I love rooms that smell warm and inviting. And natural scents always make a space feel cozy without being overwhelming in the way that store-bought candles or air fresheners tend to be.
Making your house smell good is an essential part of creating a welcoming and relaxing atmosphere. There are various ways to make your house smell good naturally without using artificial scents that can be harmful to your health. One simple way is to open your windows to let in fresh air. This is a great way to eliminate any stale air and unpleasant smells. Another effective method is to use essential oils. Add a few drops of your favorite essential oils to a spray bottle filled with water and spray it around the house to make your house smell good. Essential oil diffusers are also an excellent way to disperse essential oils throughout your whole house.
If you have friends and family coming over tomorrow why not put a simmering home humidifier on the stove and enjoy the smell all day while you cook? We understand if you're multitasking your cooking and there's no room on the stove - here are a few more simple ways to make your house smell amazing, naturally!
15 Ways to Scent Your Home
1. Make your own scented candles
The scent of vanilla and coffee beans together instantly warms up the house in these French vanilla candles. It's like waking up to coffee AND baked goods at the same time!
The candles look great in just about any container, so feel free to experiment with different glasses or jars that best fit your aesthetic.
2. Use multiple scented candles to combine scents
Don't feel like you only have to use a single candle in a room! Layering scents together, like using french vanilla with these cinnamon pumpkin candles, creates a nice aroma. We are big fans of the festive fall look of these pumpkins but you can switch it up with citrus peels once winter starts settling in.
If you're looking for even more candle ideas, look no further than the ultimate guide to homemade candles.
3. Make wax fire starters
You need very few supplies for these scented wax firestarters. They make great hostess gifts, too! For an even more holiday-ready look, you can try this wax-dipped pinecone version.
4. Make a scented home humidifier
With the heat on all the time you definitely need some humid air in the house. A stovetop simmer is so easy and it smells amazing. Have fun experimenting with different scents - here are 7 great options for fall and the holidays!
5. Make a reed diffuser
Turn your favorite essential oils into a DIY reed diffuser, probably the easiest way to diffuse natural fragrance! Plus it also looks nice on the coffee table.
6. Make your own linen spray
Spritz the linens in the guest bedroom with an anti-stress pillow mist that combines lavender and chamomile. It's subtle, but it works like a charm!
7. Make your own potpourri
Collect dried materials, aromatic spices and essential oils for homemade potpourri. Put the natural elements into a bowl and add a few drops of essential oil on top.
Try a spicy mixture (think cinnamon sticks, star anise and cloves) or a citrus combination (use whole and dried elements with orange essential oil). My favorite right now is a red and green mixture of cranberries, fragrant evergreens, and dried eucalyptus.
8. Make a room spray
Bergamot brightening blend, sunny lavender or uplifting chamomile - these are all great options for natural room sprays that will put you in a good mood, in addition to making your home smell nice and fresh!
9. Make your own gel air freshener
We're not usually into gel air fresheners - unless they're homemade! They're a great alternative to candles, if you're worried about open fire around kids or pets. And with essential oils, you can be sure you can customize the scent as you wish!
10. Make your own scented sachets
These scented sachets subtly scent your home with a combination of dried lavender (keeps the moths away!), cedarwood shavings, and essential oils. All nicely wrapped in drawstring bags that you can upcycle and later refill.
11. Make fragrance stones
Combining salt, water, cornstarch and flour, fragrance stones are super easy to make. Infuse with your favorite essential oil blends and set up around the house like you would with potpourri.
12. Make a citrus rind diffuser
Make use of seasonal citrus rinds by filling them with sea salt and adding some essential oils to the salt. Instant holiday mood! Orange spice, grapefruit cedarwood sage, and lemon rosemary vanilla are some of our favorite combinations.
13. Make essential oil wax sachets
These essential oil wax sachets are so pretty, you'll want to hang them everywhere in the house! But save some for your holiday gift list, your friends will adore them, too.
14. Make a salt candle diffuser
When heated, sea salt attracts water vapor to its surface and removes it from the air. By adding a few drops of essential oils and a candle, they cleanse the air and diffuse relaxing essential oils at the same time.
15. Make your own soy wax melts
If you'd rather try a flame-free way to scent our home, wax melts are for you! Using an electrical warmer instead of an open flame keeps your kids and pets safe, plus it makes a soft nightlight.
Need to get rid of bad smells naturally? Baking soda is an excellent natural ingredient that absorbs smells. Sprinkle baking soda on carpets and let it sit for a few hours before vacuuming to absorb any bad smells. You can also place open containers of baking soda in your fridge, trash can, and toilet to absorb any unpleasant odors. Another way to make your house smell good is to use coffee grounds. Place used coffee grounds in a bowl and put it in the kitchen or living room. The coffee grounds will absorb any stinky smells and leave your house smelling fresh. Additionally, using white vinegar is an excellent way to eliminate musty odors. Mix white vinegar and water in a small spray bottle and spray it around your house to eliminate any unpleasant smells. Adding a few drops of your favorite essential oil or vanilla extract to the solution can also make your house smell great.
What's your favorite way to scent a room?
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jayne Revell says
Great ideas , i will be trying these out .
Pamela says
Great ideas!
Charity says
I adore the scent of fresh cut evergreens. We don't put up a Christmas tree and I miss that smell so I cut fresh boughs and make simple arrangements or just scatter them around the house.
Margarita says
Try half tsp of cinnamon oil and half tsp of nutmeg oil in a burner topped with water over a tea light candle and enjoy the fragrance which lingers long after the candle goes out, great for relaxing!
Loula says
Margarita, are you describing a small simmering pot atop a tea candle? Cinnamon and nutmeg together is lovely. Have you tried adding a little ginger?
Gail Mularie says
I absolutely love your site. Keep the great ideas coming plz!!!
colette says
I love your site i really like all the natural things you use
Cameron says
If you don't have a teacup or container that you are able to "ruin" by making it into a coffee candle (I personally believe EVERYTHING should be candles, but some people might not agree!) you can simply get a dish full of coffee beans and a sack of those cheap little tea light candles.
Just nestle the tea light down into the dish, and as the candle burns and the wax melts, it will heat up the coffee beans and make a wonderful coffee smell too! The beans needn't be high quality either, since leaving them out will probably make them get stale.
Loula says
What a great idea! Thank you for sharing it.
sumera says
I use the left over jelly thing in air freshener containers cut them up and stick them in my hoover so that as I hoover around the house the air coming from it gives off a nice scent leaving each room smelling fresh. I also stick these air freshner jellies on the heater in winter so that when you turn it on the while house smells good!
Loula says
What an unusual idea. To make sure I understand, you cut up the leftover jelly and put that in your vacuum cleaner?
Victoria says
Such great ideas, I love that I can make my house smell wonderful with things that I already have in the house :).
Kelly says
Thank you for making all this available to the public. It has helped me so much. I am disabled and on an unbelievably tight budget. You make things possible for me that normally I wouldn't have access to.
Again, Thank You from the bottom of my heart.
Sincerely,
Kelly C in Utah