Nest New York Eau de Parfum Discovery Set Review: a low‑risk way to find your next daily scent

I’ve been using the Nest New York Eau de Parfum Discovery Set for about a week, rotating through the seven rollerballs every day. I’m not a perfume expert, I just like smelling clean and not like a department store tester strip. I mainly wanted this to figure out which Nest scent is worth buying in a full bottle without dropping a lot of cash. On paper it looked like a decent deal: seven 3 ml rollerballs, mostly floral, all eau de parfum, rated around 4.5/5 on Amazon.

In practice, the set does what it says. You get: Lychee Rose, Golden Nectar, Indigo, Wisteria Blue, Sunkissed Hibiscus, Black Tulip and Wild Poppy. Everything leans floral or fruity with a slightly sweet side. No heavy old-school powder scent, no intense oud, nothing super dark. If you hate florals, this is not for you, but if you like light to medium perfumes with a bit of personality, it’s in the right zone.

What stood out to me first was the strength and duration. Nest calls these eau de parfum and I’d say that’s fair. On my skin they last around 3–5 hours before fading into a skin scent. I usually reapply once if I’m going out in the evening. They’re noticeable but not the kind of scents that fill a room or choke people in an elevator. For work or day-to-day errands, they feel safe.

Overall first impression: pretty solid discovery kit if you’re curious about Nest or just want a week of trying different florals without committing to a big bottle. It’s not cheap for the amount of liquid you get, but it’s still less than buying even one full-size bottle you might end up hating. Just keep in mind: this is very floral and somewhat sweet across the board. If you prefer super clean, woody, or very unisex scents, you might only like one or two in here.

Value is where opinions will differ. You’re basically paying for variety and testing rather than a big quantity of perfume. Seven 3 ml rollerballs gives you enough to really live with each scent for several days, not just one spray on a paper strip. For me, that’s the main point: avoid buying a full 50–100 ml bottle of something that ends up sitting unused on a shelf. In that sense, the set does its job and can save you money long term.

If you break it down per milliliter, this kit is more expensive than a full-size bottle of most mainstream perfumes. But that’s always how discovery sets work: you pay extra for small sizes and variety. Compared to some other brand discovery kits I’ve seen, the price feels mid-range. You’re not getting a bargain, but you’re also not being ripped off, especially since these are eau de parfum and not weak body sprays.

Where it becomes worth it is if you actually use it to choose a signature scent. After a week, I realized Indigo and Wild Poppy were the ones I kept reaching for. Now, if I buy a full-size bottle, I’ll do it knowing it works on my skin and fits my daily life. Without this set, I probably would have guessed wrong based on notes and bought Golden Nectar or Lychee Rose first, then regretted it a bit because they’re nice, but not "full bottle" nice for me.

If you already know you love one specific Nest scent, you’re better off going straight for the full bottle. But if you’re new to the brand, like florals, and want to test a few different moods (daytime, evening, vacation, office), this discovery set is pretty solid value for money. Not a steal, not overpriced, just reasonable for what it offers: low-risk testing, travel-sized bottles, and enough variety to keep things interesting for a while.

The design is simple and functional. Each perfume comes in a slim glass tube with a rollerball top and a small screw cap. The labels are printed directly on the glass with the scent name and brand, which I prefer over stickers that peel off after a few days rolling around in a bag. They’re small enough to throw in a pocket or tiny handbag without any issue. I took two of them in a backpack for a full day and had no leaks or broken caps.

The rollerballs themselves are decent. The ball rolls smoothly and doesn’t scratch the skin, which sounds basic, but I’ve had cheap sets where the ball sticks or dumps way too much liquid at once. Here it’s more controlled. I usually swipe it on wrists, behind ears, and collarbone, and that’s enough. You’ll need a few passes if you want stronger projection, but for me that’s a plus because you can choose light or a bit heavier.

On the downside, the tubes are all very similar visually. If you’re in a rush in the morning, you do have to read the label; you can’t just grab by color or cap shape because they all more or less look the same. Also, the caps are small and easy to drop. More than once I ended up chasing a cap under the sink because it slipped out of my fingers. Not a deal-breaker, but slightly annoying for daily use.

Overall, the design is practical travel-friendly stuff, not luxury shelf decoration. It does the job: compact, no leaks, easy to toss in a bag. If you want something that looks fancy on a vanity, this isn’t it. If you want something you can throw in your work bag and reapply after lunch, it works just fine. Personally, I’d prefer a small spray over rollerball, but given the price and the fact this is a sampler, I can live with it.

This is the part that actually matters. Overall, every scent in the set leans floral with some sweetness, and most of them feel pretty wearable. I’ll break down how they came across on my skin, keeping in mind this will vary by person.

Lychee Rose: Very girly and bright. On me it opens with a juicy fruit smell (lychee/raspberry vibe) then settles into a clear rose. It smells nice and clean, not heavy. I’d use this for daytime or casual stuff. If you hate rose, you won’t like it, but if you’re okay with a slightly sweet floral, it’s easy to wear.

Golden Nectar: This one is warmer and a bit sweeter. You can definitely pick up the vanilla and amber. It’s still not sickly, but it’s the most "dessert-like" of the bunch. I liked it more in the evening than during hot days. On my skin it stayed closer and felt a bit cozy without being too loud.

Indigo: Probably the most "unisex" in the set. Less obviously floral, more tea/fig/wood. It starts a bit fresh with citrus, then gets slightly deeper. If you usually avoid floral perfumes and want something with a bit more character, this is the one you might like. This is one of my favorites from the kit because it doesn’t scream perfume; it just smells like you’re put together.

