How to make my house smell amazing?

[Littleguggi]

Looking for tips on how to make my house smell amazing.

We don't have any pets and we don't smoke. Our house occasionally smells musty/ damp as it's an old house.

Also can anyone recommend any nice smelling candles? We like Jo Malone lime basil and mandarin but ideally something that costs less. We don't like the Aldi dupe.

Just wanting to refresh the house and get ready for a new season.

Agree with not going down the artificial scents route. Have your carpets been cleaned lately? Soft furnishings? Cooker filters? Ventilation is essential. Beeswax polish is lovely. Asevi is the first Spanish product I can think of, Marsella or Brumol. I like the boiling scented pots idea but make sure you've got adequate ventilation, don't do it if condensation is an issue.

I do this!

Also agree with windows open if not too cold, I keep them open most of the time.

Yes we used a bissell carpet cleaner so did a deep clean using proper cleaning products.

Definitely lots of ventilation.

The Prices open window candles/diffusers are good as well,

A fireman friend says the same to me.

Check your pipes - a musty smell can often come from sinks and things connected to them, so use washing machine cleaner, dishwasher cleaner and sink cleaners for the kitchen and bathrooms - especially after the latter my house often smells so much better.

Incense if you're the type for it; it clings to carpets and clothing for a while, too, so can last longer than reed diffusers and candles. There are some lovely ones out there.

A proper carpet cleaning machine if you think that's causing it - you can rent them from some supermarkets. And check the floorboards underneath. One persistent smell in my house came from rotting floorboards underneath a sink.

I only use Chapter Organics their products smell amazing and last for ages. The reed diffusers last about six months

In winter I get some of those paper perfume sample sticks - put a few drops of essential oil or perfume oil -Sunnamusk have lovely ones - and put them on top of the radiator grills and the house smells wonderful!

I love soy wax burners for a good smell, my house is pretty small though, so I suppose the smell carries more. The soy wax melts I get from Wolf Wytch smell incredible and are beautiful in themselves too, I love them! wolfwytch.com

We also have a dampy house so agree on windows open whenever possible, also anywhere you can hide a damp tray - we have bags and refillable trays hidden in cupboards and various other spots. We do need to sort some kind of damp fix / ventilation system too though!

I love the brisa multi surface spray, 3 witches glass cleaner and the asevi floor cleaner and room spray. I also get the asevi concentrated air freshener drops and drip them over fake flowers/down by the shoe rack/toilet brushes.

This is amazing if you like lemon scents.

https://www.houseofbruar.com/reed-diffuser-d3-cs15033lemongrass/?locale=gpb&glCountry=UK&glCurrency=GBP&istCompanyId=facab9df-87a0-4360-a00c-69f8b6f60974&istFeedId=e1385490-e58f-4fe4-b510-6708df5ec276&istItemId=prlaltlrl&istBid=t&src=webshp&gadsource=1&gbraid=0AAAAAC8kpApuI53rJfJ7Ga9QkPq0z8hCP&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIg9HuirvWiAMVW4BQBh0Tqi2rEAQYAiABEgLRAPDD_BwE

We live in an accent house so I’m mindful of musty pongs.

We open windows and French doors as often as we can, and upstairs windows remain open year round.

We mop all the downstairs hard floors with zoflora. We currently have a Rituals reed diffuser in our sitting room and I can smell it in the entire ground floor.

I have Neom diffusers too, but don’t use them all the time. I’m also extremely partial to a good quality candle.

Ona Gel.

My windows are open for a good 6-8 hours a day for most of the year. My house always smells great. In the coldest part of the winter I still open windows daily but for less time.

Fab thank you.

Like a PP,.I was.goung to suggest you look very hard for signs of mice!

Otherwise it sounds like the smell is from carpet, curtains. Do you have lots of books? They seem to absorb smells over time!

Our upstairs landing has that distinctive "old house" smell, it's a fixer-upper so once the landing carpet is replaced I'm hoping the smell goes - it's much better when carpet freshly done but returns gradually.

I'm obsessed with my flat smelling like a 5 star hotel. I second the recommendation for Valentte diffusers. I've been very impressed with them. They have a very good throw and are very reasonably priced.

But I now use waterless diffusers with essential oils as these last much longer (so are much more economical). I have 5 of them (1 lives in the car) from Neom and Lintro and I get my essential oils from Nikura (they're London based rather than Chinese made like so many oils these days). I recommend Nikura's 'Cosy Night In' oil for autumn/winter. It has a hint of cinnamon and the smell really travels throughout my flat.

I also use candles (more for the ambiance than the throw) and tend to buy a mixture of Tom Dixon (makes Jo Malone look cheap) and Asda Vanilla (other end of the market but the throw is excellent).

For cleaning, I am fixated on Purdy & Figg in the bathroom and kitchen (and inside my windows). I blame my boss as she introduced me. The smell doesn't last ages but it is really lovely so I use them for a quick 'maintenance' wipedown rather than hardcore cleaning (which my cleaner does mainly - and then I/we use Bower Collective and/or Method).

Note: I have ADHD so I get obsessed with things (and then bored and move on to the next new thing) and right now that is my home smelling and looking like a 5 star hotel spa (Sofitel mainly lol).

I light a lot of candles and like the most natural, eco-friendly waxes. My favourites at the moment are Pott Candles and Papermill Candles. I also burn wax melts in each room which really helps with cooking smells and wet pet smells!

St Eval Inspiritus is my favourite cheap ish candle. I've had one burning in the kitchen all morning on this cold, autumnal day.

If you've got an old house that is inclined to smell a bit musty I think the only way is to heat it, ventilate it, sort out any obvious issues and then think about nice candles afterwards.

I had an edwardian house like that in London, turned out that a bit of the sub floor/joists that had dry rot.

Perfume Parlour have really nice dupes, with small bottles of perfume oil. There is a Dove and a Nivea one that smells really fresh.

Ventilate your house as much as possible. A lot of old houses especially Victorian were built to breathe with floor boards and open fires but it all gets blocked by carpets and closing fireplaces and that makes it musty. So if you don't have bare boards and open fireplaces and don't want to then you need to find ways to ventilate the house, eg. Open windows, put vents in etc.

Use Purdy & Figg natural spray cleaners with no nasty chemicals and smells gorgeous. I use them on everything, kitchen, bathroom, wood, sofas.

Dyptique candles. You only have to burn for a short time to get a great scent and/or Maegen candles. The burnt sugar one is insanely good. And the pineapple one in summer.

Amazon sell it, not overpriced either. Worth a look!

Agree re windows open and good ventilation. And nice cleaning products/drop of oil on the radiator.

Im a massive candle/wax melt lover. Have them
on all the time!

This is the best Reed diffuser I’ve ever had:
https://valentte.com/organic/lemongrass-and-rosemary-reed-diffuser/

Also I know this smell may not be for everyone but I love it, Habitat by Sainsbury’s do a gorgeous “morning coffee” candle, it smells nicely strong and is like being in a coffee shop, it’s gorgeous, especially this time of year!
www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sainsburys-home-core-plus-modern%C2%A0jar-morning-coffee

This plus an air purifier ( get one that also dehumidifies )

The air fresheners that you put inside your hoovers are really good.

I also love the smell of zoeflora in kitchen and bleach in the bathroom.

Tkmaxx used to sell a Calvin Klein candle called Leaf that made my house smell amazing, I've never found one as good.