How To Refresh Your Home With Candles & Home Fragrances

If a picture paints a thousand words, then a scent could fill a library. Smell is one of our most powerful senses, and the scents we experience on a daily basis have a significant impact on how we function, feel and remember things.

A lovely smelling home can make us feel pampered and invigorated. It can also lift a heavy load at the end of a long day, lull you into a blissful sleep or make you feel more productive and focused when trying to concentrate.

But what's the secret to using scent to enhance the mood your home decor evokes?

Quick Links

• Scents By Space
• Create An Aesthetic With Candles
• Essential Oils
• Quick And Low Maintenance Home Fragrances To Refresh Your Spaces
• Flowers And Vases

Scents By Space

The first thing to consider is the type of mood you want to create in any particular room or space. The beauty of using scents in the home is their flexibility. You can change them depending on how you feel, if you are having guests around and to suit your decorating scheme or even the season (e.g. for some families, a spicy nutmeg or cinnamon aroma is evocative of the end-of-year holidays).

Think about the mood you're going for, rather than the room itself. If you want your bedroom to feel like a calm sanctuary, scents like lavender, chamomile and ylang-ylang are known for their relaxing properties. Citruses - such as orange, lemon, lime and grapefruit - are wonderful all-purpose aromas that enliven and invigorate most settings. Traditional kitchen herbs and spices - like rosemary, sage and basil - also have soothing qualities. Some people enjoy the smell of coffee and chocolate but you'd be wise not to use anything associated with cooking in the bathroom or toilet because the mix just isn't quite right.

No matter what scents you select, remember that smell should act as an accessory, not the star. If a scent is too strong, it will overpower your room. Keep your scents subtle - think of them as an underscore to the main scene of your decor.

Once you've thought about your scent choices, you need to consider how you'll house and then disperse them throughout the home.

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Create An Aesthetic With Candles

Candles can bring both style and aromatic charm to any room they're placed in. They make a perfect finishing touch to home decor and are even a fabulous gift to a loved one.

Candles are best positioned on sturdy and heat-resistant surfaces, away from flammable materials such as curtains that can move in a breeze. They will work in almost any room but are particularly well-suited to lounge rooms, bathrooms, kitchens and bedrooms.

Safety Tip: Candles are a common cause of house-fires so it is very important to never leave candles unattended! A great alternative is flameless, LED candles that don't require as much observation.

Aromatic Candles

Scented candles are one of the most popular ways to perfume a space. We get used to smells quite quickly so use different aromas in different rooms to keep the senses stimulated and keep the scents making an impression.

Candles also need oxygen to do their job, which means they work best in medium to larger spaces. If your room is smaller or enclosed, you may want to try a diffuser instead. As part of your fire safety, if you have little ones or pets, you should be mindful of minimising open flames.

While jar candles are designed to be ready to light, pillar and taper candles usually require additional pieces to ensure they are safe for burning. These candles can be displayed using candle holders that offer extra protection and a way to create a stylish accent.

Bring A Decorative Touch

Candles are available in many designs and shapes that combine aromatic and aesthetic charm. Shaped candles such as circles, loops and prisms bring a visual intrigue that is perfect for introducing an artistic charm to your space. They are available in a range of tones, perfect for those looking for a pop of colour to establish a sense of personality in their space. Arranging various candle shapes together in groups of threes is perfect for adding a sense of depth and dimension to your home decor. Often shaped candles may be displayed without the intent of burning as burning these candles can cause them to lose their shape. Styling these candles as permanent decor pieces provides a stunning home decor piece that elevates your home styling for years to come.

Essential Oils

Essential oils (not synthetic) can be used around the home to create more than just an appealing aroma - they also have a therapeutic effect. Use fragrance diffusers to distribute essential oil scents around the room and help the fragrance disperse evenly over time, making sure it is balanced and not overpowering.

For homes with children or pets, you should consider what essential oils are safe for cats, dogs and other animals as well as young children or adults with sensitive noses. Stronger essential oils such as eucalyptus, peppermint and tea tree, may be overpowering for children and pets so best to avoid.

Safety Tip: Essential oils are not safe to consume. Do not drink. Always make sure to read any warnings to ensure safety in rooms with pets or children.

Types Of Fragrant Diffusers

You can use different types of diffusers - reeds, oil burners, ceramic diffusers and plug-in diffusers - depending on the style of the room and your personal tastes. Available in a variety of stylish colours, patterns and materials that make them a fashionable feature in their own right, diffusers are an effective way to bring scent into a space, and refills make them economical too. Some of our favourite types of diffusers are discussed in the table below:

Quick And Low Maintenance Home Fragrances To Refresh Your Spaces

Wanting to elicit aromas throughout your space but worried about the maintenance that comes with both candles and fragrance diffusers? Consider our other home fragrance options to refresh your space:

• Fragrance Sprays are a great way to offer your space a quick pick-up in their aromas. Room sprays are easy to use and instantly fill your room with the aroma of your choice. You can also use linen fragrance sprays to refresh your bedding, allowing you to slip into a sweet, aromatic sleep.
• Pot Pourri is another way to let appealing scents release over time. As well as putting scents on display throughout the home, you can use these dried natural materials in small amounts and tucked-away storage areas - like drawers, wardrobes and cupboards - to create beautiful aromas and banish unpleasant ones. If you want to curate your own scent, you can use loose materials like lavender to create your own sachets to freshen up storage areas.

Flowers And Vases

Yet another way to use scents to make your home feel welcoming is with decorative vases for holding flowers, greenery and combinations of both.

A beautiful and stylish vase on a table or dresser can visually brighten up a room, and a bouquet of flowers elevates it to the next level. Scientific research has shown, just like essential oils and other scents, the smell of fresh flowers helps boost mood and alleviate stress. With so many gorgeous looking and smelling flowers to choose from, you can mix and match vases, floral arrangements and smells to your heart's content.

Looking For More Home Decor Inspiration?

Scent really is perfect for enlivening and enhancing the mood in your home. It's a deeply personal way to create spaces that are truly yours and help you be your best self. Whether you use them to stay focused in a work room, help the kids get to sleep or indulge in some 'me-time', scents are a powerful, all too often overlooked feature of the modern home. Be sure to check out our extensive home fragrance range to refresh your space today. Shop online or at your nearest Spotlight store and enjoy the aesthetic benefits home fragrances bring to your home.