Winnetka · Kenilworth · Glencoe · Northfield · Highland Park
A North Shore perfume bar that works with your house manager
We bring a fully staffed perfume bar to North Shore homes and clubs. Every guest blends a custom fragrance and bottles it to take home — and we are used to booking through the person who actually runs the household.
What is a North Shore perfume bar?
A North Shore perfume bar is a hosted fragrance station brought to your home or venue, where each guest blends a custom eau de parfum from a scent library and bottles it to take home. It runs one to two hours as an open station, so guests take part when they want rather than sitting down together.
Glitters & Grace brings everything — the scent library, equipment, styling and hosts. A North Shore perfume bar starts at around $500, with no travel fee anywhere on the North Shore. Every fragrance is formulated by trained perfumers in our own Illinois lab.
In practice, on the North Shore the booking often does not come from the host. It comes from a house manager, an assistant, or the person who runs the family calendar — and they are judging a vendor on whether they are easy to deal with, not on how charming the pitch is.
Consequently what matters is turning things around quickly, giving straight answers on insurance and timing, and arriving when we said we would.
Meanwhile the houses themselves are usually the easiest we work in. Long drives, service entrances, and rooms with space to spare. Therefore the constraint is scheduling rather than logistics.
The activity is simple: one table, ninety minutes, and every guest leaves with a fragrance they blended.
We answer within one business day.
Send the date, the village and a guest count. Then you will have an itemized quote and a certificate of insurance without having to chase either.
Start here
Why a North Shore perfume bar is straightforward to arrange
In short, most of what slows a vendor booking here is administrative. A club needs a certificate naming them. A household wants a clear arrival window. An estate manager wants to know how many people are coming and what vehicle.
We answer all of that up front, in writing, without being asked twice. Therefore the person coordinating on your behalf is not spending their week on it.
In addition, we serve no food or drink, so a club booking never touches a food and beverage minimum. Because that is usually the first question a club raises, it removes the main objection immediately.
Meanwhile the setup is discreet: one table, no amplified sound, and a team that packs out cleanly.
"On the North Shore, being easy to deal with matters more than being interesting."Cheryl Gleason, Owner & Perfumer
Where we set up
Where a North Shore perfume bar sets up
One table is all we need. Meanwhile, we work to whatever your venue requires.
At home
Winnetka · Kenilworth · Glencoe · Northfield · Wilmette
A dining room or great room is usually more than enough, and we bring our own tables so nothing of yours is used. Because many homes here have a service entrance and a long drive, tell us how you would prefer us to arrive and we will follow it.
We arrive about an hour early, style the bar completely, and pack out with the room exactly as we found it.
- About 12 x 6 feet and a standard outlet
- We bring our own tables, linens and coverings
- Clear arrival and pack-out windows confirmed in writing
At a venue
Private clubs · Village venues · Lakefront properties
The North Shore club calendar is busy year-round, and most member events are booked well ahead through the club rather than by the host directly.
We issue certificates of insurance naming the club at no charge and coordinate load-in with their events team. Therefore approval is rarely the thing that delays a date.
- Certificates of insurance provided free
- No food service, so no F&B minimum applies
- We coordinate directly with club events staff
Booked a venue already?
Send us the address and any vendor requirements. Then we will confirm the load-in and send an itemized quote.
How it runs
How a North Shore perfume bar works
Four stages, about ninety minutes end to end. Nothing needs preparing in advance.
We set up
First, we arrive about an hour before you want to start and style the bar completely. Nobody has to be ready when we get there.
Choose a base
Then each guest picks a base style to build on. Signage suggests combinations, so nobody stares at a blank page.
Blend and test
Next, layer from the scent library, testing on paper and adjusting. Two to four minutes each, and guests can return.
Bottle it
Finally, fill and cap your own bottle and take it home the same day. Afterward we pack out completely.
Every perfume made is an eau de parfum at 50–60% fragrance material to perfumer's alcohol. In other words, it is a genuine concentration rather than a scented water, which is why it is still with you at the end of the evening.
