I just purchased five small bottles of Jo Malone fragrance to try different options, the gift set included Lime Basil & Mandarin, English Pear & Freesia, Honeysuckle & Davana, Peony & Blush Suede, and Pomegranate Noir. Made in the United Kingdom, these long-lasting scents cost me around £100. 9ml bottles work out about £20 each which is a great way sample different scents, and layer one on top of another.

My favourites of the 5 are the new one English Pear and Freesia, a floral fruity scent, which is distinctive of the sweet fruit and fresh spring flowers reminiscent of Sweet Peas too.

When I purchased I also asked about the Tom Hardy fragrance Cypress and Grapevine as a potential present for my boyfriend.

It’s very expensive £164 for 100ml. It’s a big bottle if he doesn’t like it and I don’t want to make a mistake.

The staff in store understood completely and were happy to provide me with two or three sample of the men’s fragrance for my boyfriend to try.

I loved purchasing the 5 bottles. Some people might be worried about only liking one or two of the options, and of course personal preferences are always going to emerge. But whilst the different scents are distinctly different you can tell they all belong to the same family. And actually I can appreciate them all for different reasons.

The ladies fragrances are a bit cheaper £88.00 for 50ml and £125 for 100ml so not a casual weekend purchase for me, more like a big present for Christmas or a Birthday.

Jo Malone began as an independent london perfumer that grew in popularity because of its long lasting natural oil based scents.

For me the quality and enduring fragrances have gone a bit downhill since the brand was purchased by giant Estée Lauder.

I think that would be expected but for me Jo Malone is still better quality than department store brands.

The simple packaging adds to the gift appeal for me. Stylish with silky black ribbon.

Go into the shop or a concession, I like the old fashioned apothecary feel and you can browse and sample to your hearts content before settling on your favourite.

And if you just can’t decide do what I did I purchase a collection to begin with, much better than testers, you get enough per 9ml bottle to really mix and match and decide which works best for you.

The Lime, Mandarin and Basil isn’t necessarily my first choice for going out but I absolutely love the freshness of it at the gym and find it totally invigorating during my work out. Weird I know but that’s just me.