From hide to plate: The story of Ivana Petr

Ivana Petr, founder of Bohemian Cosmetics, certified nutritional consultant

This is my story.

If you read it to the end, you might understand why we are not just another brand riding the tallow trend. Why we approach skin, ingredients, and the planet differently. :)

Before I founded Bohemian Cosmetics, I was dealing with a completely different problem: myself.

I have been living with psoriasis for over twelve years. For years I tried cream after cream, diet after diet, and none of it made sense. Until I understood one thing. Skin is not a problem you solve from the outside. It is a reflection of what is happening inside, in your diet, sleep, and stress, and only then what you put on it.

"Skin is not a problem you solve from the outside. It is a reflection of what is happening inside."

From butcher's counter to top management

The path that led me to this might seem disparate at first glance. In reality, it fits together perfectly.

I started as a butcher (deputy branch manager of a butcher shop), continued as a Front Office Administrator for customers, and gradually worked my way up to managerial positions, such as Regional Purchasing Manager for poultry and eggs and Regional Purchasing Manager for interior parts of rolling stock.

It was in the food industry that I learned the behind-the-scenes of the entire chain, from farm to shopping cart. I knew what happened to raw materials before they reached the counter, and how little of that information actually reached the customer. Since then, I've followed a simple rule: don't trust what's written on the label, but rather care about the origin and actual quality.

"I spent part of my childhood in Ireland, where high-quality local ingredients were a matter of course. That contrast remains with me to this day. It taught me to trust verifiable data and results, whether it's about food, business, or caring for my own skin."

Bohemian Cosmetics was born out of necessity, not an idea

At the beginning of 2025, I was dealing with several skin conditions simultaneously in my family. Atopic eczema, ichthyosis, and psoriasis. I couldn't find a product that worked with the body, not against it.

The result is Bohemian Balm. Bioidentical lipids from organic beef tallow from Czech farms. Water-free, free of unnecessary substances, clinically proven by the National Institute of Public Health for atopic skin.

Recipes that started with my parents

Bohemian Balm was not created solely out of my own need. Our recipes are based on family recipes that go back generations. My father made creams for my mother, who fought psoriasis her entire life. My mother, in turn, made products from goat's milk, which I fell in love with as a child in Ireland.

When I decided to found Bohemian Cosmetics, I didn't reach for anything new or unknown. I returned to what I had seen at home my whole life. Only with expert knowledge from dermatology and nutrition and with the determination to have everything independently verified.

"True trust isn't built on what a brand says about itself. It's built on what it can prove."

Why we care where our ingredients come from

Thanks to my childhood, which I spent on a farm in Ireland, I know the fundamental difference between raw materials from regenerative agriculture and raw materials from an industrial chain. They may look the same on the label. In reality, they are two distinct worlds.

The same philosophy is reflected in our packaging. I am a mother of three children and I care about the world we will hand over to them. That is why we use compostable biopolymer jars, even though this path is more challenging and expensive.

 

Why I also became a nutritional consultant

"My skin taught me one thing. Cosmetics can help, but they alone will never be the complete solution."

I therefore studied nutritional counseling so that I could offer the other half as well. What to give the body from within. I see it repeatedly in myself and in clients. Only when skin care, diet, and lifestyle come together, does the change truly manifest and last.

What I'm currently working on

In addition to Barrier Boost products, I am also preparing a lifestyle program. A practical e-book, individual meal plans, and personal consultations.

It won't be a universal diet or a miraculous plan. It will be the same approach I have been testing on myself for years. To understand what your body and your skin truly need, and to build a lasting change on that.

If you have read this far, thank you. I appreciate your trust and would be delighted if you became part of our story.

You can read about how I came to Bohemian Cosmetics and why I combine cosmetics with nutritional counseling in our article From Skin to Plate.

Sincerely,
Ivana Petr