Match it to your room
North Shore perfume bar sizing, by guest count
Headcount changes the right answer more than budget does. So here is how we would scope it.
One station, one host. An intimate dinner or a milestone birthday at home, with real time at the bar for everyone.
One station, two hosts. The most common North Shore booking, and the size where the room warms up fastest.
Two stations. Because one holds guests while the other moves them, a club room never bottlenecks.
Multi-station, expanded team. Placed across the floor plan with staffing scaled to your run of show.
What should you budget?
North Shore perfume bar bookings start at around $500. From there, pricing scales with guest count, station count, staffing and time on site. Meanwhile custom labels and additional branding are itemized separately, so nothing appears as a surprise on the invoice.
There is no travel fee anywhere on the North Shore. In addition, there are no service fees and no automatic gratuity.
Areas we serve
North Shore perfume bar service area
The North Shore villages, on identical terms throughout.
Winnetka
Homes and village venues, plus the club calendar. In practice our busiest North Shore village.
Kenilworth
Small, and almost entirely private homes. Therefore bookings here are usually intimate.
Glencoe
Homes and lakefront properties. Because access varies, we confirm the approach when you book.
Northfield & Wilmette
Covered identically. Meanwhile many hosts book across village lines without noticing.
Highland Park & Glenview
North and west, all inside the no-travel-fee area.
Lake Forest & Lake Bluff
Further north, covered on the same terms with no surcharge.
Why Glitters & Grace
A trained perfumer, not a rented table
Cheryl Gleason has been building perfume bars and formulating fragrance for over a decade. She is a trained perfumer and a cosmetic and skincare formulator. Furthermore, every accord and formula we bring to the North Shore was composed in her own lab in New Lenox, Illinois.
That matters for practical reasons. For example, a guest will ask what is in the bottle, and our hosts can answer. Someone will mention a sensitivity, and we have full disclosures ready. Finally, the host will ask what happens if everyone arrives at once — and we have already staffed for it.
We work with absolutes, CO2 extracts and essential oils rather than the pre-blended fragrance oils sold for candles and soap. As a result, what your guests make actually wears like a fragrance.
Before you ask
North Shore perfume bar: common questions
How much is a North Shore perfume bar?
From around $500. Pricing scales with guest count, station count, staffing and time on site. Materials, take-home bottles, hosts, styling, setup and cleanup are included, with no travel fee anywhere on the North Shore.
Can you work with our house manager or assistant?
Yes, and we often do. Because we are used to booking through whoever runs the household calendar, and we confirm arrival windows, vehicle details and insurance in writing without being asked twice.
Do you provide a certificate of insurance for our club?
Yes, naming the club, at no charge and on their timeline. We also coordinate load-in directly with their events team.
Will this affect our club food and beverage minimum?
No — we serve no food or drink. Consequently a perfume bar sits outside the F&B minimum entirely.
Do you need to use our tables?
No. We bring our own, along with linens and coverings. Therefore nothing of yours is used unless you would prefer it.
How much space do you need?
About 12 x 6 feet and a standard outlet. Furthermore, several stations run without power at all.
Which villages do you serve?
Winnetka, Kenilworth, Glencoe, Northfield, Wilmette, Highland Park, Glenview, Lake Forest and Lake Bluff, all with no travel fee and identical pricing.
Is it discreet? We would rather it not dominate the room.
Yes. In practice that means one table, no amplified sound, and hosts who work quietly. Meanwhile guests come and go rather than being gathered up.
How far in advance should we book?
Six to eight weeks for most Saturdays, and a season ahead for club dates. In practice the room books before the vendor does.
What is actually in the perfume?
Absolutes, CO2 extracts and essential oils — the materials of fine fragrance, composed in our own lab. Full ingredient and allergen information is available in advance.
Club dates book a season ahead
We take a limited number of events per date. In practice North Shore club calendars are set well before the vendor calendar is, so the room is usually the constraint. Therefore secure both together.