Journal

Kai Avent de Leon is the proprietor of Sincerely Tommy, a concept store and coffee shop in Brooklyn's blossoming Bed-Stuy neighborhood. Fostering a sense of community, Sincerely Tommy is a calm and beautifully curated hang-out spot, and an unexpected source for lesser-known fashion and jewellery lines, tokens from de Leon’s travels, and the store’s recently launched namesake clothing label.

A thoughtful entrepreneur, de Leon is dedicated to nourishing herself so that she can do the same for others; frequently travelling to far-flung destinations to cultivate her inner world, rather than getting swept-up in a social media feedback loop. The result is an interesting and eclectic life well lived, and a business that reflects it.

Continuing in our Sustenance month celebrations, we are excited to share the rituals of Julia Busuttil Nishimura, creator of the brilliant food blog & cookbook, OSTRO.

Julia’s approach to food favours intuition over strict rules and is about using your hands, rushing a little less and savouring the details. She creates food that slowly weaves its way into the fabric of your daily life–– food for living and sharing.

We love Julia for her generous, uncomplicated, seasonal food and were lucky enough to catch up with this wonder woman & little Haruki at their Melbourne home to talk about her daily rituals…

This moreish take on risotto incorporates buckwheat and chestnut for a nutty, earthy flavour. Mushrooms, garlic and leek add a hit of umami, while butter and parmesan make this dish rich yet light, and oh so comforting. A quick, no-fuss dinner that's easily adaptable for one or a crowd.

Melissa Lee first caught our eye for her beautifully-curated Instagram, peppered with interiors, plants, food, and occasional cats. But it’s her work in the field of neuroscience (something Sans founder Lucy loves to nerd out on) that made us want to get to know her even more.

Jade Sarita Arnott first founded fashion label Arnsdorf in 2006, relocating it from her hometown of Melbourne to New York. It was a success, showing at fashion week, featuring in the pages of Vogue and worn by Cate Blanchett. But after moving back to Melbourne, taking some time off, and growing her young family, Arnott felt that if and when she reentered the fashion industry, she wanted to do it on her terms, upholding her values, and disrupting a wasteful and oversaturated paradigm in the process.

She set out to explore her interest in production transparency, ethics and the environment as much as her background in sculpture, photography and art history, which has always inspired her designs. The result is a quiet but statement-making new direction—eschewing traditional wholesaling and retail to create new ways of connecting directly with women, and doing away with traditional seasons and the prolonged cycles of waste that follow. Everything is made in Arnsdorf’s Collingwood factory and customers can clearly see who produced each garment and at what cost. You can even have your measurements taken for a bespoke experience.

It’s an ethos that attracts us to Arnott, and one that we share: at Sans [ceuticals] we aim to disrupt the beauty industry, creating a minimalist, multifunctional collection of products, made in small batches with full ingredient transparency and sustainable packaging and practices. So, of course we couldn’t wait to learn the rituals that shape Arnott’s days. Without further ado…

We visited ceramicist Helen Levi at her Red Hook, Brooklyn studio as the sun was going down. An incredible one-woman operation, Levi (formerly a photographer) has turned a hobby into a thriving business, and now spends her days spinning everything from marbled mugs to stoneware planters.

Below, she shares her rituals with us…

Introducing Hannah Henderson –– founder of the iconic General Store Venice.

Known for her perfectly laid back Californian style, Hannah works with her partner John Moore to create a supportive design community dedicated to showcasing local artists & California-made wares. Their much loved space offers the very best vintage and handcrafted clothing, accessories and housewares.

Just a short trip around the corner from their shop, we shared an afternoon in the sunshine with Hannah and her babes Lennon & Costa at home...

Photographer Daniella Rech started her career as a model, and was encouraged to get behind the camera after shooting portraits of her first son. Now she spends her days capturing candid pictures for magazines and fashion labels in Australia and beyond. With an inherent sensuality and honesty, Rech’s images strike a sweet balance between romantic and real.

Recently, with her sister Crystal, the mother of two started Summer + Storm, a refreshingly minimalist, understated, tactile and natural childrenswear line. S&S Women came next, an offshoot of gauzy cotton robes. Here, Rech shares intimate self-portraits of her and her son photographed as a little love letter for Sans [ceuticals], and the rituals that get her through life. 

Writer, photographer, and filmmaker Jen Steele is a born storyteller. Moving fluidly through mediums, the common thread in her work is a sense of intimacy, honesty and femininity.

We first discovered Jen through her project Girls I Know, where she documented the stories of her circle of brilliant women in New York, fostering a community of likeminded ladies that we’re now happy to be a part of.

Currently working on her debut short film, which she just wrapped shooting on in her home state of Wisconsin, Jen is a gentle soul with a strong mind and a sharp eye, who consistently inspires and encourages us.

We visited Jen at home in Brooklyn, where we geeked-out about film photography, ate bananas and she shared her (quick and to the point!) daily rituals… Photographed by Nastassia Bruckin.

Meet Courtney Adamo, mama of five and author of online travel journal [Somewhere Slower], which documents her family's gentle way of life. After zig-zagging the globe with her brood in tow—from London to California, South America to Sri Lanka—Adamo recently settled into Australia's Byron Bay hinterland, where she was photographed for Sans [ceuticals] with newborn Wilkie by her friend Amelia Fullerton.

Ready for a cocktail? Our versatile version of the Penicillin is refreshing in the summer and warming in the winter...

Teen Vogue fashion director, painter, mama...Rajni Lucienne Jacques is a woman of serious style and substance. Surrounded by high heels (she was formerly the PR at Christian Louboutin), her abstract-figurative paintings, and her husband David's skateboards, Ranji spent an evening with photographer [Ana Kraš] in their vibrant and welcoming sanctuary...