Wisteria Blue: Straightforward light floral. It comes across as watery and fresh, like a soft shampoo or body spray but with better quality. Good for office or if you don’t want to smell like you’re wearing "perfume" but still want something. Not very original, but pleasant.

Sunkissed Hibiscus: This is the "vacation" scent. You get white flowers, a bit of coconut, and a warm base. If you like beachy scents but don’t want to smell like pure sunscreen, this is a solid middle ground. On a hot day, it worked well and didn’t turn too heavy on me, which I appreciated.

Black Tulip: Slightly darker, fruitier, and more evening-appropriate than the others. Still wearable in the day, but there’s a berry note and a bit of depth that makes it feel more like a date-night option. Not super intense, just a bit moodier than Lychee Rose or Wild Poppy.

Wild Poppy: Bright, fruity-floral. Think juicy and cheerful. Good everyday scent if you like that style. It’s very easy to wear, not too complex, but it smells pleasant and gets casual compliments. Among friends, this was the one most people liked right away.

The packaging is clearly designed with gifting in mind. The outer box has floral art and displays the seven rollerballs in a neat row. It looks clean and presentable, the kind of thing you can hand over as a birthday or holiday present without feeling cheap. The cardboard insert holds everything securely, and during shipping nothing was loose or broken, which is already better than some lower-budget sets I’ve bought that arrived with vials rattling around.

That said, it’s still just cardboard and small glass tubes. Don’t expect heavy magnetic lids or fancy foam inlays. Once you take the rollerballs out a few times, the insert starts to look a bit worn, and I wouldn’t rely on the original box as long-term storage if you’re constantly pulling them in and out. I ended up keeping three of my favorites in a small pouch and leaving the others in the box as backups.

In terms of practicality, the small size is both a strength and a weakness. Strength because it’s travel-friendly: you can easily throw two or three in a toiletries bag, and they take up almost no space. Weakness because they’re easy to lose in a bigger bag, and if you drop one on a tile floor, you’ll probably break it. The glass doesn’t feel super thick, so I wouldn’t toss them around carelessly.

If you care a lot about having a visually impressive perfume collection on a shelf, this set is fine but not really "display" material. It’s more about function: try the scents, pick a favorite, maybe carry one with you. For the price point and the fact it’s a discovery kit, I think the packaging is good enough, but it’s not going to wow anyone who’s used to high-end niche brands with heavy, decorative bottles.

Performance-wise, this set is better than a typical body mist, but not as strong as some heavier eau de parfums. On my skin (normal to slightly dry), most of the scents last around 4 hours before they start sitting very close to the skin. Nest actually lists the scent duration as 4 hours, and that matches my experience pretty closely. After that, you still get faint traces, but nothing anyone else will really notice unless they’re very close.

In terms of projection, these are office-safe. For the first hour or two, people near you will smell it, but you’re not going to fill a room. I wore Golden Nectar and Wild Poppy to work, and I got a couple of "you smell nice" comments, but nobody complained about it being too strong. For me, that’s ideal. If you want beast-mode perfume that lasts 10+ hours and leaves a trail behind you, this is not that kind of product.

Application-wise, the rollerball format means you control the strength by how much you apply. A light swipe on each wrist and neck gives a soft scent. If I do two or three passes per spot, it’s clearly noticeable for the first two hours, then settles down. Reapplying once in the afternoon brings it back without feeling heavy. I did notice that the warmer, sweeter scents like Golden Nectar and Black Tulip hang around on clothes a bit longer than the fresher ones like Wisteria Blue.

Compared to some other mid-priced perfumes I own (like typical designer brands), Nest sits in the middle. Not weak like some overpriced mists, but not super long-lasting either. I’d call the performance good enough for daily use, especially considering these are mostly light florals. Just don’t expect all-day coverage from a morning application. If you’re okay tossing one rollerball in your bag and reapplying once, you’ll be fine with how these perform.

Inside the box you get seven 3 ml rollerballs, so about 21 ml total, even though the listing talks about roughly 1 fl oz / 29.5 ml. Realistically, each tiny bottle is good for several weeks of regular use because you don’t need much. The scents included in my set: Lychee Rose, Golden Nectar, Indigo, Wisteria Blue, Sunkissed Hibiscus, Black Tulip and Wild Poppy. Everything is in English on the packaging, and each vial is clearly labeled so you don’t mix them up.

The outer box looks like a typical mid-range gift set: floral graphics, simple cardboard insert that holds the rollerballs. It’s not luxury-level, but it doesn’t feel cheap either. If you’re giving this as a gift, you don’t really need extra wrapping aside from maybe a bag. Nothing rattled around in shipping, and none of the rollerballs leaked, which is already better than some cheaper discovery kits I’ve tried from random brands.

What I liked is that the set covers different moods within the same overall floral style. For example:

• Lychee Rose and Wild Poppy feel more bright and daytime.
• Golden Nectar and Black Tulip lean slightly warmer and more evening.
• Indigo, Wisteria Blue, and Sunkissed Hibiscus sit somewhere in the middle with a bit of freshness.

So you don’t just get seven copies of the same smell. That said, they’re all still pretty “safe” perfumes. If you’re someone who likes weird, niche scents, you’ll probably find this set a bit tame. But for someone like me who just wants something that smells nice and is office-friendly, the range is decent. The main thing to know is: this is a floral-heavy kit, and it’s clearly designed to help you pick a favorite Nest scent rather than to be your long-term full collection.