People: Isabel Sasse
Name: Isabel Sasse
Occupation/Business/Creative Outlet: Creative director, Photographer, Writer
Star-sign: Scorpio, rising in Scorpio
Favourite Number: 555 — I see it everywhere
First thing you did this morning? I watched the sun rise, had an overwhelming amount of joy suddenly pass through me. I made myself a cacao brew once I got home right before writing fragmented pieces from the mind & heart (laying foundations to expand into deeper insights)
What does 'wellness' mean to you? An equilibrium between movement & stillness. It means trying not to do everything at once. Just sit, be where you are and notice what your body is communicating to you. We glorify the act of ‘doing’ in our society — Move slower. Conditions within a fast-paced environment do not serve to deepen, only to decimate. Reach out towards softer things. Wellness is self-love & honouring boundaries. When we support ourselves, we are nourishing our ability to love.
Products found in your shower/by your bath? Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery concentrate, Aesop Nurturing shampoo & conditioner, Dr. Bronner’s castille soap, Ayu — Ode essential oil perfume, Aesop Reverence aromatique hand balm.
Three things that can always be found in your kitchen cupboard? Cacao, matcha, CBD oil
Favourite kitchen utensil? My brass spoons — Bought with the intention of using purely to make my morning tonic brews and spooning out my medicinal mushrooms & cacao.
Favourite Travel destination? Sahara Desert & Death Valley
Currently reading? Women who run with the Wolves (for the remainder of my life) .
Currently browsing (.com)? Pinterest mostly if I have a shoot coming up. I don’t tend to browse websites online these days. If I want to educate myself on any number of topics I’ll listen to a podcast or read an article & write down notes — I’m all for minimising digital mind clutter.
Favourite breakfast food? I don’t like eating solid food first thing in the morning, so usually I make myself a big smoothie with papaya, spinach, blueberries & aloe vera to soothe my digestion (and I find this is a really easy way to include all my vitamins & supplements from my naturopath right in the morning).
Three items in your wallet / bag? PKW. Phone, keys, wallet. I keep my needs simple and my pockets light — I also have a note in my wallet from a friend that reads ‘You are one in seven billion. But you are also one in seven billion. Happy birthday.’ Which I’ve kept for four years.
An album/mix that calms your nervous system? Chihei Hatakeyama
An album/mix that hypes you up? Think African psychedelic jazz — T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo, Ali Farka Touré, Orchestra baobab, Bombino.
Most commonly used apps on your phone? Podcast, Notes, Mind Body, Instagram — In that order.
Favourite form of movement/exercise? Running, boxing, swimming & diving beneath the ocean into that other realm of quietude. I could swim the rest of my life away.
One thing you'd like to incorporate into your day/week that you're currently yet to? Conscious awareness into my own breath. Especially through moments where I can’t find my breathing.
Nighttime rituals? Quite similar to my creative fulfilment. I light all the candles in my studio, cook myself dinner with a lot of presence (the secret ingredient to a delicious meal and good sex really is love & patience) I pour myself a few bowls of tea, light Palo Santo & spend a little while reading until my eyes get heavy and I start reading the same sentence three times over
I feel most creatively fulfilled when… I’ve spent an entire day in the sun & sea, lathered in coconut oil, to come home in the evening & let my creativity pour out by candlelight in whichever way, shape or form.
I'm currently working on… A shoot accompanied by written pieces for the upcoming Issue of Anyonegirl — And always shooting on location for Worn Store.
This time last year, I wish I knew… That being a soft woman, is in alignment with being a strong woman. Nothing is as strong as gentleness. Ask for help — Don’t have so much pride. You don’t need to carry unnecessary weight upon your shoulders. You are such a capable, resilient woman. And while your arms hold strength for those who need rest, to rest into them, you have also cultivated such a rich solitude (which is a beautiful thing) but sometimes you get too good at being alone. Communicate with love that your own two hands sometimes just aren’t enough. Also, saying ‘no’ is not a sign of weakness.
I'm grateful for… Everything I don’t know & all the experiences I haven’t had yet.
25 - 07 - 19