Top housekeeping tricks to freshen up your living space
Just take a couple of coffee beans and place them in the oven for seven to 10 minutes, then leave the oven door open afterwards for an energising, coffee house smell.
What you need to know:
- The way your home smells is indicative of how clean it is. The coziest homes smell amazing the second you walk into them.
- Even though you might think your home is cozy, you might be nose blind to the smells that have accumulated.
- No matter how many times you mop, scrub, and clean, the stenches of everyday life are inevitable.
Indoor fragrance is part of your home ambience that can make you feel good and even set the mood. Right?
The way your home smells is indicative of how clean it is. The coziest homes smell amazing the second you walk into them.
Even though you might think your home is cozy, you might be nose blind to the smells that have accumulated.
No matter how many times you mop, scrub, and clean, the stenches of everyday life are inevitable.
Scent events can be sudden—think a spritz of perfume or the discovery of last week's unemptied lunch box.
As long as you cook, play, and live, they will be there – right in your house.
However, sour and pungent smells can be indicative of a more serious home hygiene issue like unwanted moisture or germs. These offensive odours tend to develop over time.
Here is how you can get rid of the stench in your kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and living room once and for all.
An added bonus, most of the items to make your house smell good are probably already in your cabinets.
At your fireplace, throw a few lemon or orange peels into the flames. The flammable oils in the peels will burn way longer than paper, keeping bad smell at bay. Also, place citrus peels in your garbage disposal, and keep it odourless.
Let in the breeze
Rather than keeping smells suspended in the air, crack open a window and replace the offending odour with fresh air. Fresh air helps bad smells diffuse quickly, getting them out of the house.
This cleans the air inside of your house pushing away pollutants – such as cigarette smoke, leached chemicals from furnishings, paint and solvent smells.
Embrace indoor plants
Indoor plants work like air sanitisers. It's easy, with a little know-how, to bring air-cleaning indoor plants into your home to keep you happy and healthy.
Some of the best indoor air purifying plants include bird’s nest fern, bamboo palm, English ivy, money plant, weeping fig and peace lily.
Having six to eight medium to large plants throughout a large room should be enough to make a noticeable difference in the air quality.
According to Gary L. Altman, an associate director of the Horticultural Therapy Program, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey the ability of plants to purify air depends on the size of the plant, the size of the indoor space, and the number of toxins in the air.
Smell the coffee!
Just take a couple of coffee beans and place them in the oven for seven to 10 minutes, then leave the oven door open afterwards for an energising, coffee house smell.
If you do not have an oven, roast them in an open thick pan sending the smells all over the house. Also, keep a bowl of coffee grounds in the fridge/freezer to absorb the stink from last week’s left-overs.
The power of citrus
Simmer spent lemons on a low stove for hours, releasing the odours. At your fireplace, throw a few lemon or orange peels into the flames.
The flammable oils in the peels will burn way longer than paper, keeping bad smell at bay. Also, place citrus peels in your garbage disposal, and keep it odourless.
Throw into your microwave a couple of tablespoons of vanilla extract +in a mug for 30 seconds. Everyone will wonder if you have been baking!
Spice it up
Bake your favourite spices in the oven at a low temperature. This will make your home smell heavenly. You can simmer aromatic herbs, spices, and citrus peels on the stove.
When you clean, use vinegar The fact that vinegar has acetic acid makes it a great disinfectant. Acetic acid dissolves the lipid membrane surrounding bacteria, killing them on contact.
You can use it to clean and sanitise things in your kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, or any other place that needs cleaning.
Steam from boiling vinegar can purify the air. Also, spraying a mixture of vinegar, water and essential oil such as mint or eucalyptus will not only neutralise odours but leave your indoors with a heavenly aroma.
Deal with moisture
One chore that comes as a surprising source of humidity within homes is laundry. This stems from the moisture exposed to the home when wet clothes are hung inside.
This can be made even worse by poor ventilation within certain rooms. In order to prevent your damp garments from increasing humidity levels, simply hang wet clothes and any bathroom towels outside to keep the moisture exposure from affecting your home.
Absorb bad smells with baking soda
Good old-fashioned baking soda can help bust up musty smells in stuffy spaces. For furniture, upholstery and carpets, sprinkle a bit of baking soda 15 minutes before brushing or vacuuming.
For a long-lasting fresh indoor scent, mix a half-cup of baking soda and a few drops of essential oil in a glass jar. Poke some holes in the lid of the jar, then just swish it every couple of weeks to refresh the scent.
Vanilla!
Throw into your microwave a couple of tablespoons of vanilla extract +in a mug for 30 seconds. Everyone will wonder if you have been baking!
Spa-like scents
Hang some eucalyptus branches from the shower head. When you take a shower, the steam will heat up and release the oils in the eucalyptus, releasing its scent throughout the bathroom into the house.
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