Make potpourri.
Scent your home with a blend of spices, dried ingredients, and oils. You can buy potpourri at many home decor and craft stores—or you can make your own! Making your own is easy and cheap, and it’s the best way to ensure you avoid potential toxins commonly used in commercial scent products. Gather flower petals, leaves, pinecones, and other plants and lay them out to dry for a few days to a few weeks. You can forage for items yourself, or purchase them. Regardless, Thakur advises using ingredients that are organic and pesticide-free. Add spices like nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon sticks, or whole cloves, and/or essential oils, like lavender, lemon, or vanilla, as desired. Mix all your ingredients in a stylish bowl and display it in your house.
Make your own reed diffuser oil.
Essential oil diffusions are simple and effective odor-eliminators. Plus, they're easy to make yourself at home! Thakur swears by reed diffusers: they're "the best way to keep your home smelling clean and fresh without the use of possibly harmful chemicals." Mix ⁄4 c (59 mL) of a carrier oil (Thakur recommends grapeseed, safflower, or sweet almond) in a small bowl with 2–3 US tbsp (30–44 mL) of rubbing alcohol. Add 15-20 drops of your favorite essential oil, and then transfer the mixture to a narrow-necked bottle, to minimize evaporation. Add 2 or 3 diffuser reeds, and let your scent creation spread throughout the house!
Simmer pot infusions.
Simmer pots are eco-friendly, easy, and cheap. Simmer pots are just what they sound like: pots of simmering water, with scented items added to create a fragrant aroma. It’s like a scented candle, only much quicker and easier! Just fill a pot with water and let it simmer on the stove. Then, add your ingredients—popular ingredients include citrus peels, fragrant flowers (like lavender or rose), and fragrant herbs (like rosemary or thyme). Consider adding spices like cinnamon or nutmeg or essential oils. Let the pot simmer for a few hours, being sure to check on it every half-hour or so. And avoid drinking it, no matter how strong the temptation!
Absorb smells with baking soda.
Baking soda will help fight funky or musty odors. Just leave an open box of baking soda in your fridge to eliminate fridge smells, or sprinkle baking soda on your carpets and rugs before vacuuming to get odors out. Let the baking soda sit for about 24 hours, or overnight. You can also pour baking soda into small bowls and leave them around the house for a few days to absorb odors.
Mix your own natural room freshener.
Blend vodka, water, and essential oils for an easy air freshener. Mix 3 fl oz (89 mL) of distilled water in a spray bottle with 1 fl oz (30 mL) of unflavored vodka and 20 or 30 drops of essential oils, then shake the mixture to blend it well. Spritz it around the house to freshen up your space. Lemon, tea tree, lavender, and peppermint oils are particularly astringent and good for cleaning. Thakur recommends frankincense oil because it "induce[s] relaxation, peace, harmony, and meditation.... It can be used as a calm air spray in the bedroom to assist with sleep."
Scent your home with candles.
Scented candles can really liven up a space. You can purchase scented candles at most home goods stores, but if you want to keep things cheap and avoid potentially toxic chemicals sometimes present in commercial candles, make your own using wax and essential oils. Melt your wax of choice over medium heat. Once melted, add as many drops as desired of your preferred essential oils to scent the wax. If you want to be really eco-friendly, use beeswax or soy wax—they’re compostable! Take a piece of twine or cotton string and soak it in your wax to make your wick. Tie or wrap one end of the wick around a pencil, and place the pencil over your container of choice, letting the wick dangle into the container below. A teacup or glass jar make great candle holders! You can also reuse an old candle container. Pour your scented wax into the container and wait for it to dry. Once dry, cut the wick as needed so that it extends about a quarter-inch above the candle surface.
Clean your garbage disposal.
Old food could be making your kitchen sink a little stenchy. If there’s an odor coming from your kitchen stink—uh, sink, you might need to clean your garbage disposal (or your drain, if you don’t have a disposal). Squeeze some lemon juice mixed and/or white vinegar—natural deodorizers—into the drain or disposal to cut through old food and eliminate smells.
