Cheeky Smile
by JUSBOX
As far as I’m concerned, fragrance is an artform, a form of expression that transcends the traditional; the fourth dimension I call it, invisible and intangible, yet pertinent. Fragrance has the ability to convey a personality, a mood, a brand message and most importantly— your taste. Used correctly, fragrance is essentially an extension of self. Fragrance brand JUSBOX understands this notion and utilise the artform of fragrance to reminisce, a “Symbiosis between Perfume and Music” they call it, and this link is evident from box to the scent itself. Their latest creation “Cheeky Smile” is a great example.
In the late Eighties acid house arrived in Britain’s clubs to incite the biggest revolution in youth culture since the Sixties’ Summer of Love. At the start of 1988, the London scene was ripe for change. Nightclubs were mostly depressing places where revellers went to get drunk; rare groove and hip-hop had dominated for the past few years, yet on the horizon, a few select few DJs were popularising a new style of music called ‘acid house’. This kind of music— somewhat “fuelled” by a new drug culture— turned nightclubs back into what they were created to be; places where people were at liberty to express themselves. English acid house used the yellow ‘smiley face’ symbol as an emblem of the new music scene; a friendly, anonymous grin that portrayed the simplest and most non-aggressive qualities of Eighties’ youth culture. But the movement wasn’t just about music, it was about fashion too: a mixture of neon colours, tie-dye and even bum bags— no more ‘smart casual’ but instead comfortable outfits based on sneakers and dungarees.
A personal fashion statement was made by emulating the neon lighting of the dance scene and standing out from the crowd.
The sides of the bottle, front typography and central upper side of the cap combine to create an original and hypnotic game of lights. The box sleeve, produced with the same technique, reveals a series of upside-down headphones reminiscent of the ’smiley face’ – that iconic symbol of Acid House.
The JUSBOX interpretation of this underground cultural movement has given birth to the first fluorescent packaging in perfumery history. The bottle is finished in a special varnish that appears light grey in daylight, but which turns into a vibrant, acid-green colour when seen under ultraviolet light. For Cheeky Smile, V-Monkeys worked with perfumer Dominique Moellhousen to turn acid house beats into a molecular cocktail of joy and happiness through the engaging notes of Iso E Super, Amberoxide, Ambroxan and Cashmeran. The result is a scent that is as visually exciting as it is nasally; a scent on wearing you’re guaranteed to get a reaction and that reaction is most likely to be—you guessed it— a Cheeky Smile.
