Strange Invisible Perfumes was founded in 2000 by Alexandra Balahoutis; the house was named for a line from Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra: "From the barge, a strange invisible perfume hits the sense of the adjacent wharfs".
Alexandra spent over 4 years studying the art of botanical perfumery, and her line is made without the use of synthetic notes or fixatives. She distills many of her own essences, using organic materials whenever possible, and favors the use of hydro-distillation rather than steam distillation or chemical extraction methods.
Her new boutique-perfumery will open on Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice, California in late September, and 10 of the perfumes from her Signature Collection will be coming to Barneys New York in October.
You have said that "making perfume was never a choice, but an involuntary obsession – there was simply no way I could ignore the impulse to make perfume". Did this obsession come out of an appreciation of aromas or smells in general, or more specifically out of an appreciation of perfumes, and if the latter, what are some of the first perfumes you remember being captivated by?
I think that it sprouted from a love for aroma and a passion for ideas. I loved the way an aroma could summon a feeling of what inspired it. I wanted perfumes that smelled like my ideas, associations, and inspirations. I loved the idea of piecing aromas together into these invisible story boards. I wanted a perfume that didn't exist. There were other perfumes that I loved, however. The first perfumes I ever fell in love with were Violetta and Elizabethan Rose by Penhaligon's. My mother wore these most of my life. In high school, I wore Folavril by Annick Goutal. I also loved Cuir de Russie by Channel. Something would come over me the few times I heard people speak about perfume-making in Europe. I was mesmerized by the idea of mixing things. When I was very little, I had a Barbie perfume maker. I loved it but even then it didn't quite provide the palette I desired.
You have rejected the use of synthetic chemicals in your own line. Was this something you set out to do from the start, or was it was a decision that you came to gradually as you learned more about perfumery?
I wanted to make irrationally precious perfumes. When I was first collecting essences, the only ones I fell in love with were natural. When I smelled them I felt the immeasurable possibilities of interpreting them into compositions. They were rough, hypnotic, concentrated, and alive. I was so excited by the challenge of smoothing them into one another and taming them politely and respectfully. I just didn't feel that potential in working with synthetics, nor did I feel the eagerness and electricity that a flavorist feels when they are completely inspired by the preciousness and rarity of their palette. Artisan wine makers and chefs, for example, are rarely beside themselves with anticipation to incorporate artificial flavors.
Have you had any mentors, or are there specific perfumers or perfume lines that have influenced your style?
My mentor is Jack Steele. He has such a vast and rich understanding of aroma because it is reinforced by his knowledge in so many other intriguing, and often esoteric, fields. He is a botanical perfumer and expert in the shamanic uses of essences. He is also an archaeologist and anthropologist. He is a double rainbow of knowledge and inspiration. His approach is so full of vision and sincere philosophy. I am very grateful for his guidance.
Are there particular fragrance notes or ingredients that attract you and that you like to work with whenever possible? And are there particular notes that you don’t care for and would rather not use in your own work?
I love blue lotus, frankincense, tuberose, and cardamom. I love all of the essences that I use. Certain essences are more featured, while others have more supporting roles. All are of the utmost necessity. The only essence that I did not like so much was myrrh because I didn't understand it yet. Then a distiller I know told me that frankincense was the first breath you take and that myrrh is the last. I then realized that myrrh had something to do with death and after that I understood it. I like it now but still have not incorporated it into a blend. That is something still culminating in the back of my mind.
Which of your perfumes is your personal favorite, and why?
My favorite is Galatea. I made it for myself so I suppose that explains my love of it. It is so deep and enticing but still so transparent. It is both ethereal and sensual, which can be a challenge for a perfumer, especially a botanical perfumer.
Tell us about your new boutique and perfumery that will open in late September.
