Wednesday, May 26, 2010Inside Your Home

Home Fragrances

Home fragrances are an added layer of comfort and can add an aura of happiness.  Using herbs, oils and potpourri increases the enjoyment for visitors and family. Here are some ideas for creating a fragrance for the home in key areas.

Kitchen Scents

In your kitchen, the smell of spices abound when you are cooking.

Here are some ideas to keep the aroma working when you’re not cooking:

*Add fresh herbs and spices to already prepared wreaths or mini-topiaries.

*Prepare cheesecloth bags of bouquet garni – cut them off a wreath as you need them

*Tie cinnamon sticks together or stand in a pretty cup – allow the aroma to waft.

Fragrant plants can be grown in small containers in your kitchen wherever there is adequate light.  There is a variety of scented geraniums that don’t especially have lovely flowers as the red geranium do, but their leaves smell like apricot, cinnamon, lemon, pineapple or rose.  Did you know there is chocolate scented sage? Lemon balm has a lovely fragrance, and rosemary tops my list. Lightly run your hand over the plant leaves to release their fragrance.

Sachets can be made from lavender and displayed artfully.  Tie back your kitchen curtains with a lavender sachet. Another practical idea is to purchase a small crock pot specifically made for diffusing the air with aroma and keep a blend of clove, cinnamon, allspice and orange or lemon peel going throughout the day.  You’ll have to check the water frequently to be sure it doesn’t evaporate.

Living Rooms

Essential oils play a big role in your living room. Here, you can artfully gather a variety of items from nature and then suffuse them with your favorite fragrance for the season: pine cones, wood shavings, leaves, sea shells, dried flower petals.  You can make pomanders from oranges and apples.  Gather eucalyptus twigs and put them under your sofa for several weeks of fragrance.

Add sachets inside the pillows on your sofa or chairs.  When they are leaned on by your family or friends, they crush the spices or flower petals inside the sachet releasing a lovely fragrance with use.  Rose petals with added essential rose oil inside the sachet works well.  If you like a spicier fragrance, the combination of Frankincense and Patchouli is interesting and unique.

If you have a fireplace, a pot of water with fragrant essential oils in it can become a wonderful scent diffuser in the room.  There are flame resistant rings for the light bulbs in your living room lamps that can be infused with essential oils.  When the bulb is on, a lovely fragrance is released into the room.  I enjoy orange blossom essential oil.

Scented candles is another way to make any room smell wonderful.  If you’ll add a few drops of essential oil into the melted wax in the middle, you’ll enhance the job the candle is already performing and stretch it’s life along with your enjoyment.

You’re invited to share your home fragrances in the comments below.  We’d love to hear back the ideas that have worked well for you and made your home more pleasurable for your family and guests.