Introducing, '100 Acres'

A Cotswold based Botanical Perfumery, 100 Acres makes sublime smelling products for bath, body and home. They craft their products using only the very finest natural and botanical ingredients, all distilled from herbs, flowers and fruits – all of which mingle and combine in the most heavenly way, ensuring their products smell like ‘a hundred acres’ of rolling, verdant English countryside, in a bottle.

Ahead of their in-store experience on Saturday 25th May, we caught up with their co-founder Ellea to find a little more about this beautiful Cotswold brand…

We launched back in 2014 and the thinking behind the name was that, if we had a hundred acres of heavenly English countryside to run around naked in, we'd plant gardens full of wild medicinal herbs, orchards filled with fruit trees and meadows filled with flowers. We'd gather this glorious botanical bounty and use it, just like our ancestors did in their ancient physic gardens years ago, to scent and nourish skin and home.

Sadly, we don't have a hundred acres (and we probably couldn't run around naked in it, even if we did!), so we created 100 Acres. Within every single product is an abundance of fragrant, beneficial botanicals, so that you can lie back, close your eyes and escape to your own hundred acres of a heavenly English countryside. You have to smell them to believe them!

Oh, so many... I grew up in the Cotswolds surrounded by fields, gardens and luckily we were allowed to just run free-range through the countryside until the sun went down! For me, the English countryside smells very green and fresh, with a hint of sweet floral, too. Geranium is hugely evocative for me – we’ve always had tons of geraniums at home, both inside and in our greenhouse. Bay is also very evocative for me (we have a huge bay tree at home and always cook with it), as is jasmine – I have a jasmine tree under my bedroom window and in spring/summer it perfumes the room beautifully. All of these are botanicals that we include in our products – there are over eight botanicals in each 100 Acres product so they smell like a beautiful, uplifting medley of the very best English garden!

I truly believe getting outside is key to a happy life. A few tips that keep me sane in the busy world of running a business:

• I know it’s a bit boring, but for me, I go for a walk every day single after work. Even if it’s raining, I’ll throw on wellies and a raincoat. I love to look at what flowers and foliage are out (or about to bloom).
• I absolutely always have flowers or foliage at home and on my work desk that I’ve gathered from the garden or nearby hedgerows. In spring/summer obviously this is far easier (my home is currently bursting with vases of valerian, cow parsley and garden roses!) but even in autumn and winter, I will gather whatever I can and put them into a vase. A good tip is to use a flower frog in the bottom of your vase, or even in a wide-brimmed bowl – it makes even the most basic of foliage look beautiful!
• I make a really conscious effort to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner outside as much as I possibly can in spring and summer. Even if it requires blankets and thick socks – it does wonders for destressing and makes you feel as though you’ve really made the most of our precious warmer months.

Definitely our Botanical Body Lotion. After a day outside or a day in the sun, it is so soothing and calming on the skin – it really locks in moisture and leaves your skin delicately perfumed, too. Who doesn’t want to smell like a beautiful English garden?!

I also always have our beautiful Invigorate Bath & Body Oil in my bag – I like to quickly drop it over damp skin after a morning shower – it makes your skin look and smell amazing all day long. It’s non-greasy and takes mere seconds to absorb. I wouldn’t leave the house bare-legged without it!

We’re growing very quickly – it’s a really exciting time for us and we have lots of wonderful things in the pipeline. I can’t give too much away but let’s just say we have more beautiful, lifestyle-based customer-focused events coming up and a handful of gorgeous new products, too…follow us on Instagram or sign up to our email list to find out more!