I am so happy with the design of the new store. It is very modern without sacrificing femininity. It is luxurious without being aristocratic. It is a shrine built to our company, our approach and our collection. We want to take excellent care of the people that visit us there and truly acquaint them with our style of doing things. We wanted to create a modern atelier to suit our contemporary interpretation of artisan perfume making. We will have a bar for tasting hydrosols and sampling fragrances. We will have a lab and sink for customers to use when trying on perfumes and creams that we make. There will be a modern coach in the shop to provide privacy for custom blend consultations. The store will be beautiful and experiential without a corporate bone in it's body. I can't wait!
What are you passionate about besides perfume?
I love to cook. I also write poetry and short stories to calibrate and understand things more clearly. I love photography, as well. That I love to do because my brain quiets. It is completely visual. I also love the duality of its technical nature and its demands for intuition and a pair of clean eyes. Honestly, I love downtime as well. I love to spend time with friends and family. People I have known so long we barely have to speak in complete sentences. Foolishness is very important in life.
Tomorrow: the Strange Invisible Perfumes Signature Collection
Wonderful interview! I have huge admiration for her originality and actually love almost every scent in the line. Aramaic is challenging, but I'd love the type of man who wore it. L'Invisible, Tosca, Lady Day and Vine are my favorites. Fascinating comment she made on myrrh.
Wonderful interview dear R! Alexandra sounds rather charming. Love the last sentence of the interview! Off to look for her perfumes now…
xoxo
Aramaic is a wonderful perfume and agree that it is challenging, as are several of her scents. I also love L'Invisible (will review tomorrow) and Lady Day (will review on Wednesday). Tosca is another “challenging” scent, and just didn't work on me. I haven't tried Vine yet but hope to eventually.
Thank you N! I am a big fan of both downtime and foolishness…
Me too dear R! What is life without such simple pleasures?
xoxo
Wonderful, interesting interview, R. It has re-piqued my interest in her line. Maybe she'll give a discount on samples to readers of NST? 😉
I had that exact Barbie perfume maker!
I used to make everyone fragrances and I am sure they were foul. LOL
Wonderful interview R! Thank you!
Thank you A, and sorry I didn't manage to negotiate a discount, LOL! Have you tried any of her line?
Thanks A! Why didn't I have a Barbie perfume maker? I wonder if they still make it…
R, great interview! I cannot wait to read your reviews. I have been curious about the line for a while, but I am yet to test anything from it.
Thanks V!
Oh that's so funny – I, too, had the Barbie perfume maker. All I really remember is that no matter what I made it always ended up smelling like Tinkerbell, and now that I'm grown I realize the scent was probably mostly all lily.
“Foolishness is very important in life.” I love that, and 'tis true. Well, it's true for me – foolishness and silliness 😉
What a great interview – your best one yet, I think. I have yet to try anything from this line, but I quite look forward to doing so now. Ms. Balahoutis sounds like such a delightful person.
Absolutely fascinating interview, R! I have always been completely captivated by the Strange Invisible Perfumes website, but have yet to try any of the fragrances. Perhaps when the line comes to Barney's, samples will be more accessible. I've always been curious.
Thanks K, I am so glad you liked the interview! But drat, everyone had that perfume maker but me 😉
K, it is a cool website, but hoping the revamped one will have online ordering!
Wonderful interview R! Never tried any fragrances from the line and now I want to more than ever!
Thanks S!
A really interesting interview! I've tried a few SIP fragrances, but need to sample more. Next time I'm down in Santa Monica I will make sure to take a trip down the beach to Venice and check out the new storefront.
As I side note, I really like her blazer 🙂
A, do check it out and report back! It sounds like it will be a wonderful boutique.
Hi there, darling!
I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Alexandra and her sister, Athena, when SIP first opened several years ago. She was as warm, intelligent and delightful then as she is in your interview. Just a very lovely person, whose passion for perfume is tempered only by her passion to keep creating her very lush and wholly original fragrances.
Hugs!
Hello you magnificent Robins! Robin darling from LA – I would love to visit her store with you!
I just found this article – you may have read it.
