy dissipated and I found myself struggling to find a way to suggest that the food they’re feeding their kids has a HUGE hand in the problems they just confessed. Not to mention how ridiculously bad it is for the health of their children. Just think of all that sugar, high fructose corn syrup, MSG and additives piled into those little bodies. The harm caused is an issue for a whole separate post some other day.

(another interesting link re: MSG)

My dilemma:

How on Earth do I admit to being a nosey eavesdropper and find a polite way to point out their error without seeming like a judgmental Miss Know-it-All???

I really just want to help but how??

Would you take my suggestion in the good faith I’d offer it up?

Or would you tell me to shove it where the sun don’t shine and mind my own business?

I think if the tables were turned – I’d be pretty damn insulted by a stranger offering unwanted parenting advice.

In the end, I kept my mouth shut and advice to myself. I pulled out my trusty iPhone took snaps of the food I had for my daughter, snaps of their trash and typed this post. Hopefully my helpful advice will reach someone who will put it to good use.

What would you do?

Posted in Childrens Health, Food, MAMAHOOD
Tagged eavesdropping, Health, MamaHood, nutrition, Parenting tips, playground, snacks
1 Comment

Proud Mama

Posted on May 13, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

I can’t believe it’s been over a month since my last post.

It’s been such a busy month.

If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr you already know the reason for my distraction.

On April 7th, at 5:55am I gave birth to a beautiful little girl at home in our loft in Los Angeles.

Her name is Éala Cheyenne. (pronounced Ay-la Shy-enne)

Éala is derived from the Irish word for “Swan” and Cheyenne is a Native American Tribe of the Great Plains.

With two little girls in my life I’ve allowed myself to be happily sidetracked.

So without further ado … meet our Little Bird…

Posted in Baby, JOURNAL, MAMAHOOD, Pregnancy
Tagged baby, birth, Eala Cheyenne, helnwein, home, kojii, Pregnant
1 Comment

Big Louie ~ UPDATE

Posted on April 4, 2011 by kojiihelnwein

Hi,

First of all Cyril, Jeremy, Croí and I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU to YOU for being so incredibly generous with your donation to helping Big Louie get well again.

Louie spent 2 days with the vet being treated for malnutrition and dehydration, having tests done and being nursed back to health. Then he went to the groomers for a good scrub!

When Louie came home from the vet he was happy, chatty, tail wagging, eating well, wanting to go for a run and loving his walks. He still has quite a bit of weight to put on but he is definitely recovering well.

He is the sweetest and most gentle giant around. You can see him smile when Croí his 5 year old savior comes to walk him, he’s great with other dogs and is loyal to those giving him love.
It turns out he is about 3 years old, not micro-chipped and not trained so he’s learning a lot at the moment.

After getting to know him better it was decided that he needs a loving family with big hearts and a big yard. He craves constant companionship and needs tons of love and attention.

So with that said, Louie has gone to live with a wonderful couple in Orange County who have the time, space and love to provide him.
He bonded with them instantly and was so happy to stay.

We’ll miss having Louie around the Arts District but we’re thrilled that he went from giving up on existing behind some bushes, to having a happy, healthy life in such a short time.

We couldn’t have helped him without YOU!

THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS!

Much Love and Gratitude

Kojii