Tips on Making Your Home Smell Wonderful

Have you ever walked into a house and said, "Wow, it smells wonderful in here!" Chances are you have--but making your own home smell great goes beyond just burning a candle every now and then.

First, you'll have to keep your house clean; then you'll have to decide how you want your house to smell; and finally, you'll have to pick a scent solution that works for you!

Read on for tips on how to make your house smell wonderful.

One of the most important components to making your house smell wonderful is very basic: just keep it clean! Dishes in the sink, soiled carpet, or garbage left out too long can result in odors that make your home an unsavory place to visit, much less live in.

To make your house as optimally clean as possible:

• Clear dishes out of the sink nightly, especially those with standing water in them--standing water can make a rancid odor in no time.
• Steam-clean your carpet at lease once every six months; invest in a personal steamer if you have children or pets and use it more often.
• Keep bathrooms bleached and sparkling.
• Use odor-neutralizing garbage bags.
• Wipe down counters after meals, and don't leave food sitting out.
• Keep pets bathed and brushed to cut down on hair and animal odor.
• Use odor-neutralizing spray regularly.

Once your house is clean, you're ready to pick how you want to it smell--which involves picking the mood you want to evoke.

Scents can easily set a mood--so before you set about making your home smell great, think about what sort of mood you want to set. Keep in mind that you can set different moods in different rooms, but if rooms are adjoining, scents will likely blend from one room to another.

Try the following scents to evoke certain moods:

• Baking smells, such as cookies, pies, and cakes, can create a mood of comfort, home, warmth, and holidays. Some of my favorite baking scents include Bath and Body Works's "Kitchen Spice" or "Frosted Cupcake," or Yankee Candle Company's "Maple Pancakes" or "Banana Nut Bread."
• Fruit smells, such as strawberries, peaches, or lemons, can create a mood of springtime, summertime, or freshness; they can also be energizing. Some of my favorite fruit smells include Bath and Body Works's "Strawberry Fields" or "Pomegranate Lemonade," or Yankee Candle Company's "Blueberry" or "Caribbean Fruit."
• Fresh smells, such as clean linens or florals, can create a mood of freshness and peace. Some of my favorite fresh smells include Bath and Body Works's "Honeysuckle" or "Lilac Blossom," or Yankee Candle Company's "Fluffy Towels" or "Aloe Vera."

Note that floral smells can bother people with allergies or asthma, so if you have people over plan accordingly.

When you're picking a scent solution to make your house smell wonderful, there's a wide range of options, all of them fairly convenient. You can pick what works for you, or mix up several techniques.

• Scent diffusers: These sit unobtrusively on a counter or flat surface and slowly release scent into the air over several weeks; the scent will be constant and steady.
• Candles: These only smell when lit, and some brands may be smoky and burn unevenly. However, they often have a strong scent throw and come in an almost unending line of scents.
• Wallplugs: These plug into an outlet and release scent steadily over several weeks; the smell will be constant and steady.
• Air fresheners: These spray into the air, but the scent released lasts only a few minutes.

Whether you want your house to have a signature scent or you like to play with various smells over the season, it's easy to make your house smell amazing. It's something that takes only a little effort, but can make a big impact on how much you (and others) enjoy your home.

Other ways to make a home smell amazing include:

• Baking cakes or cookies before guests come over;
• Opening a window and letting in a little fresh air;
• Cleaning with scented products.

Do you have any tips for making a home smell wonderful?