Jo Malone Candles

With autumn's arrival (the first day of autumn was last week...eek!), I often find that, as well as the obvious changes to my wardrobe, I begin adjusting my candle scents at home. It's fair to say that I'm a bit of a candle obsessive; they soften any room and the scents they emit create the mood and tone of your home.

Although the sun is still making an appearance, there is a definite chill in the air when it hides behind the clouds and we've been predicted a bracing winter, so I thought it was time to try out a few befitting scents from one of my favourite brands: Jo Malone.

The first scent is the luxurious Velvet Rose & Oud which, like all good quality candles, has a clever mix of top, middle and base notes. In layman's terms, the top note is the first you will smell and gives way to the middle notes which are usually really comforting, before eventually the intensely relaxing base notes kick in. With the Velvet Rose & Oud, the notes are a gorgeous combination of clove, damask rose and oud giving it an spicy opulence, yet a soft honey at its heart.

The second, and my favourite, is Dark Amber & Ginger Lily. I love the combination of the three distinctive scents, but it's the addition of black cardamon that really perfects it for me.

The final of the three, is Oud & Bergamot. It's much more subtle than I expected, but I really like citrus orange scent and woody oud.

The three most luxurious candles of the home collection, they also break away in their distinctive black glass and, although they are pricier than the rest at £50, I am sold! I'll be adding the Dark Amber & Ginger Lily to my Christmas list!