I love the smell of cedar and floral scents, especially in the evening to help me wind down. But when I learned that commercial air fresheners have toxic chemicals in them, I searched for other methods to add scent to my home.
If you use spray air fresheners, plugins, beads, gel solids, or any room freshener, you’ll want to read this. Most commercially available room air fresheners have chemical compounds that can be toxic to humans (and pets). Especially those with breathing problems, like asthma. The air inside our homes can be more polluted than the air outside if we use these kinds of products.
Some commercial air fresheners have good essential oils but could also have other chemicals in them. I want to share some DIY ways to scent your home, just the way you want, without adding harmful chemicals to your home and air.
I was using a well-known plugin brand with ‘essential oils’ so I thought it wasn’t harmful. Until I discovered that there’s a lot more in there than just essential oils.
First, let’s talk about what is in many store-bought air fresheners.
Reasons To Go Natural
Some of the chemicals found in commercial air fresheners include:
- VOC’s (volatile organic compounds)
- benzene
- formaldehyde
- toluene
- m,p-xylene
- phthalates
- and more.
Some of these, like formaldehyde, are cancer-causing substances. As if that’s not enough, they can stick to furniture and walls and re-enter the air to keep emitting those chemicals.
Had we known this, we probably wouldn’t have used those air fresheners at all.
Suggested: Top 10 Face Creams for Dry Skin
Natural Ways to Scent Your Home
Here are some fun ways to naturally scent your home without adding harmful chemicals.
Homemade Wax Melts
This is my favorite way of adding fragrance to my bedroom. You can easily make your own wax melts with coconut oil, soy wax, and your favorite essential oils. See my full instructions here: How To Make Scented Wax Melts
You can get all the ingredients on Amazon or your local Michaels.
Essential Oil Room Spray
Simply add three or four drops of your favorite essential oil to one cup of water in a spray bottle. Shake well. Now you can scent the air and fabrics like your pillow, comforter, or couch.
Q-Tips with Oil
This is such a cute idea. Dip the ends of a Q-Tip in essential oil, then place it inside the toilet paper roll in the bathroom. You can use more than one if you prefer more scent.
Gel Air Fresheners
You can make your own gel air fresheners with gelatin, essential oils, salt (as a preservative) and distilled water. For a stunning visual, you can add food coloring and/or silk flowers. These make great gifts.
You can put these anywhere. In the car, bathroom, kitchen, anywhere you want scent.
Quick Steps
- Bring 1 cup of distilled water to a boil.
- Add 4 packages of unflavored gelatin and stir until dissolved.
- Remove from heat.
- Stir in another cup of water.
- Add 10-20 drops of essential oils.
- Add food coloring if you like.
- Add 1 T. salt as a mold inhibitor.
- Pour the gel into clean jars or other heat-resistant containers. Add silk flowers or dried flowers if you like.
- Place in the refrigerator for a quick set.
You can use baby food jars and punch holes in the lid, or simply take the lid on and off when you want scent. They will last longer if they are covered part of the time.
For the full instructions go to WikiHow.
Jars available on Amazon:
Fruit Rind Air Freshener
I love this one. It doesn’t get fresher smelling than fresh fruit. Choose whatever citrus fruit you love to smell. Lemons, limes, or oranges work great. You’ll also need sea salt which absorbs odors. If you have some fresh herbs or spices, they make a nice addition to your fruit rind air freshener.
The salt will also release the citrus smell while pulling out the unwanted ones.
Slice the fruit in half and scoop out the inner fruit from the rind (maybe throw the fruit in your smoothie blender). Then fill the half up with sea salt. Add herbs or spices to the salt as you like.
Place anywhere you have unpleasant odors and enjoy.
Lemon and Rosemary Stove-top Potpourri
MMmm. Smells heavenly. Sliced lemons, rosemary, and vanilla extract simmered in water on the stovetop. The scent will linger for days.
Wrapping Up
I hope you learned how toxic some commercial air fresheners are and some natural ways you can scent your home beautifully and easily. It’s a good feeling to know we’re helping our health and the health of the planet by choosing what we use in our homes.
Thank you for reading. I hope you try some of these natural scent ideas for your home. Let me know what you try and how it worked for you! You can leave any comments or suggestions in the Comments section below. Thank you!
