Top 7 Must Have Sample Sets
Discovery sets are an easy way to try new perfume brands especially those hard to find in shops. I have chosen sample sets with 1.5 to 4 ml sprays, which are better for first testing than 7/10 ml sprays. This way you do not end up with larger sprays of fragrances you do not like. Looking for sample sets, I found these were well worth a try:
- Oriza LeGrand Parfums
- Tiziana Terenzi
- Olfactive Studio
- Neela Vermeire Creations
- Zoologist Perfumes
- Technique Indiscrete
- Histoires Des Parfums
1. Oriza L. LeGrand Parfums
The large 18 sample box is an excellent way to explore the complete Oriza LeGrand collection. Oriza L. LeGrand has good quality and (relatively) affordable fragrances. I love their soft frankincense centered fragrance, appealingly called Relique d’amour and the herbal violet creation Violettes du Tsar. The exquisite packaging of their perfume bottles is an extra bonus and most of the fragrances have matching soaps.
Why is it a must have? Oriza L. LeGrand has beautiful fragrances with an interesting history for a reasonable price. Their 100 ml bottles are 120 euro online.
Price: 42 euro for 18 samples or 20 euro for 7 samples
The set can be bought here:
2. Tiziana Terenzi
A beautiful and convenient discovery set with all 10 fragrances in 1.5 ml sprays from the Black Line nicely displayed with the following extraits de parfums: Gold Rose Oudh, White Fire, Lillipur, Arethusa, Kirke, XIX March, Ecstasy, Maremma, Laudano Nero and Al Contrarío.
Why is it a must have? Before Tiziana Terenzi made perfumes it created beautiful scented candles with wooden wicks which are well worth a try as well. This exquisite sample set in a beautiful box is an excellent way to try their fragrances.
Price: 39 euro
The set can be bought here:
3. Neela Vermeire Creations
Get to know all Neela Vermeire Creations with this recently introduced sample set including all six fragrances, Trayee, Mohur, Bombay Bling, Ashoka, Pichola and Rahele in 2 ml sprays. If you like one of these you can continue to enjoy this fragrance with their Take Two sets (except Rahele). These sets are 2 x 15 ml sprays of the same fragrance, which are 112 euro.
Why is it a must have? All fragrances are worth a try as they are probably different from all other fragrances you have tried before, created with eye for detail by Neela Vermeire with perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour. This set is an excellent way to explore the whole collection. My personal favorites are Mohur and Trayee.
Price: 55 euro
The set can be bought here: Neela Vermeire Creations website or at The Perfume Lounge
4. Olfactive Studio
Explore all 7 fragrances with this discovery set including Autoportrait, Chambre Noire, Still Life, Flashback, Lumiere Blanche, Ombre Indigo and Selfie in larger 4 ml sprays.
Why is it a must have? Olfactive Studio is a contemporary French perfume house which links fragrance to photography.
Price: 44 euro
The Olfactive Studio set can be bought here: or at The Perfume Lounge
5. Zoologist Perfumes
The complete collection of the Canadian brand Zoologist Perfumes are sold as 2.5 ml single sprays including their newest scent Camel, plus Bat, Beaver (New Formula), Civet, Dragonfly, Elephant, Hummingbird, Macaque, Nightingale, Panda (New Formula) and Rhinoceros. If you like several fragrances after testing: Zoologist Perfumes sells beautiful 11 ml travel spray sets which come in a deluxe box. An excellent way to continue enjoying a fragrance you like.
Price: 49 USD
Why is it a must have? This line has fragrances you probably have not scented before like the earthy Bat and creations of exceptional beauty like Hummingbird. All fragrances are created by different perfumers around the world together with Victor Wong. Camel is his next upcoming release made by Spanish perfumer Christian Carbonnel.
The Zoologist Perfumes set can be bought here.
6. Technique Indiscrete
Explore all 14 eaux de parfums with 1.5 ml samples from Belgian Perfumer Louison Libertin with this box containing: Indiscrete, Veloutine, Paname Paname, Plaisir d’Amour, Santa Subita, Safran Nobile, Délivre Moi, Monarchy, My Burning Secret, Omnipresence, Saint Extaxe, Eau de Bruxelles, Eau d’Anvers and Carmel Snow.
Why is it a must have? I must admit I haven’t tried this line but some of my Dutch perfume friends whose judgement in perfume I trust love this brand. This set is on my wish list as it is not expensive either.
Price: 15 euro ( if you use the discount code samplekit25 this month, you will get 25 percent discount)
The Technique Indiscrete set can be bought here:
7. Histoires des Parfums
A beautiful set for a reasonable price with their 10 bestsellers: 1804, 1826, 1725, 1828, 1740, 1899, 1969, Ambre 144, Noir Patchouli and This is Not a Blue Bottle presented in 2 ml sprays.
Why is it a must have? Histoires de Parfums tells interesting stories of famous characters in history like Jules Verne and George Sand, raw materials like patchouli and mythical years (1969!). This set is an excellent way to explore them.
Price: 20 euro (online) or 20 USD at Luckyscent.
The set is available here and at Luckyscent as well.
Bottom line: these 7 sets from Oriza LeGrand Parfums, Tiziana Terenzi, Olfactive Studio, Neela Vermeire Creations, Zoologist Perfumes, Technique Indiscrete and Histoires Des Parfums are all well worth a try and will make excellent (holiday) gifts as well. Some sets are presented in exquisite boxes. All sets contain smaller samples varying from 1.5 to 4 ml, an excellent way to explore a new brand without having to end up with larger sprays of fragrances you do not like.
All these sets are excellent gifts as well. You could give the sample sets with a bottle of their choice for special occasions as well. Go to my article to read more here.
In case 7 discovery sets were not enough: you can find more choices for gift sets here .
Disclosure: all photographs except the Olfactive Studio Discovery Set were taken from the official websites.