When decorating our homes we tend to focus on the visual: how does our home look. We might take into consideration touch when choosing fabrics and rugs and adding texture to our designs. Sound can be the laughter of our children, music, or even the sound of quiet from good quality windows that block out the sound of traffic. Taste comes to mind when we decorate our dining room and kitchen—the rooms most focused on eating. The fifth sense is often overlooked when decorating our homes: smell.
Scent can be a powerful thing in both a good and bad way. If your home has a musty or moldy scent, it is probably harboring dampness that can make it unhealthy. Strong cooking odors that linger can taint a lovely kitchen. Other scents in our home can come from our carpets, furniture and paints. Off gassing in something to think about when selecting products for your home. Off gassing can come from paints, mattresses and carpet among other things.
Cleaning products can give our home a fresh scent or linger in the air as a chemical scent. We all want fresh smelling homes but sometimes cover up odors with more scents rather than treat the source. Opening the windows on a warm day can freshen up the air in your home and help get rid of stale odors. Remember to use the exhaust hood above your range when cooking.
Adding scents from fresh flowers, scented candles and oils, can make your home smell wonderful as long as they are not masking problem scents.
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