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Show The Park Record A-12 Wed/Thurs/Frl, January 12-14, 2005 MARKETPLACE New perfiime studio customizes scents Vous invites Parkites to create their own fragrances By ANNA BLOOM Of The Record stuff Robin Jennings flips through a month's worth of perfume ?tds from a fashion magazine: Elizabeth Hurley pouts, J-Lo bares her midriff and Matthew McConaughey looks the other way in a cowboy hal. None of the pages-not one-has a flap to give the reader a sense of what each perfume smells like. The ads intend for readers to make up their minds based on visuals and celebrities and marketing, and not what their noses lell them. "Matthew McConaughey in a cowboy hat?" boils Jennings, owner of the new custom perfume store in old town. "I mean, what's that about?" in this day and age where marketing precedes product, Jennings and his partner Judy Rose want to let people smell for themselves. They've named their perfume store Vous after the formal pronoun "you" in French. Using essential oils, they invite people to return to the roots of perfumery- to sniff and choose the scents that express their personality and please their senses, "It's a unique concept and it's lough to nail down," says Jennings. "What we sell is a oncol-a-kind. 100 percent natural custom perfume. We're gelling back lo the history of perfume before synthetics. We want you to come (o our organ of essential oils and choose the scents based on what you like, not what we lell you to like. If you want to smell like a cup of coffee or tang, it's up to you." What Jennings and Rose call "the organ' is a three-shelf display of hundreds of essential oils in small containers behind a stainless steel counter with bulbous beakers lor mixing. A legendary perfumer many years ago began classifying perfumes using musical analogies. explains Jennings, so the essential oils at Vous are divided accordingly: the first shelf are called top notes and are the fastest to evaporate; the second shelf house the mid notes which add depth and heart; and finally the third shelf displays the base notes-sustaining all the other notes. "'Hiere's an art lo describing what kind of fragrance you like," Jennings believes. "Our space is more like an artist's studio than a store. Our philosophy is thai we don't want you lo smell like everyone else. 'Iliere are studies thai have s-hown that smell has a lot to do with memory. If a smell reminds you of something happy, we want to help you find it here." Vous also packages their product in unique ways, with bead-decorated glass containers, 25 ml test tubes or one-of-a-kind blown glass perfume bottles by a glass artist in Logan by the name of Billy Johnson. Vous will also mix any scent with bees wax. which Jennings says is very useful in a dry climate like Utah where moisture dissipates so quickly. People may be surprised at the small amount it takes to wear Vous perfume. Because it's only diluted by 15 to 30 percent, only a dab here and there is necessary to make an impression. "Our perfume is very rich and subtle," he explains. "It's not the open-the-clevalor-knock-you-oul cologne that everyone is used lo." Jennings, a former professional baseball player, became interested in perfume when he began researching the history. A year ago, he found an article in an architectural magazine about an old perfume store in California and it led him to books on the subject of perfumery. *'rI*he history of perfume is just incredible-it practically established the trade route in Egypt." he explains. "Modern perfume started in France when a company began to market scented gloves to hold over your nose as you walked through the streets. The more 1 read, the more I felt it was what I wanted to do." Rose shared Jennings vision and jumped in head firsl, according to Jennings. A Parkite for nearly 13 years, Rose retired from the real estate business around the same time Jennings left baseball. "It was all good karma," she says. "And it was a combination of many things. We both decided we needed to do something. Everything came together with a little luck and chance. Even the mural on our wall." |$Utah International ; Auto Expo to ^ ] reveal latest trent* The 2005 International -,\ Auto Expo in Sandy will show- \ case hundreds of new cars, "\ trucks, minivans and sport/util- ' ity vehicles from Jan. 14 to Jan. 17 at the South Town : Exposition Center. . ; Several manufacturers are ; attempting to bridge the gap '• between truck-style sport/ulili- J ties and car-based station wagons, so more crossover i products will populate the ; marketplace this year and^; next, according to Motor Trend *",! Executive Editor Matt Stone. J Expo hours are Friday and '„ Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 \ p.m., Sunday from 10 a.m. to ;; 9 p.m. and Monday 10 a.m. to ' 8 p.m. Admission is $7 for '] adults (13 and over), $4 for'vi senior citizens (62 and over), < $4 for children (seven through V 12) and free for children six j and underj-V^***'? - ^ .,.'