Take out the trash.
It seems obvious, and yet sometimes it’s the culprit behind a stench. Even if you take out the garbage regularly, your trash can itself might be clinging to some foul odors that are easily eliminated with a little soap and water. In between bags, scrub your trash cans with dish soap and water and then wipe them down (or let them air dry) before putting in a new bag. If you don’t already, make a habit of taking out particularly foul-smelling trash (like expired food, pet waste, cheese, fish, etc.) immediately rather than letting it sit in the trash can overnight.
Wash your shoes.
Smelly shoes can equal a smelly home! If you’ve been exercising or got your shoes soiled, or if it’s just been a long time since they’ve been cleaned, your shoes could be emanating a powerful stinky-foot odor. It might be time to wash them! Throw your sneakers in the wash on a gentle cycle with regular laundry detergent, then let them air-dry. You can also speed up the drying process by using a hair dryer on them. If you’re concerned your shoes won’t hold up to washing, hand-wash them in the tub with gentle laundry detergent and then let them air-dry. If you don’t want to wash your shoes, put them outside and let the air freshen them up a bit.
Bake something fragrant.
Chocolate chip cookies are our go-to. If you’re looking for powerful comforting smells in a jiffy, baking or cooking a tasty meal is a simple and delicious way to do it. Plus, of you’re expecting guests, the fragrance of whatever you’re about to serve them is a wonderful way to welcome them to your home! Pies, cakes, cookies, and other sweet treats will give your house a warm, sugary fragrance. Chicken soup, lasagna, or roast beef will fill your home with a delicious savory scent.
Fight odors with apple cider vinegar.
Make your own natural apple cider air freshener. Apple cider vinegar is a mighty warrior when it comes to eliminating odors. Mix it in a spray bottle with water at a 1-to-1 ratio and spritz it around your home to help neutralize foul smells. You can also simmer apple cider vinegar on the stove and let the apple cidery aroma emanate throughout your kitchen. Just simmer the cider and water at about a 1-to-1 ratio.
Open the windows.
A simple way to remove funky or musty odors is to let in fresh air. On a nice day when you’re home, throw the windows and doors open to invite a natural breeze into your house. Open the doors inside the house, too, to ensure the air circulates throughout the house. Speed up the refreshing process by turning on ceiling fans and placing a box fan in the window.
Run an air purifier.
A HEPA air filter can help clean your air and minimize odors. While opening the doors and windows is the easiest and most efficient way to clean the air in your house, running an air filter can go a long way, especially in rooms with little or no ventilation. Try to get a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter, as these will eliminate air particulates without emitting ozone.
Vacuum and mop regularly.
Keep your floors clean to avoid odors. Baking soda may help eliminate floor odors—but cleaning the floors regularly will also keep smells to a minimum. Try to vacuum and mop the floors at least once a week. If possible, try to use a vacuum with a HEPA filter.
Wash your curtains.
They can harbor more odors than you might expect. It’s easy to forget about your curtains since they sort of blend into the wall, but smells can really cling to them! That’s why it’s so important to wash them once in a while—at least every year.
Change your bed linens.
Dirty bedding can leave your room smelling musty. Bedsheets and blankets can accumulate lots of things that don’t smell so great after a while, from sweat to dirt to body fluids and oils to dust to mites to makeup. Wash your sheets, blankets, and pillow cases at least every two weeks to keep them looking, feeling, and smelling fresh. If you’re prone to sweating or if your pet sleeps in bed with you, you may need to wash them more often.
Clean your vents.
Cleaning your vents may help purify your air. If your air vents are clogged with dust and dirt, or if you suspect there’s mold in there, cleaning them (or having them cleaned) will not only help fresh air pass through your house more efficiently; it may also prevent you from breathing in harmful toxins and mold.
Comments
0 comment