Our home is our palace. There are so many ways we can improve our home from making it cosier to bring our own personal touch to the space… but there is one thing many of us don’t often think about; smell.
There is nothing better than a fresh smelling home, and if you are looking for a way to make your house smell incredible this year we have some helpful tips for you.
1. Use essential oils in your purifier
Most of us at home have either an air purifier or a dehumidifier, and both of these items perform a similar job in the form of taking dust and debris out of the air and pumping out fresh air for us to breathe. To elevate your home and add some fresh scents to the whole space, you can add a few drops of your favourite essential oils to the air filter and allow this to be spread around the house.
2. Boil herbs
There are so many amazing ways to make the house smell amazing in a natural way and one of the most popular is to fill a pan with boiling water and simmer a mixture of herbs and spices in the pan for 30 minutes or so. You can generate a mix of herbs such as rosemary and thyme, and even spices such as cloves and cinnamon. Depending on the time of year you can create a fresh herby smelling home or a warm spice filled one in no time at all.
3. Light candles
Candles are the ultimate way to make a home feel cosy in minutes and there are so many amazing scented candles to choose from for your home. You can lie back in your comfy bean bag couch with the tv on and smell the fresh scent of things like vanilla, raspberries, and even birthday cake.
4. Clean with baking soda
One of the biggest sources of a musty smell in your house is the carpet. Your carpets get a lot of foot fall throughout the week and it is important for you to clean them regularly to stop them becoming musty and smelly. To clean the carpets effectively you can use baking soda which will effectively pick up the bad smells of the carpet and allow you to wash it away. Sprinkle baking soda on the carpets and leave for 30 minutes before vacuuming up and your carpets will smell good as new.
5. Freshen with a spritz
Did you know you don’t have to go out and buy a loaf of air fresheners for your house? You can make them yourself easily and they will be much more effective and personal to your tastes. To make a simple air freshener at home you need a spray bottle, water, alcohol, and essential oils. You can even use lemon zest to give the spray a fresh punch.
6. Cook oranges and vanilla
If you have ever used orange slices to decorate your home during the winter you will already know how amazing it makes the house smell. If not, you can slow cook orange slices in the oven for a couple of hours to make the whole house smell fresh and fruity. If you would prefer a sweet and creamy scent, vanilla is ideal and it will be a wonderful scent to fill the house with. You can either bake vanilla pods slowly in the oven or use a few tablespoons of extract and boil this in a pan.
7. Hang an air freshener on the radiator
Most of us have those little car air fresheners that can make the car smell fresh for weeks. But why not bring one of these into the home? Air fresheners like these can be super effective and you can hang one or two of these next to the radiator so that when the heating is on the smell will spread all the way through the house. It will make a massive difference and your home will smell like new car.
8. Get cleaning
One easy way to make the house immediately smell beautiful is to clean the house thoroughly. You can get cleaning with bleach that has a lemon scent or even use lemon itself to clean the home in a more natural way. Whatever you choose, cleaning the house and your kitchen worktops will make the house smell clean and fresh.
9. Drop essential oils in the bin
If you have a fairly modern bin, there may be a small compartment at the top that allows you to fill a sponge with essential oil and place it inside. If not, simply get some cotton wool and add essential oils and drop this into the bottom of the bin. It will make a huge difference!
10. Make coffee
If your house is smelling a little stale and you want to make a quick change, one of the easiest things you can do is brew up. Coffee beans smell amazing and they will give the whole house a lovely fresh aroma within minutes.
11. Display a bunch of flowers
We all know that having plants in the house is a good way to keep the home ventilated and to make it feel fresh. But one of the easiest ways to make the house smell like spring in minutes is to bring a bouquet of flowers into the home. You can bring some seasonal flowers into the home for a lovely bright feel, and choose flowers such as lilies to make the whole house smell beautiful and floral. There are loads of fragrant flowers to choose from so take a look and see what you fancy.
12. Make a diffuser
You can make a simple reed diffuser by getting yourself a glass jar, some skewers, and a mixture of alcohol and essential oils. Mix and match a few different essential oil scents to make something that is fun and unique to your home. It will last for a few weeks with any luck and it will easily make the home smell great.
13. Get baking
If you want to make your whole house smell like rich chocolate, the best thing you can do is bake an indulgent cake. Chocolate cake is the most amazing dessert and sweet treat, and you’ll be able to not only make your home smell great but also enjoy a tasty dessert too! It’s a win win!
14. Eradicate smelly shoes
One of the things that can easily happen in a house with lots of people is the spread of smelly shoes. A lot of shows cannot be washed by normal means so it can often be difficult knowing how to deal with the smell. However we have 2 different simple solutions to deodorise your shoes and make sure they smell super fresh.
The first one is to add some tea bags inside the shoes and leave them overnight. Teabags will absorb moisture as well as odour from the shoes and leave them fresh.
The other method is to sprinkle baking soda on the shoes and leave them for 30 minutes before using a small vacuum to clean it up. This is the same principle as the carpet and can be super effective, and you can finish it off with a few drops of essential oil for fresh feet.
Hopefully you will be able to use all of these amazing methods to make your home smell fresh and clean all year long and prevent it from ever smelling musty or stale.
Got Something to Add?
Share your tips with us in the comments section below.
Until next time, thanks for reading.
Helen, Nial and Lewis.
Welcome to Pikalily, an award-winning food, travel and lifestyle blog. We are Nial and Helen, a happily married couple from Northern Ireland, who share a passion for food and travel among many things. We became parents to our beautiful boy Lewis in 2017. Follow our adventures through the blog.
