TOP

Kasia Wójcik. Sometimes, we find our calling a bit late…

We visit Katarzyna Wójcik in her Warsaw studio. It’s one of those meetings during which I regret that we hadn’t met earlier. I often hear “how it all began” stories are trivial – Hang on a minute, not this time dear Magpie!

When ideas reach beyond the available materials.

Katarzyna studies psychology in Poznań. Of course, she doesn’t have any problems with passing her exams, but she’s missing something, which is why she doesn’t spend every evening with her nose in her book, but goes out to the cinema and various exhibitions – painting, photography, sculpting. One time, looking for an interesting way to spend her evening, she went to Galeria YES in Poznań.

She enters the gallery, where she comes across a contest exhibition and looks at pieces by Jarosłąw Westermark, Jacek Byczewski and Marcin Gronkowski, among others. Her heart skips a beat. That is the turning point. A huge BANG! For the first time, she comes across cool contest jewelry, totally different that the one flashing behind the display windows in malls. “This is the exact thing I want to do in my life!”, she thinks. But wanting is not enough, you need to learn the craft, right?

There’s no creative freedom without craft knowledge.

That’s when she begins thinking, “What do I have to do to learn to make jewelry?” Studies. Academy of Fine Arts in Łódź. They have majors like that there. But how can a psychologist get in? She starts with drawing lessons. She’s been playing the violin for many years, at a music academy. She though one could only excel in one field of art. It turns out that after doodling through many sketchpads, you can learn drawing enough to get into the dream school. During the first class, she gets a mandatory list of tools. All motivated, she goes to a store and asks the salesclerk for a file, blades… The salesclerk smiles at her.

– My child, what do you need all that for?

– I don’t know yet, I got into my school and I’m gonna study.

– Oh my, you wanna study?

– Yes, very much.

– Come, let me show you my studio.

He opened the door, showed the tolls and, as you can probably infer, 😉 Katarzyna stayed with him as for training.

Later on…

You’re probably wondering, Magpie, what happened later? Katarzyna moves to Warsaw. She gets a reality check – you need to find a job to get enough for a room, even if it’s one like Harry Potter’s. 😉 She lacks enough confidence to start working as a designer, so she puts on a pretty outfit, changes her sneakers for high heels and takes the elevator for a job interview to work in HR. Fortunately, her passion gets the best of her. She bites the bullet and takes part in the International Jewellry Competition “Minimum” organized by the Gallery of Art in Legnica. 270 pieces from designers from 30 countries. Biting nails while waiting for the results and… she gets awarded! Her confidence gets a huge boost. An extra award was a kilogram of silver. She started designing. And get recognition in the environment.

“As the only designer from Poland and one of a hundred from around the world I was invited to the project “Origin Passion & Beliefs” in Vicenzie in 2015, organized by one of the largest international modern fashion platforms – Not Just Label,” she tells me. She notches up more success and gains clients.

Spectacular results.

“Clients who come back are the greatest compliment and act as a power bank for a designer,” says Katarzyna. That’s why she believes that when you order jewelry, you don’t have to be knowledgeable about jewelry. She’s gonna take care of explaining what you’re getting.

Why? Because every piece is personally handmade by her. No mass production, no semi-finished products. That’s what keeps her clients, who choose her and anticipate her new collections. If you by something from Katarzyna, you don’t have to worry about quality – spend your energy on what’s most pleasurable: choosing the prettiest jewelry.

If you leaf through fashion magazines, you know that you can often come across some bijoux. The difference is that the designers does not pay huge amounts of money for an add in a magazine. Hmm, why do you think she appears in “Elle,” “Glamour,” “Harper’s Bazaar?” The answer is simple – people who know fashion and trends appreciate and choose her jewelry. 😉

Sometimes, we find our calling a bit late, something just clicks. You know yourself if you’re reading Pica Pica that a year ago I dared to start a blog. It came out of real passion for jewelry, constantly unsatisfied curiosity and love for everything that flashes. 😉 I have never told you, but… my hands were shaking when I was publishing the first post and Magpie Katarzyna could not sleep the entire night. But you know what, my dear Magpie? I believe that such late pursuit of a goal can – as it happened with Katarzyna Wójcik and us – bring about spectacular results.

 



























You can find Katarzyna Wójcik’s jewelry at: www.kasiawojcik.com  / FB / INSTAGRAM

Jestem influencerką i strateżką marek biżuterii oraz autorką Pierwszego Polskiego Serwisu o Biżuterii BLINGSIS (dawniej Pica Pica), który po 4 latach uzyskał miano 2. najlepszego blogu o biżuterii według International Jewellery London (IJL).