Common Scents

Image via Delish

Has anyone else been slightly disturbed by the onslaught of room fragrances and fabric deodorizers that are being advertised all hours of the day and night?  There are the ones you plug in, scented candles, scented flameless candles, ones you set out, those you spray on your fabrics and shoes and clothes.  It's a little frightening.

Firstly, do you want to be breathing in those chemicals? I certainly don't. Secondly, do you want something that contains "oil" so close to circuitry and sucking up energy? Not me.  And, lastly, just clean your house, have a shower, bathe the pets, take out the trash, et voilà!  The odors will be gone.

Let me confess that I am not the world's best housekeeper. By far.  The kitchen and bath are always clean and sanitary. The living room and bedroom, however, tend to suffer a bit more neglect.  I live on a highly trafficked thoroughfare, and the amount of dust from that is disheartening. Not only that, the noise! I can never have the front door or living room windows open if I want to hear music, a film or a pleasant conversation. Cross ventilation is not something I often enjoy. I've come to terms with these things, but it's still not fun to walk into a stuffy home.

Here are some inexpensive suggestions for having a fresh and clean scented home:

• Vacuum - Now, this seems pretty obvious, but one needs to go deeper.  Vacuum behind things. Vacuum the upholstery, the blinds and/or curtains as well as the floors.  For me, it helps to vacuum my hardwood floors. No amount of sweeping or Swiffering can get all of it of that traffic dust. Believe me. I've been in tears from it. If your upholstery needs a bit of freshening up, sprinkle on some baking soda to absorb the odors, let it sit for 30 minutes (or longer...some even recommend overnight) and vacuum it off.

• Mop - Again, rather on the nose, but nothing makes a home feel fresher than clean floors.  Wood, tile, laminates, what have you. It will be a breath of fresh air.

• Air It Out - Considering it's still pretty chilly out there, this probably isn't high on the list.  But, if you want a fresh smelling home, you need to let the old air out and the new air in.  Even ten minutes can make a difference.

• Scrub - Counters, bathrooms, showers, toilets, sinks, baths -- scrub them down. With a natural, eco-friendly cleanser, of course.

• Take Out the Trash...Now - If you've made fish, chopped onions, peeled fruit, don't wait for it to fester in the can. Put the soon-to-be-offending scraps in a small bag and take it out to the garbage before you even set down to the meal. 

Now, some of us may need a little more help than that. Rent or purchase a steam cleaner to get into the fabrics and upholstery where the smellies like to hide. A regular cleaning is also good care for your furniture and carpeting. Your sofa may need a bit of help from a concoction of Borax, soapflakes and warm water.

If you have a smoker in the home, get said smoker to quit, or at least puff away outside.  If not, you might need to hide bowls of charcoal near the huma chimney to help absorb the stench, and the walls will need a regular washing.

The idea isn't to mask the odors, but to remove them altogether.  Once that has been accomplished, you may want to enjoy a scent that isn't of the cleaning variety.  Fresh flowers are a nice touch.  If you want something a little more lasting, try putting a few drops of your favorite essential oil onto a cotton ball and stashing that under the sofa, in your closet (lavender is known to ward off moths), or in your dresser drawers.

In the bathroom, leave a book of matches.  It takes care of, um, well, business, and the sulphur dissipates quicker than a spray fragrance and, um, well, business.  If you have a cat, the litter box needs to be tended to at least twice a day. Please. Thank you. Especially if it's sharing space in the bathroom.

If you want to have a fragrance for your home, I suggest natural oils, not synthetic fragrances. Reed diffusers are a nice touch, and subtly distribute fragrance, if the fragrance itself is subtle.  Consider that some of your guests might be sensitive to strong scents. Less is more.

And, nothing smells more wonderful than something homemade, be it fresh coffee, a favorite meal, or a batch of cookies. That's always a wonderful way to greet guests.  They'll always think your home smells divine.