Putting   the ‘phunk’   in fashion

Dayton business owner uses worldly experiences to define her look and her outlook

Jim Witmer/STAFF PHOTO Lisa Scott shows her personal style.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Jim Witmer/STAFF PHOTO Miami Valley Style features Lisa Scott, the owner of Bueate Box on 5th St. Dayton.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Miami Valley Style, a feature about a local fashion plate.We needed at least 6 shots of Lisa Scott, the owner of Bueate Box, for an upcoming edition of Miami Valley Style.

Jim Witmer/STAFF PHOTO Miami Valley Style, a feature about a local fashion plate.We needed at least 6 shots of Lisa Scott, the owner of Bueate Box, for an upcoming edition of Miami Valley Style.

ENLARGE PHOTO

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By Amelia Robinson, Staff Writer 11:54 AM Saturday, January 28, 2012

Lisa Scott thinks inside a  box filed with skyscraper-tall heels, kicky frocks, seemingly endless eye lashes and perfectly lacquered nails.

The Jefferson Twp. High School graduate, a Navy brat who spent time with her family in the Philippines, Japan, Hawaii and Alaska and other places in her youth, owns Beaute Box, a day spa billed as an “eclectic, chic, pampering boutique.”

“It kind of reminds me of when I was a kid — the people and the cultures,” she said of the shop at 116 W. Fifth St. “It takes all of my experiences and creates something that is unique to me.”

She calls her style “eclectic phunk.”

There’s no up-charge for the funk with a “ph.”

“I can spend $5 on an outfit and have something on from the Dollar Store and some accessories from Dots,” Scott said.

She often hunts for unique styles at Feathers Vintage Clothing in Dayton’s Historic Oregon District.

“Whatever I feel like rocking, I am going to rock.”

Her shop opened late last year as part of Activated Spaces’ Pop-Up Project, an initiative to fill downtown storefronts.

It also holds memories from an adult life spent in Dayton, Atlanta, New York and Riverside, Calif.

Scott’s career in the beauty business started in 1992 after a Huber Heights nail technician noted her potential and encouraged her to enter the industry.

The path was a fit.

The single mom used her vacation time from the former Piedmont Airlines — where she worked in reservations — to take an eight-week nail course at Carousel Beauty College in Dayton.

When it comes to style, she has always found herself ahead of the curve.

After high school, Scott spent time in Atlanta and embraced the 1990s music-inspired neo-soul look. Her close-cropped, blondish-red dyed hair caused a stir here.

“People in Dayton were like ‘why did she cut all of her hair off,’ ” she said.

With her salon, the 46-year-old said she aims to give the community a new kind of experience.

“I wanted to create something on the next level,” she said.

Contact this reporter at  (937) 225-2384 or  arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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