How do I make my home smell nice for a long time?

How does your home smell? You probably find it hard to answer that question, while your friends know exactly how it smells.

The smell of a home is a combination of all sorts of things. It can be anything from the food you usually cook to whether you have pets or regularly use hairspray. Of course, cleaning habits can also play a part.

It's not always easy to know how your home smells, but most people want it to smell good. Here are some things you can do and get to maintain your home's pleasant scent.

1.     Eliminate sources of bad odour

Bad smells have a tendency to overpower good scents, so it's important to get to the root of the problem. Regularly clean things in the home that can smell unpleasant. For example, this could include:

– rubbish bins

– washing machine

– dishwasher

– cat litter box and pet cages

– drains and wells.

The general rule when you need to get rid of bad odours is to clean really thoroughly and ensure good ventilation. Open the windows or put out the items you have cleaned. Leave the doors to the washing machine and dishwasher open. Masking bad odour with lots of air fresheners is a poor strategy that can actually make the problem worse. A mix of rubbish smell and lavender is no winner in our opinion!

If you have pets, get practical cleaning tips here.

2. Natural cleaning products

There are many cleaning products that smell really nice while effectively cleaning your home. A cheap option is regular soap with a lemon scent. Many also like the smell of green or yellow soap without added fragrance.

Which scents you like is, of course, a matter of taste, but there are many advantages to choosing cleaning products scented with natural ingredients. Those who are sensitive to scents less often react to natural scents, although you still need to be extra careful. You also avoid unnecessary chemicals in the home. Natural cleaning products can contain essential oils from, for example, lavender, peppermint, tea tree, lemon, or perhaps eucalyptus.

If you want, you can mix a few drops in water and make your own natural cleaning spray. There are many different recipes for sprays, but honestly, the proportions are not that important. The most important thing is that it mostly consists of water. Then you can choose whether to add things like vinegar or soap. You don't need much of these; a little splash is enough. Combining such a spray with a microfiber cloth is a good way to get the home really clean while it smells nice.

We have tested the following pleasantly scented cleaning sprays and can recommend them:

– Method: All purpose natural surface cleaner – Lavender

– Method: Bathroom cleaner – Eucalyptus, mint

– Ren logik: Kitchen – Apple blossom

– EcoClean: All-purpose cleaner – Lavender

3. Choose the right scented candles

Scented candles can be a cosy way to scent your home, but there are a few things to keep in mind. Many experience discomfort from cheap scented candles with dubious ingredients, such as headaches or breathing difficulties. And they also don’t smell as nice and often don’t burn as long as natural scented candles. Therefore, it may be worth spending a bit more and getting value for your money.

The bigger the candle, the better, as you then get many hours of burning. A scented candle weighing 600 grams burns for over 100 hours.

If you want to use scented candles to make your home smell nicer, it’s good to remember that the candles need to burn for a longer time if the scent is to last. If you light the candle just for a short time each time so that the wax doesn’t have time to melt evenly over the whole candle, you will get a tunnel and won’t use all the wax before the wick is used up. It’s also important to trim the wick with wick scissors to about half a centimetre to avoid soot.

Different types of candles

Stearin is made from by-products from slaughterhouses, so not an option if you are vegan. However, they are good because they utilise what would otherwise be waste. They do not affect indoor air negatively. Also, they are cheap. There is also vegetable stearin, but it is quite rare.

Paraffin is made from crude oil and is therefore not a particularly environmentally friendly option. Many avoid paraffin candles and liken it to passive smoking. These candles produce quite a lot of soot.

Soy wax is extracted from soybeans and is often used for scented candles because it spreads scent well. It is a good choice for both environment and health.

Coconut wax comes from coconuts and is also environmentally friendly and very suitable for scented candles. These candles often have an extra clear flame.

Beeswax is natural but not vegan. It is a by-product (in two ways!) obtained when honey is extracted and is a good option environmentally. The candles themselves have a light honey scent and purify the air by producing negative ions.

Here are some brands that have really good scented candles that deliver plenty of fragrance:

– Voluspa (coconut wax)

– Klinta (soy wax)

– Indiska (soy wax)

– DW Home (soy wax)

– WoodWick (soy wax)

4. Scent sprays for the home

There is a wide variety of scent sprays to choose from. There are both those you find in the cleaning aisle at the supermarket and more exclusive variants at various interior design stores. The difference between cheaper air fresheners and pricier sprays is often significant. Since you will be inhaling the spray, it’s wise to buy one with as natural ingredients as possible.

Which one you should buy depends on your budget and the intended use. A cheap air freshener can be good to use in the bathroom as needed. But when guests arrive and you want the home to smell really nice, it’s better to use a more luxurious one, for example in the living room. It can also be nice to finish a big clean with such a spray to enhance the feeling of freshly cleaned.

However, be aware that most room sprays don’t smell very long, but it can be a pleasant supplement to use when you want to freshen up the scent.

Here are our favourite scent sprays:

– Voluspa

– Millefiori

– Klinta

– Rituals

5. Linen water gives a fresh feeling

Linen water is very similar to room spray as it is usually in spray form. But here it’s about spraying onto textiles, not just directly into the room. It can be used when ironing, but also to freshen clothes and bed linen between washes. You can also spray directly into the wardrobe or onto clothes hanging in the hallway to make them smell nice.

Linen water not only smells nice but also counteracts static electricity. Therefore, it’s smart to spray it on, for example, velvet sofas that easily get static in winter when the air is dry. Then you get both a fragrant effect and avoid annoying shocks.

The brand Washologi has many lovely linen waters to choose from. We particularly like the scents Harmoni and Henne. They smell of lavender and lily of the valley respectively.

6. Reed diffusers make it smell nice

Reed diffusers are not only a way to scent the home but also a decorative item. The product consists of several wooden sticks that you put in a small bottle with special perfume. When the sticks absorb the perfume, the scent spreads in the room.

The problem with reed diffusers is that you have to invest a bit if you want to actually smell something from them. Cheap versions rarely work, and we have even experienced budget sticks that have moulded! Even though it costs some, many think it’s worth it because the sticks spread scent for several weeks.

How long they last depends on how much perfume is in the bottle, how many sticks you use, and how warm it is in the room. To make them last longer, you can use fewer sticks than you get, but then you get less scent. Reed diffusers are best suited for small rooms or places you often walk past, for example in the bathroom or hallway.

We like these reed diffusers:

– Skandinavisk

– Voluspa

– Smith & Co

– Molton Brown

Do you love the feeling of a nicely scented home? Something our customers often say they appreciate about our house cleaning services in Stockholm is that it smells so good when they come home. It can really be genuine everyday luxury to come home to a fragrant, clean home after a long working day. Feel free to contact us to learn more about our cleaning services and how we can help you and your family!