Rose Gold Pearls

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There’s something about the aesthetically pleasing variety in a luxury perfume collection that makes a woman feel elegant, sophisticated and well put together. At the same time, it can be a challenge to keep our checking account balance in the positives if we get carried away! That being said, I want to show y’all how you can still enjoy your favorite designer perfumes for less. If you’re on a budget then there are plenty of ways that I have laid out for you to score cheap designer perfume for women.

Buy Tester Perfumes

 

Now don’t get alarmed when I say “testers”. These are unused, unopened, they haven’t been “tested” or tampered with by consumers. Tester perfume bottles for sale are also full sized. The only catch here is that they may or may not come in original boxes and packaging and even be missing a cap, but the perfume inside the bottle is still 100% full and unused. 

So far I have only purchased mine from a few trusted sellers on eBay. There is also a site called ForeverLux (coincidentally one of the eBay sellers) that has full sized designer perfume testers available. When I’d like to save some money (which is literally all the time), I will check out this website and another one called FragranceNet.com. They sell 100% authentic full size designer fragrance bottles for at a more affordable price range. 

If I’m on a budget I’ll look for testers in the perfume I’m looking to purchase, rather than the fully packaged one in the stores. Hey, if it means I can save a few dollars (more than a few if I’m being honest) by foregoing all that pesky plastic and a box I’m throwing in the trash anyways, I don’t mind it at all.

 

Sign up for A Fragrance Subscription 

 

Purchasing or blind buying high end perfumes one by one can add up to be very costly. Not to mention, it can easily become an expensive waste of time if it comes up short of your expectations. Signing up for a perfume subscription service is a great way to try out a variety of luxury perfumes at a fraction of the cost that a full sized bottle would run you. A perfume subscription company sends a deluxe trial sized (basically travel size) valve of any fragrance of your choice, typically monthly.

 

Scentbird is a very popular monthly subscription service that sends you a new travel size perfume of your choice every month. I first heard of Scentbird through various beauty content creators over on YouTube. Only recently have I developed a strong fascination with starting and growing a perfume collection. Admittedly, the only reason I finally signed up is because I was DESPERATE to try a sample of Montale Chocolate Greedy, a delicious gourmand scent reminiscent of warm, freshly baked chocolate cake. Montale is a niche fragrance house with not so modest prices. Thankfully, I found out I could get a 30ml travel size version for a bargain. Now I’m a regular subscriber and have fallen in love with this service. It is perfect for beginners who are just starting their designer perfume collection, and designer perfume lovers who like to limit their spending.

A few other fragrance subscriptions I recommend are Scentbox and FragranceNet. All of the prices are affordable starting at less than $20 per month. For perspective, if you were to grab a travel size perfume from the department store, it’d usually run you nearly double that. So in my humble opinion, it’s a pretty decent deal.

Shop Discount Stores and Sites

The discount department stores are actually a gold mine for designer perfumes at affordable price points. They carry most of the same brands you would find in the upscale department stores, like Calvin Klein, Vince Camuto, Marc Jacobs, Burberry and even Hermes.

I have even spotted a larger selection from designers in Nordstrom Rack! It is one of my favorite places to shop discounted designer perfumes because they have such a variety both in store and online. I usually find some nice gems in these stores, significantly marked down from it’s full retail price. You’ll also find some good markdowns on fragrance gift sets that include the perfume, body lotion or cream, and sometimes a travel size version.

I have also picked up some nice selections from TjMaxx, Marshalls, and Saks Off 5th. They have a vast selection of celebrity and designer body mist sprays and perfumes. Macy’s now has a discounted section called Macy’s Backstage which carries some of the same options. 

You can also check out websites that sell designer and luxury perfumes at discounted prices. Some of my favorites to shop are FragranceNet, Rebl Scents, and definitely eBay.

Purchase Travel Sizes/Roller Balls

Who isn’t a fan of a good travel size perfume? While they’re ideal and convenient for on the go, these are excellent options for those who want the designer scent without the designer price tag! Obviously great for travel and keeping on hand in your purse or tote, you can refresh through the day whenever needed. Using a roller ball also makes it much easier to use just as much or as little as you’d like in the exact areas you want. I always suggest the “pulse points” such as the neck/collarbone area, wrists, below the ears and behind the knees. Here’s selection of a few personal favorites below:

•  YSL Mon Paris
• Valentino Voce Viva
• Chloe Eau De Parfum
• Coach New York

 

Similar to the premise of utilizing a subscription program, I have a strategy for using these smaller versions. Using travel size allows me time to really warm up to the fragrance and see how compatible it is with my body chemistry. When spraying in the store, sometimes we can get excited by our initial impression and purchase a full bottle, only to realize after a few uses it’s not as great as we thought.

Perhaps you end up not using it as frequently as you planned, or the scent creates an unpleasant result on the skin as the day goes on, or the lasting power is underwhelming. You can avoid this hassle by opting to purchase a travel size perfume to rollerball perfume in the scent you really like. This way you give yourself time to get to know how the scent does on you to see if it’s worth committing to the full size.

