I Love Byredo Perfumes—How I Build My Collection Without Spending a Fortune

If there’s one thing that all my friends and family know about me, it’s that I love a luxury perfume. If they’re ever stuck on what to get me for my birthday or Christmas, they know that a fancy fragrance will always put a smile on my face. That being said, certain luxury brands can set you back a small fortune these days, which makes it much more difficult to give your favourite scents a go without bankrupting yourself. Take Byredo for example. This chic, Stockholm-based brand is one of my go-tos for interesting, expensive-smelling perfumes; but with a 50ml bottle costing a cool £140, it’s not feasible to try all the fragrances to see which ones I like the most.

Of course, you can pop into a store to have a sniff of all the different scents, but not only does this mean actually having to find a shop near you that stocks Byredo’s entire range, I also find it a little overwhelming once I’m there and end up forgetting which ones I prefer in the first place. Luckily for me, I discovered an easier and more affordable way to get my hands on some of Byredo’s best-selling scents, without even having to leave the house. Say hello to the Byredo perfume discovery set.

If you didn’t know, you can order perfume discovery sets from the Byredo website and give all of the different scents a go in the comfort of your own home. There are two discovery sets available. The classic discovery set only costs £42 and contains six 2ml vials of Byredo’s most iconic fragrances, including Gypsy Water and Blanche. What I love about this set is that you can try all the scents out to see which full-sized perfume you’d like to invest in, and then keep the vials to top up your perfume wherever you are. Not only that, but you can also redeem the cost of the discovery set against any 50ml or 100ml bottle purchased within four weeks of your order.

It doesn’t stop there, as the brand has also created a build-your-own travel set that allows you to choose any three perfumes you like in larger 12ml glass vials. Trust me when I say that they are so handy for throwing in your handbag or suitcase when travelling. This is the set I tried, and I opted for Black Saffron, Mojave Ghost and Super Cedar. Each fragrance has been a welcome addition to my perfume collection, and they’ve even become some of my most-complimented fragrances to date.

My personal favourite has to be Mojave Ghost. This scent features notes of earthy sandalwood, crisp amber and warm cedarwood, creating a perfect everyday fragrance for all year round. Without this set, I wouldn’t have discovered my new favourite perfume, so I highly recommend giving it a go.

This discovery set is such good value for money, and don’t forget that you can redeem the cost of the set against any 50ml or 100ml bottle.

The travel sets are a little more expensive, but these neat bottles will last you longer than you think.

After trying out the discovery set, I’m going to purchase the full-sized bottle of Mojave Ghost very soon.

This is one of the brand’s most popular scents, and is great if you like a clean, fresh fragrance. Expect notes of rose, sandalwood and musk.

That’s right, the brand also does a selection of gorgeous candles. I’ve got my eye on this one for winter as it has a beautifully earthy, warm scent.

Hair perfumes are another great way of trying out luxury fragrances for less, and Byredo has a wide selection.

Rouge Chaotique is the brand’s first oud-gourmand fragrance as part of the Night Veils collection, and with notes of plum, praline and oud, it sounds almost good enough to eat.

Make your shower a whole lot chicer with a Byredo body wash. The packaging alone is enough to make me want to buy this, and I just know that I’ll smell amazing all day, especially if I layer on the perfume afterwards. 

Animalique is one of the newest scents from the brand and features fresh, citrusy notes of lemon and bergamot combined with warm suede and amber.

My hands always get so dry in winter, so I’m hoping to get a tube of Byredo hand cream in my stocking this Christmas. 

Next Up: I Always Get Compliments on Zara Perfumes—8 That Could Easily Pass for Designer

Main image: @iramshelton