Natascha Elisa doesn’t make any plans. Things just seem to happen. She recently caught the attention of Amuse Society and it’s easy to see why. As a model, a blogger, a philanthropist, a business mogul, Natascha doesn’t show signs of slowing down anytime soon.

It began in Australia at age 15 when she was scouted at a rock concert. After being featured on a friend’s blog in New York, people wanted to know more (we’re all voyeurs after all) so she started her fashion and lifestyle blog In Search of Sadie. As the popularity of her blog grew, Natascha also launched a non-profit organization, Models of Compassion, which links models up with volunteer organizations that suit their individual passions so that they can get involved in their spare time. She thinks there should be more to a model’s Instagram bio than just her name, her modeling agency, and an emoji.

Elisa’s energy, natural beauty, and passion to make a difference caught the attention of Amuse Society after linking up in Miami last year. Natascha has since moved from Australia to Los Angeles and has paired up with Amuse to make magic happen. This is that.

It’s pretty clear why Natascha has become part of Amuse Society’s vision to empower and inspire creative women. In the midst of modeling jobs, maintaining a full-time blog, and traveling between Australia, Bali, and California, Elisa dedicates her remaining time to inspire others to live a healthy lifestyle and get involved with causes that matter. Instagram models, take note.

You can see the full interview with Natascha below…

What Youth: How did you get involved with Amuse or how did they approach you to be featured on their blog?

Natascha: I met them at Swim Week in Miami, they invited me to a rooftop party – we’ve been in contact ever since.  I think that they are a cool brand with a cool vision. They’re complete experts in what they do and their collaborations are amazing, the brand is amazing– from what they were doing in Miami before the launch to everything they’re doing now–they have really cool and unique content.

What does it mean to you to be featured as a muse on their blog?

It’s awesome and I’m so glad that they asked me, especially because I’ve truly become a fan of the brand. They have this beachy vibe, which is my favorite kind of vibe.  I feel like what they’re doing goes along really well with what I’m doing, so it’s a full-on collaboration.

We interviewed Kayla Varley a few weeks ago and she shot the photos for Amuse with you. How was it working with her?

Kayla is really, really great at what she does. She has an incredible eye and she works really hard. She knows exactly what she wants, she knows exactly how to achieve that, and she works really fluently.

Your site primarily revolves around healthy eating, traveling, and fashion. So how did you decide that those were going to be the main focuses?

As I’ve grown up living a healthy lifestyle and traveling often I wanted to broaden my content from what was originally just a fashion blog, to website which reflected a way of life.  My job is fashion but what comes along with being a model is a lot of travel and a busy schedule.  I believe it’s really important to be healthy in this industry. This lead me to start my sister blog cleancookingrecipes.com, promoting healthy eating with nutritional information and healthy recipes.

So you’re showing people that it’s possible to maintain a healthy lifestyle even when you’re traveling and extremely busy.

Exactly. And obviously there are certain pressures that come along with being a model and being in the fashion industry. I was getting a lot of questions about my lifestyle and what I ate, or what I do to stay healthy or in shape, and I felt that I was in a position where I could be a positive role model.

Who are your biggest inspirations?

In terms of modeling I definitely look up to Kate Moss, she’s always been a big inspiration to me.  Visually I love 90’s film photography; I especially find inspiration in raw untouched images.  I like looking at the work of photography greats like Peter Lindbergh, Patrick Demarchelier, Ellen Von Unwerth and Corinne Day.

In terms of life, I am most inspired by nature.  The earth is unexplainably incredible and I am constantly inspired by my surroundings.  The ocean, nature, sunsets and sunrises are what inspire me the most.  We live in this incredible world, once we go outside and look around, it’s easy to find inspiration in what may seem the simplest day-to-day things.  We are really lucky.

What is a typical day of yours like?

I’m not very good at having a schedule.  That comes with being a model. You need to be available all the time; you often get called in last minute for jobs and castings.  It’s difficult but it’s also a blessing. I can always make time for friends and family whenever possible, and they totally understand that it will be spontaneous.  Typically when I have the day off my favorite things to do are swimming in the ocean, hiking, cooking and painting.  I spend most of my time outside of shooting working on my laptop, either at home or I’ll find a café where I can sit outside.  If I don’t need an Internet connection, then I’ll usually go to the park.

That’s the beauty of having a blog. You’re able to do it from pretty much anywhere, so it’s perfect for how much you travel.

Exactly, anywhere. There’s no such thing as a holiday, which is good and bad. You’re working all the time but you also can be really flexible with your time.

Looking forward, where do you see your blog going? Do you plan on expanding or adding any other elements to it that aren’t on now?

I am currently working on a healthy travel guide, providing readers with information on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle whilst traveling.  Things like where to go hiking, where to do yoga, and how to find healthy food – there’s no reason why you need to change your lifestyle just because you’re not at home.   I really want to show readers that it’s easy to live a positive and healthy lifestyle no matter where you are.

Do you plan on living in California permanently?

I can’t really plan ahead on a daily scale and I’m kind of like that with life as well. I have no idea where I’ll be in one year, five years, three years, I take things as they come. If opportunities arise I want to be open to them.  I want to be doing what feels right now and where I feel like I should be. I can never picture the future because when I think about any time in life that I have planned – it hasn’t happened in that way. I am spontaneous and I am constantly doing things outside of the normal comfort of life, which means I can guarantee that I can’t make a plan or decide something now because it’s 100% going to change.

Aside from the blog, are there any other side projects you’re currently working on?

I just started a non-profit organization, called Models of Compassion (modelsofcompassion.org). I began it with my best friend who is also a model. We share a passion for causes related to animals, the environment and children and we found it difficult to get information about where we could volunteer, as well as how we could go about making a difference.  This is when the idea of Models of Compassion was born – to create a platform to inspire models and influencers, whilst providing them with opportunities to do so.

We saw that through the growth and impact of social media, people have been given the ability to reach a huge audience.  They have become role models, as other people are interested in their lives and what they do.  This gives them the ability to influence others and we wanted to encourage them to do so in a way that is positive and constructive.  We provide the information and tools models and influencers need to get involved with charities locally though action and globally through the internet, using social media and it’s incredible outreach to spread awareness, educate and encourage others and to make a difference.

Interview & words: Kristen Walters