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…

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