Thinking Valentine’s Day Gifts: Jo Malone’s Cologne Collection

I’m in love with this Miniature Cologne Collection that my husband offered me for Christmas. And, with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I thought that this would be a great gift idea for some of the more treasured women in your life. Or you might need to bookmark this for Mother’s Day too.

Jo Malone is now a well known British perfume and fragrance savant. Her fragrance related products are sold in her boutiques around to world as well as in high end retail stores. But her beginnings were modest. She followed in her mother’s footsteps and became a facialist (what we would call an aesthetician on this side of the pond) out of her apartment in London, England. Her style emphasized massage and various aromatic topical ointments.  She began mixing bath oils for clients in her kitchen and soon couldn’t meet demand from her apartment and so she opened first eponymous store in 1994 in London. It is through a partnership with Estée Lauder in 1999 that she was able to scale up and offer her magical fragrances on an international level. Love stories like that!

In her own words, Jo Malone wants to “challenge convention and educate on the way that fragrance enhances our everyday lives”. Indeed, her approach on fragrance transcends tradition as many of her core fragrances are based on simple notes that are entirely refreshing or that become complex and mysterious when layered with others.

I am not particularly a big perfume fan. I find many fragrances overwhelming and often times, offending. However, Jo Malone’s fragrances seem to so purely and respectfully emanate from the best scents in nature’s realm, that they can only offer pure delight. I love playing with the 6 miniature (9ml) bottles that come in the collection. These include Jo Malone classics: Amber & Lavender, Grapefruit, Lime Basil & Mandarin (one of her first successes and still a top seller), Pomegranate Noir, Red Roses and Orange Blossom. Each fragrance can be worn alone or be layered, following the trademarked Jo Malone art of fragrance combining™ practice. The collection comes with a little layering guide for “fresh” or “warm” combinations. But one hardly needs a guide as I don’t think that it’s possible to mess up combinations. Anyhoo, you know that you will certainly not be smelling like anyone else in the room.

All Jo Malone items are gift ready and come in beautiful packaging. As one of their taglines proclaims “the sensorial journey begins”. Oh, I need to tell hubby that I want to try the new Sweet Lime & Cedar cologne. Niaaammmm.