Heaven Scent

Smell is something many of us take for granted - especially good smells.

"A custom-made perfume echoes the individuality and complexity of the person."

Not so for Alexandra Balahoutis, owner of Strange Invisible Perfumes, a Venice, CA, perfumery that opened last fall. A longtime believer in the transformative and mysterious power of smell, Balahoutis says that for her, making perfume "was never a choice but an involuntary obsession."

Her shop resembles an apothecary (one out of the novel Perfume) mated with a James Bond movie. Bottles that look straight out of a mad scientist's lab are held on spiraling stands that sit beside blue suede stools, chrome counters, and red satin curtains.

The back of the store houses a glassed-in room where Balahoutis holds consultations to help you find your perfect scent. During these one-on-one consultations, she has you taste different floral waters, tests the way various essences meld with your skin, and discusses everything from your favorite aromas to your preferred music, colors, seasons, eras, and even books. She then uses this information to formulate a scent just for you.

So what do, say, autumn, the color blue, In Our Time, the Talking Heads and Ancient Rome smell like? Possibly a little like African roses and black tea with crystalline spearmint and "the menacing aroma of leather," like Strange Invisible's pre-bottled Black Rosette scent . . . or maybe like Tosca, which contains Parma violet as well as mimosa, jasmine, and basil and "is exquisitely corrupted with tobacco leaf and pale musk." (It's slightly reminiscent of the perfume Flower by Kenzo).

"A custom-blend perfume is one that is completely unique and exclusive to that person," explains Balahoutis, 31. She's been obsessed with scents since childhood. "Like a portrait commissioned by an artist, a custom-made perfume echoes the individuality and complexity of the person."

The cost of having a bottled scent that belongs to no one but you? $2,100 per one-quarter-ounce bottle.

Balahoutis, however, believes it's a splurge that you'll enjoy with every breath . . . at least every breath you take through your nose.

"When you buy a scent that has been created especially for you, you are buying something beautiful and luxurious which is truly yours. That," she says, "is truly a worthwhile indulgence."

Posted on March 13, 2006