With the cost of living constantly rising, our monthly household budgets are taking a hit and we are having to cut back on some of our favourite home luxuries.
Home fragrances such as scented candles, reed diffusers, oils for our air diffusers etc are all absolutely amazing. However, the costs of these can mount up over time and can become quite costly. For example, a decent scented candle can set you back around £20!
But just because we are cutting back on our monthly spending doesn’t mean our homes can’t still smell fragrant and welcoming. We have come up with some cost effective tips and tricks to keep your home smelling glorious, whilst also saving money.
Keep Windows Open
The best way to keep your house smelling fresh and letting out those pesky cooking smells and your other half’s smelly lingering trainer smells - is to keep your windows ajar! Fresh air!
Yes fresh air can be an absolute godsend to let out any funky aromas. A constant flow of air will help to keep those unattractive smells moving….rather than attaching themselves to your furniture and fabrics.
We know this isn't always possible if it's raining heavily, is very windy, or if it's too hot outside and you want to keep your house cool. But whenever the British weather is playing ball, get them open!
Dust Often
Have you ever walked into a home or unused room and immediately started sneezing or felt like your throat is drying up? It’s likely to be a build-up of dust!
Not only can it leave you sneezing and feeling not your best, but it can also actually create its own stagnant aroma which can be quite unpleasant and will leave your home smelling unclean.
Get your duster out and pick up a ton of furniture polish and you’re away! You can grab some furniture polish and clothes from stores like Nisbets and it won’t cost the earth. Gone are the days when furniture polish all smells the same, there is an abundance of different scents these days and furniture polish comes at less of a cost than candles.
Hoover & Mop
Another tip is to keep your home freshly hoovered and keep your hoover clean!
A simple way to make your lounge smell amazing is to pick up some ‘shake and vac’. Yes, you probably remember your mum using this in the 90’s/ early 00’s but it’s back and it’s better! You could pick up 5 tubs of this for the price of 1 scented candle and it’ll last a lot longer!
If you’re a wood or tile flooring kind of person, then mopping regularly is the way forward and we have all seen the influencers sharing their tips on adding a bit of fragrance from Zoflora from Robert Dyas, scented disinfectants and even fabric conditioner, right? Well, they aren’t wrong!
Add a dash into your hot water and you’ll be surprised at how fresh and clean your home smells and how the fragrances linger for days. It’s an inexpensive trick and definitely recommended.
Bath Your Pets
Ok, we all adore our four-legged children but if we are honest sometimes we can become a little nose blind when it comes to their unique odours.
It’s not uncommon or unusual for our furry friends to become a little fragrant after a long walk, or a rainy/hot day, and they won’t request a bath so it’s up to you us to make sure they aren’t stinking up the house.
Bathing your four-legged bestie every now and then with products from Pet Supermarket will help your home smelling fresh and clean. Giving their beds and blankets a wash regularly will also help!
Keep the Kitchen Clean
The days are finally getting more like summer so that means our homes are getting warmer (thank goodness because heating is so expensive!). But this does mean that if you’re an ‘I’ll wash up later’ kind of person you may find that your home could take on a rather unpleasant odour.
Make sure you are at least emptying leftover food straight into the bin outside and you’re putting your pots in soak to avoid that unclean lingering aroma.
When it’s really warm it’s also a good idea to make sure you are washing your indoor bin regularly with cleaning products from Get Home Things to get rid of any leftover food or drips and grossness to avoid these creating their own unpleasant scents. It will also help to keep those pesky flies out, too!
Check the Fridge & Cupboards
After cleaning out your bin and making sure you’ve washed your pots, are you still worried that you can smell something unpleasant? When was the last time you cleaned out your cupboards and fridge?
Sometimes this is something we overlook or simply can’t be bothered with, but especially with your home warming up every day, it’s important not to forget about that leftover loaf of bread or fruit in the cupboard.
If we are honest, we often forget about things like that and before you know it something gross is happening in the cupboard! It’s the same in the fridge, we’ve all had a small bit of cucumber that has definitely been in there longer than it should have! To avoid these little mishaps - it’s a good idea when you do your weekly shop at Morrisons to go through your cupboards before you buy more to have a thorough cleanout.
Clean Toilets Regularly
The best way to keep your bathroom feeling welcoming and smelling fresh is to clean your toilet regularly. It’s simple and cheap!
Bleach your toilet at least twice a week, it makes it easier to keep clean and will leave your bathroom smelling fresh for its next guest.
A great hack to keeping your bathroom and toilet smelling ‘laundry fresh’ is to pop some fragranced laundry detergent or fabric softener from Bower Collective in the tank of your toilet…..after every flush your bathroom will smell like clean laundry!
Add House Flowers or Plants to Rooms
We all love our faux plants and flowers but nothing beats the scents of real plants and flowers in the home. There’s something about the smell of fresh flowers that’s unbeatable.
It’s all-natural after all and is less likely to leave you with a headache than some artificial chemical fragrance added. A freshly cut bunch of flowers not only gives your modern living room a lift of colour and glamour but also adds to that fresh and clean scent that we all strive for.
A fresh bunch of flowers from Freddies Flowers can cost as little as £5. Or, if you really are a fan of greenery, real herbs such as lavender or mint can add an amazing aroma to any room. If you’re after a stronger scent, dried eucalyptus bouquets may be right up your street!
Make Your Own Potpourri
A really easy and inexpensive way of adding a fragrance to any room of your home is to make your own potpourri.
Yes, we know it’s not 1980 anymore, but potpourri has been around a lot longer than some of us have been alive, and there’s a reason for that! It works, and it’s easy to do at home.
All you need to make a natural light fragrance is cinnamon sticks from stores such as Buy Whole Foods Online - you can mark your fragrance in one of two ways, drying and curing or ‘simmering’. If you want an instant fragrance and you don't have the patience to dry and cure ingredients, then simmering is the way forward.
Simply put your cinnamon in a cup of water on low heat on the hob, and your home will instantly be filled with the scent of cinnamon! Alternatively you could try vanilla extract and clove, or for a fruity scent use orange peel! There are so many recipes online if you do a little research and the bonus is it’s so cheap to do!
