Cow On The Ice

It seems that recently our nervous systems are being poked repeatedly with a stick by politicians, algorithms, and – how shall we put this – suspiciously orange individuals who seem determined to keep everyone in a low-grade state of panic. It’s… a lot.
Which brings me to vetiver.
Vetiver was basically the original anti-chaos spell of the plant world.In old herbalist lore, vetiver was used to cool overheated minds, calm agitated souls, and anchor people back into their bodies when everything felt a bit… floaty and alarming.

Some of my favourite vetiver facts:

– it’s known as the oil of tranquillity (but for people who are beyond lavender levels of stressed)– it was used to cool homes before air conditioning existed
– literally hung in doorways to calm both the room and the humans inside it– it’s distilled from roots, not flowers
– old texts describe it as “the smell of freshly turned soil after rain”
– and some monks believed this reminded people of impermanence, humility, and the fact we’re all just… compost with opinions.
– herbalists prescribed it for “excess fire” – which feels… extremely relevant right now

Honestly, if certain world leaders were diffused lightly with vetiver, we might all be having a much nicer time.

Luckily, we do have something that helps.

Dream of Wonderful Things is our Functional Mist – the first in a little series of what I like to think of as a magical cross between a home mist and a botanical remedy.
They’re made with natural ingredients:
- Vetiver (Vetiveria zizanioides)
- Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
- Frankincense (Boswellia carterii)
- and alcohol (the good, clean kind of alcohol – not the “text your ex at 1 a.m.” kind. And no, you absolutely should not drink it regardless).

This one is formulated to help you slip into a deeper, calmer sleep – the kind where your shoulders drop, your jaw unclenches, and your brain stops replaying embarrassing facts from 2014.

Spritz it into the air, onto your pillow and bedding, or onto a tissue you clutch dramatically during the day when life feels a bit “BAAAAA!!!!”

Inhale.

Pretend everything is serene and under control.
(It will be. Eventually.)

With love,
Eva x
Your compost with opinions and professional calmer-downer,
Cow on the Ice

A Public Service Announcement

If you are not on our newsletter, you are missing out on:
– ridiculous offers (the good kind, not the “buy 7 get 1 sad thing” kind)
– random illustrations of pickles (don’t ask, just accept)
– on Friday you missed out on FREE SHIPPING. Just saying.

Also, this happened 👇

Chris emailed me to say:

“Every time your emails make me laugh out loud – often in inappropriate places!!
you win Email of the Week.
Congratulations!!”

I’ll be putting that on my CV.

So if the world feels a bit… feral, and you’d like something lovely, silly, slightly unprofessional and unexpectedly comforting to land in your inbox –
join the newsletter.

(Sign-up at the bottom of our website.)

With love,
Eva x

Sometimes people come to Ely for the cathedral.
Sometimes for books, earrings, international snacks and Turkish lunches.
And sometimes… for dental work!!

This email (swipe through the pics) came from Hugh & Caro, who followed their dentist to Ely and accidentally discovered a perfect day out involving:

- Toppings
- The Eel Catcher’s Daughter
- lunch on the hill (please help us decode the place and tag/mention them in the comments)
- the brilliant international food shop (ditto)
…and a small stop here for what they beautifully called the soul-aroma of Ely 🐄⛸️

Thank you, Hugh & Caro, for making our day – and reminding us why independent places matter so much 🖤

🥹

The Botanical Living magazine has arrived and I am absurdly proud of it.

What’s inside?
– stories about plants, rituals and slightly naughty herbs
– illustrations drawn (and agonised over) by me
– a peek behind the scenes of Cow on the Ice
– and yes… samples of our products
– and a general sense of please slow down and breathe

It’s free for our customers, because this felt like something that wanted to be given, not sold.

Available in the shop now.
Pop in and take one home.
(Warning: may cause a desire to grow herbs and ignore the modern world.)

With love Eva🖤
Founder, Lady Boss and Head Dreamer
photos by:
COW ON THE ICE

We have a brand-new product and I’m really proud of it!

It’s the first in a little series of Functional Mists – a magical cross between a home mist and a botanical remedy, created to gently support your health and well-being.

They’re made with natural ingredients and alcohol (the good, clean kind of alcohol – not the “text your ex at 1 a.m.” kind. But no, you absolutely should not drink it regardless).

This one is called Dream of Wonderful Things, and it’s formulated to help you slip into a deeper, calmer sleep.