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1346/is_10_48/ai_110026852#continue
xoxo
Hi R, So nice to hear from someone who has met her in person! Hugs to you too 🙂
Thanks N, I had not seen that one!
Her face looks familiar dear R – maybe she has even done small roles in some films.
xoxo
Oops, messed up the last one, here is a list:
http://www.moviemagnet.com/magnet.asp?t=A&i=60835
Yes, she has, but we won't hold her Hollywood pedigree against her! :):)
Hugs and love!
Great interview – sounds like a very interesting lady! I have never heard of this perfume line before, but it sounds very intriguing – especially since her ingredients are natural.
I do have a perfume shop in my city that sells all kinds of niche lines. Perhaps one day SI perfumes will show up there!
Lucky you — I have to drive 30 minutes to smell any perfume! I *think* that Barneys will be her first off-site retailer, but it will be interesting to see if this line becomes more widely available.
Maybe your inability to understand the world of synthetics is due to only four years of study. In my world four years gets you to first grade. The world of synthetics has allowed true creativity, when use by perfumers with experience and an understanding of the craft. I have smelled your fragrances, I believe U2's song sums it well. “Stuck in a moment”. You will join all the other Niche fragrances at Barney's that are stuck in the 16th century. I see nothing remotely femenine about any of them. The Niche market is more boring than the prestige market. Perfumery is an art and is not learned over night. This article is an insult and shows a true lack of knowledge of our craft.
Welcome, and thank you for sharing your point of view.
I like all kinds of perfumes, from the niche fragrances at Barneys to mass market to prestige to “naturals”, and I am not sure why you would feel insulted that others are practicing a different kind of perfumery than you.
I believe the reason natural perfumery continues to exist, and refuses to die in the face of such assumptions is that there are so many absolutely hideous perfumes inhabiting the counters of department store in the world, made by, I'm assuming, those very perfumers who sneer at the craft of the less well-resourced and less fully-educated-in-the-way natural perfumer Indie. If being steeped and trained in the contemporary craft of perfumery is superior, how can they continue to produce such mind-numbingly boring, forgettable, mundane, and downright smelly fragrances every year? One must see that many people feel the need for a different type of fragrance experience in their life, and it is those people who support and keep the niche market alive and thriving.
I'm a prime example, and I don't think I'm unusual. I've had the normal experience of fragrance sampling at perfume counters, and having to come home and take a shower because the fragrances were so hairsprayish, synthetic and refused to meld or mercifully die. It happens more often than not, and to everyone who's fragrance-shopped. It doesn't seem to sink into the perfume industry to take seriously this problem (and it *is* a problem), but these niche perfumers did, understood, and responded. That is why clients speak of them with respect and affection. In many ways they are our fragrance “consciences”.
I feel most large commercial perfume houses aren't as responsive to the desires of persons such as myself. Natural perfumers truly *are* more interested in their clientele's needs, as they have had the same unsettling commercial fragrance experiences as ourselves, and were unhappy with the state of it.
I enjoy the diversity of fragrance experiences. If we were left at the mercy of contemporary large perfume companies, can you imagine the limited choices that would be given us? I, for one, shudder.
Also, there was mention of these indies being stuck in the 16th century. But, branding these perfumes as “unfeminine” as you did, is the more backward of the attitudes, and more appropriately belongs to a different time.
Hooray for niche houses!
P.S. – My fragrance collection is about 2/3 mainstream and 1/3 niche/natural.
Hi Kathy, Thank you for your spirited defense of niche & natural perfumes, you said it much better than I would have 🙂
Kathy's a keeper 😉
c2xist — are you telling me that Barney's niche perfumers specialize in the 16th C. fragrances? No retro Egyptian or Roman scents? No 18th C French? I know that educated perfumers are trained to be blazingly precise, so I do believe you. I must read more about 16th C fragrance. It must be the “in” thing. I'm supposing you meant from Europe, right, not India, the Far East, or the US? Very interesting.