Using scents to change the atmosphere in your home
Of all the senses, the sense of smell can transport you to a time in your childhood, a place in the Pacific, a feeling of happiness or nostalgia. Aromas can definitely trigger powerful emotions and memories. You should use these perceptions to make your home more relaxing and welcoming, refreshing and healing, nurturing or seductive or whatever seems currently right.
The antiseptic smell of a household cleanser could remind you of the days you spent in the hospital when you were sick. A certain perfume reminds you of your favourite aunt. The smell of vanilla could remind you of the time you and your child baked cakes for charity. Through the sense of smell, you can bring back wonderful memories of childhood. You can bring back those cosy winter memories with pine needles and cinnamon. You can vanish the gloom of a rainy afternoon with the smell of freshly mowed grass. It is possible to have a happier and homier house by following your nose. Scent your house.
Scenting a Room
Banish thoughts of using air freshener and other strong chemicals to scent your home. It is best to turn your home into a naturally scented retreat of well-being and peace. Introduce the smell of freshly-cut flowers, spices, herbs, fragrant foods and essential homes. Flowers, pine cones, herbs and spices are nature's fragrances. If you are more into using scented candles then you can opt to use essential oils. You can buy a ceramic oil burner and add a few drops of your favourite essential oil.
Before buying essential oil or adding nature's scent in a room, you must know your preference. Do you prefer scents that are musky, floral, spicy, woody, herbal, earthy or sweet? Are you drawn to a particular essential oil? Do you have a favourite flower (s)? Do certain scents fill you with a sense of well-being?
- Perfume plants and fresh air - To improve air quality instantly, open windows and let fresh air in. You can plant fragrant flowers like roses, honeysuckle and lilacs by the window or at the front of your house. The wonderful scent of these flowers will greet you every time you open the main doors or the windows.
- Nature's way - Fill a decorative container or ornamental containers with potpourri. Make your own potpourri by gathering petals, fruit slices and your preferred pine cones, lemon wedges, berries and other grasses. Dry them then sprinkle on them your desired essential oil (s) then add some orrisroot. You might want a new set of potpourri for every changing season. For the summer, a suitable potpourri combination would be rose petals and lavender. A winter blend could be a mixture of herbs, rosemary, cloves and cinnamon.
- Candles and Essential oil -Lighting your home with scented candles with a drop or two of your favourite scents would make your home more relaxing and comfortable. Just take a few drops of the essential oil then place the oil in a diffuser lighted by a candle, or in an electric vaporizer. There are varied scented candles available in the market today. Essential oils and scented candles are offered in: lavender, pine, sage, chocolate, lemon, ocean breeze, apple, and more.
- Natural Cleaning Aids - Choose traditional cleaning materials. You can try beeswax for polishing. Try some vinegar and bicarbonate of soda for cleaning the kitchen. Add essential oils with antiseptic characteristics to water for cleaning - pine, tea-tree, lavender or thyme. Instead of using aerosol why not keep a non-aerosol mist spray filled with scented water to use for freshening up the room?
- Life's Aroma- Bake a cake or a loaf of bread. Brew a cup. Fill the table with food and wine that can fill the senses. Cook your family's favourite food. The aroma of familiar and favoured food will make you feel content because you know that they taste good and you associate them with good times.
What Scents to Use?
Every room has a scent so plan your perfumes as carefully as planning your room's colour. Pour your favourite scent into the bathtub and soak your stress away. Ask an aromatherapist what scents are relaxing and de-stressing. Fill the bathroom with potpourri of wild flowers, herbs and spices. Some prefer the antiseptic smell of lemon and pine. The idea is to use the scent that you want in your bath water.
The bedroom should be scented in such a way that would give you a good night's rest. Some of these scents are: lavender, chamomile, and marjoram. For your closets and linen cabinets, tuck in some rose petals, sweet-smelling herbs and lavender in sachets or sprigs of woodruff. You can also soak some pieces of paper in citrus oil and line drawers taking care not to stain the clothes. If you could, store some of your linens and clothes in boxes and chests made of aromatic woods like sandalwood, cedar or juniper.
For the living room, there is nothing that would beat the smell of an open fire in the winter. Throw in some pine cones and aromatic herbs like sage or rosemary. If it's the middle of summer, open your doors and windows and let the sunshine and fresh air in. You might want to light some scented candles or put in some drops of flowery essential oil in to a diffuser for spring and summer scents.
The kitchen and the dining rooms are naturally filled with various aromas. You can enhance their aromas by hanging fresh herbs in the kitchen or by bringing in potted herbs in the kitchen. Remember that plants with aromatic leaves can add to a room's overall atmosphere and comfort.
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