Spritz into the air, onto your pillow and bedding, or onto a tissue you clutch dramatically during the day when life feels a bit “BAAAAA!!!!”. Inhale. Pretend everything is serene and under control. It will be, eventually.

Buying presents for people who don’t do "STUFF" is a nightmare. You know the type – style-conscious, environmentally-conscious, consciously-conscious, minimalists who already own what you were planning to buy them (and probably a better versions of it).

But fear not – with our little personalised Christmas Greeting Card, you can turn any Cow on the Ice product into a thoughtful, tactile, genuinely delightful gift.

No plastic, no nonsense, no panic-buying at 11 p.m. on Amazon. We’ll even wrap it beautifully for you.

Visit our website for some BEAUTIFUL GIFTS FOR PRACTICAL PEOPLE (because it's time to start planning I'm afraid)

Running a small, independent business sometimes turns my nervous system into a fainting goat.
You know the ones – they look like regular goats until something slightly inconvenient happens, and then BAM – instant horizontal drama.

They are, in essence, my furry spirit animals.
Perpetually overstimulated. Openly dramatic. Majestically unhinged.

There have been countless times when my brain has gone BAAAAAA!!! and fainted – leaving the empty shell of me smiling politely, serving customers, pretending everything is fine while my soul has briefly left the building to lie face-down somewhere near the recycling bin.

This afternoon, Zi (who you might meet in our Ely shop) messaged me:

“Eva, someone popped in asking if you could switch the bin collection to…”

And my brain, without missing a beat, screamed BAAAAAA!!! and passed out cold.

I told Zi I’d honestly rather die and be consumed by the local stray cats – and then have those cats consumed by local fungi – and those fungi sold in the local Waitrose, than be forced to deal with the palaver of choosing a rubbish collection company again.

BAAAAAA!!!

The only thing that keeps my inner goat from total collapse is a steady flow of hot beverages – preferably coffee – and a good blanket.
So, if I turn myself into a caffeinated, blanketed burrito at the end of the day, there’s a faint chance I won’t panic when my phone rings.
(ba!)

Now, I’m fully aware caffeine isn’t technically “soothing.”
(Damn you, science.)
Which is precisely why I decided to develop a fragrance that feels like coffee for your soul.

ME&COFFEE ARE A THING

If you don’t like strangers asking why you smell like heaven and trouble at the same time – best give this one a miss.

It’s sweet, creamy, and just caffeinated enough to make you develop Main Character Syndrome.

Forget Pumpkin Spice Lattes (BAAAAAA!!!) – nothing will keep you warmer, happier, or smugger through these chilly days.

It’s also quite seductive – in case you don’t mind attracting coffee-loving bearded hipsters or sad accountants.

Available now as a perfume and reed diffuser.
(Oils coming soon, because apparently I don’t like rest.)

With love,
and several internal goats currently fainted behind the counter,

BAAAAAAA!!!

/Eva,
Chief Fainting Goat at COW ON THE ICE

We are not a lifestyle brand invented in a boardroom. We’re a real shop, on a real street, in a small cathedral city that smells of coffee (Marmalade & Jam, Ely), fresh Fenland air, and a crunchy quiche on an autumn day (Ely Grazing Company).

We don’t outsource our creativity to a “design agency in Shoreditch” – we make our products from start to finish. We mix it, pour it, label it, wrap it, and agonise over it until it’s perfect (or until we’ve gone slightly cross-eyed).
Our products are what happens when a designer with a slightly obsessive inner perfectionist equipped with a dog, and a strong desire to change the world for better decide that skincare should actually work – without the toxic nonsense, the glitter, or the ten-step routines.

Everything you find here is made in-house, by hand, in small batches, with ingredients that are as honest as your grandmother and packaging that actually looks like someone gave a damn.

And if you pop into the shop, you won’t just be met with beautiful smells and (sometimes) a mildly judgemental bulldog (Twinkle) or me. You’ll be greeted by Claire, Ivona, and Zi – three wonderful, bad-ass women with stories, humour, and enough warmth to thaw the Fens in February. They are the heart of this place. The calm in the chaos. The reason customers linger far longer than they planned.

We are Cow on the Ice.
A wellness microstore, a studio, and a haven for those who like their beauty products intelligent, their scents poetic, and their humour dry.

Come find us – for light, laughter, and a little bit of magic (served with very good taste and slightly sarcastic charm).