Notice how many times you reach for it, compare the tubes to notice how much you have (or have not) been using. In my opinion, it’s a bit easier, convenient, and saves some money in the long run to use a travel size or roller ball as a starter.  

 

Niche Perfume Sampler Sites

 

While those niche fragrance houses offer a wonderful selection of luxurious and lovely scents, $100+ per bottle can be quite a steep price point for the average person. Fortunately there is a way around this: perfume sample sites! While no, these are not “free” testers you get in your typical Sephora and Nordstrom packages, it’s worth it to have the option of choosing the exact brand and size sample you want. 

Here’s a list of sites you can find authentic samples of luxury niche fragrances:

• Luckyscent
• Rebl Scents

 

Using Store Points/Rewards 

 

While I specifically think of Ulta typing this, it can apply to just about anywhere these days! So many department stores offer their customers loyalty rewards programs so shoppers have an incentive to keep shopping at their stores. Ulta, for example, has their Ultamate Rewards program, where members can earn points per dollar amount that can be redeemed for cash discounts on future purchases. For example, 100 points = $3 off a future purchase. 

There are 3 tiers, and the one that you fall under is determined by how much you have spent with them within a specific period of time, like a year. The more you have spent, the more points and perks you’ll receive, e.g. $20 off a future purchase, free shipping on all orders, etc. Let’s say you’re in the Diamond tier, and you earn 2 points for every dollar spent. If you spend $100, you’ll earn 200 points by shopping at Ulta and your next reward is $8, which can be applied to another item or bundle of items you’re planning to buy.

You can also take advantage of their multiple points pomotions that they frequently host throughout the month. For example they may host a sale that offers an incentive like 5x the points on perfume purchases. So instead of earning the usual 1 point per dollar, you’ll earn 5 points per dollar, which will put you closer much faster to more points that you can apply to anything in the store, including the luxury perfumes that they carry.. Well guess what? That $20 can then go towards a fragrance purchase, so you’ll end up saving a nice chunk of change on that otherwise $80 bottle of Chanel perfume. 

Nordstrom has a cash rewards program called the Nordy Club where you earn points for every dollar spent. These poits add up to a cash reward referred to as “Nordy Notes”. For every 1,000, you earn $10 Nordstrom Note, that you can apply to any of your purchases in-store and online. These points double if you’re using a Nordstrom credit or debit card. These rules also apply towards purchases made at Nordstrom Rack.

Now remember when I mentioned purchasing travel size perfumes? If you buy them where the store has a cash rewards incentive, like Ulta or Nordstrom, then you’ll rack up a good amount of points over time that you can later redeem for actual money off of your next shopping spree, like a full sized version of your favorite scent!

Sephora also has a cash incentive program where you can now redeem your purchase points for a discount on a new Sephora purchase! Their model is every 500 points equals a $10 cash reward. Unfortunately, you can only use one $10 reward at a time, and they cannot be combined with VIB sales codes. However, I think that if Sephora is one of your shopping preference, then an extra 10 bucks off doesn’t sound like a bad deal at all.

And speaking of sales…

Catch The Sales 

 

This one is pretty obvious but you wouldn’t believe how often people miss a good sale all because of an impulse purchase, or lack of self control. Challenge yourself to stick it out and wait for a good sale to come around to take advantage. There are some excellent sales that go on throughout the year that you should really take advantage of when you’re planning to buy an expensive high end perfume. 

Some sales that I feel are too big to miss include:

• Sephora VIB Sale (2x a year, during Spring and Fall seasons)
• Nordstrom Anniversary Sale (once a year, every August)
• Victoria’s Secret Semi-Annual Sale (2x a year, starts from Dec-Jan and June-July)
• Black Friday/Cyber Monday (Obvi)
• Bloomingdale’s Friends and Family Sale
• Macy’s One Day Sale

Beyond these larger, more specific sales, you can sign up to email newsletters to get an insider scoop on sales they may be hosting throughout the month. I’m an email subscriber to designer brands like Armani Beauty and YSL Beauty, and I have been notified of discounts like 40% and 50% off. That is HUGE especially considering how expensive their products go for at their standard retail value.

Luxury department stores like Bloomingdales and Neiman Marcus make it easy for you to get luxury for less, by offering a certain dollar amount off of big purchases. For example, let’s say a specific designer perfume you’d like is $250, and you’ve been saving up or just happen to have the amount ready. Now, Neiman Marcus sends you an email saying they’re offering $50 off every $250 purchase; If they have the item you want in stock, and is not excluded from the sale, that’s now a whole $50 you can keep in your wallet! I don’t know about you, but an extra $50 saved is a nice amount of pocket change!

 

We all love a good luxury item, and it feels even better when we can find ways to grab them at a great deal, treating ourselves for less! Saving money and savvy shopping surely can go hand in hand, and there’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to nice things and certainly can be done without breaking the bank!