.., •/'• JASON hUNTER/flUKflECOHD Judy Rose dove in head first with partner Robin Jennings to create the perfume studio Vous. To help clients find their favorite scent, Rose and Jennings let them choose from hundreds of essential oils. Vous combines old furniture with modern touches like its stainless steel counter and state-of-theart espresso maker. The mural picks up both the colors in the deep purple couch as well as the contour of the paisley shapes of the glass-blown bottles. Rose ran into the painter of the mural, Allen Hulleman. at a parly when he was showing sonic of his pictures to the other guests. Like Hulleman. Rose also considers herself a creative person. As a side interest. Rose collects old doors and window frames to make mirrors and many hang on the walls of Vous. "I like to take old things and turn them inlo new things," she explains-an attitude that seems to extend the karma of the store. Though this will be her firsl perfume company. Rose does not consider herself new to the business.1 .-' • ';' _/' "Knave four'sisters and -wlien we were growing up in Gloucester. Mass.. we used to blend our own perfume all the time." remembers Rose. "In fact, the very firsl per- and asked them to smell nearly 20 fume I mixed 1 named 7/15,'which scents and vote to determine the is one of my sisters' birthday." five for the season. 'Iliey also plan Human beings, says Rose, have on creating a station for samples not found out how to reproduce of scents made by customers wishscents as they appear in nature. ing to share their creations. 'Iliey can come close, but only a "Edumund Radniska, a perrose smells like a rose and only fumer from France once said, Mother Nature can do it." she ''Hie capacity lo create is the abilcontinues. "Perfume is sensual. Its ity to imagine,'" quotes Jennings. about aroma, romance, nature. "A lot of perfume companies try My goal is to combine natures and tell you how to become someessential oils with aphrodisiac one else. We want lo create. We're qualities lo provide clients with the come-in-and-be-yoursclf." self-confidence." Moved by the history of perBoth Jennings ;md Rose feel fume. Rose and Jennings plan to Park City's sophistication lends make a mural of the quotations thai inspire them most. One of itself to their perfume studio. "We really want lo make the their favorites comes from the fashionisla Coco community feel like they're passionate involved with our store." says Chanel: Jennings, "'lliis is a transient town "Perfume is the unseen but unforwe want to add a unique experi- gettable and ultimate fashion ence to the mix." accessory." In an effort to make the store inorc locals-based, Vous will hwld . Vous [perfume studio /s located parties to chooseeaeh seasons sig- at 613 Main Street in Park City. nature scents. Last Fnoiilh,**says For more information call (877) Jennings, the store opened its 614-8687 or visit their website at doors lo its first gala for friends www. vousperfume. com. Drug assists Red .r:-:% -Cross /••: Smith's Food & Drug Stores employees throughout seven western states are part. nering with their local customers to raise money for humanitarian relief efforts following the tsunami of December 26, 2004. Smith's joins more than 3,300 stores that make up '•• divisions of The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) in responding to this terrible disaster. Kroger employee contributions will be p;matched through the Kroger !• foundation of up to $300,000. ,; All money collected from customers' and employees 'wilt be forwarded to the American Red Cross International ,.-Response Fund,; • ••, -Top Row: Linda MdReynolds. Paul Schenk. Rath Drapldn ; V^^OUCIIN Rwu: Dennis Hanlon, Maire Rosol, Kjftrin Gag&jftft^ PICTURE PERFECT 100% unconditional guarantee on all work Guaranteed seven working day turnaround on all custom framing 1,300+ unforgettable frames Prints & Posters Six top-producing, all-broker, long-established, well-respected, award-winning, extremely knowledgeable, active in the community, pretty darn nice Realtors invite you to find out what's new in Deer Valley and Park City Real Estate ART& FRAME Taking Art Hwier Between Staples & Pier 1 Imports next to Wai Mart at Kimball Junction Please slop by oui office in llie heart of Upper Deer Valley at Silver Lake Plaza. Or cull us at: Open 7 days a week - Mon-Sat 10am - 7pm - Sunday 12pm - 4pm 435.649.0801 www.peakartandframe.com 435 615-7110 Dombush R E A L E S T A T E Silver P.O. Box 2370 Park C i j y . X |