How to Make Sure Your Home Smells Good Without Toxic Chemicals
We all want our homes to smell good and welcoming and those manufacturers of artificial fragrances take advantage of that wish by promoting air fresheners and diffusers that are full of chemicals.
So how can we take the more natural route to ensure a sweet smelling home?
1. Scented drawer liners
One idea is to line your drawers with scented liners to release a subtle aroma into the home every time you open a drawer. You can also use them in your linen closet to make sure bedding and towels smell pleasant too.
Look for scented drawer liners made of sheets of paper or fabric that have been infused with a natural scent - ranging from floral and herbal to fruity and fresh. Another idea is to spray or wipe drawers with a combination of essential oils and water. Lavender essential oil is an excellent choice as it also acts as a natural moth repellent.
2. Infuse upholstery with scents
Another idea is to infuse upholstery and more with subtle scents. Mixing a few drops of essential oils like lavender, citrus or eucalyptus with water in a spray bottle and lightly misting your living areas, upholstery or linens can instantly uplift the ambiance.
Natural and subtle scents will be more comforting and less likely to cause allergies or sensitivities in those who live in the home as well as your guests than stronger and often overpowering chemical fragrances.
3. Use scented furniture polish
When you have wooden furniture it can act as a blank canvas when you infuse it with pleasant smells to affect and lift the whole room.
You can eliminate any musty odors by wiping the furniture down with an equal mix of water and vinegar. After letting it air dry, you can use scented furniture polish. Always choose high-quality, non-toxic polishes infused with pleasant fragrances. Beeswax is a great suggestion. By regularly treating your wooden furniture, you can ensure your living space always smells inviting.
4. Decorate with scented wallpaper and paint
You might not know that you even make your house smell nice from wall to wall and long-term by using scented wallpaper and paint. This is certainly a new one for me. An example is lavender-infused paint that not only emits a calming scent but also has the added benefit of being a stress reliever. There are also scented wallpapers available. Look for those a natural floral or herbal scent.
5. Loving green indoor plants
Suggestions include having a herb garden in the kitchen or living room to release fragrances into the air, creating a sensory experience for everyone who enters your home. But make sure to look after them.
6. Make your own potpourri sachets
These are another suggestion for using in drawers and closets to make them smell good. They can be made with dried flowers, herbs and spices to add fragrance, placed in drawers, closets or around the home for a natural scent boost, gently releasing their fragrance every time a drawer or door is opened. Suggested scents are rosemary, cedarwood, mint and lavender. For example, fill small cloth bags with dried lavender buds grown in your garden.
7. Baking soda to freshen up your carpets
Baking soda is a natural deodorizer capable of absorbing and eliminating odors without adding any scent. If you add a few a few drops of essential oil before sprinkling onto your carpets, it can sit and when you then vacuum it up, you will have fresh-smelling carpets. Borax is another natural cleaner.
8. Remove bad smells from your garbage disposal
If your garbage disposal is a source of some unpleasant odors, the easiest way to clean it is to make frozen disposal cleaning cubes using white vinegar and lemon or orange peels. Just toss a couple of cubes down your sink drain, grind them up in your disposal, and it’ll make a huge difference.
9. Keeping pet smells at bay
Make sure to wash their bedding and toys regularly while vacuuming regularly to keep pet hair under control. Of course any pet stains need to be cleaned up quickly and then sprinkle baking soda over the area. Remember that pets can be especially affected by the toxic chemicals in air fresheners.
And finally, to make the whole house smell good...
10. Run a diffuser
When it comes to fragrance and freshness, it’s hard to beat the results of an essential oil diffuser! Simply fill it with water, add a few drops of essential oil and turn it on to emit a fine mist that will carry the fragrant oils throughout your house.
SOURCES:
https://deye.com/the-most-
Written by Jane Chitty
Jane writes for Healing Natural Oils, a producer and retailer of high-quality, all-natural treatments for a variety of conditions as well as a range of beauty products. Apart from writing about those various conditions, she also covers general health, environmental and other subjects of interest. She has lived in Kenya as well as Cape Town, South Africa and spent time in San Diego, USA. She now lives in Somerset, England with regular visits from her far-flung children and grandchildren. She is a keen gardener and enjoys growing fresh fruit and vegetables with her husband on their joint allotment. As a result, there is something available to use in the kitchen virtually all year round. Her regular posts can be found on our blog.