What will make our house smell nice?

[Birdly]

This is a particularly pertinent question at the moment, as DD and DS have both just had big sick/poo illnesses!
Should I go for pot pourri, candles, oils, gel things? And what fragrances? I like lavender and geranium but haven't managed to find anything that makes the fragrance linger.

While you do this research, put on an extra layer of clothing or two and fling open the widnows to giv ethe place a good airing!!!

fresh flowers - especially lilies! will look lovely too

I think whackintg the heating on full and leaving th windows (and doors if possible) open all day is the best thing to shift icky smells, otherwise when the fragrance wears off, the smell is still there.

I bought those glade airfresheners that look like glass ornaments, can't remember what they are called, but they are really strong and the fragrance lasts for weeks.

no. open your windows and get some fresh air circulating, windows at front and back of house

Open the windows.

Buy a vanilla pod. Slit it open. Put it in a cassarole dish with some water and put it in the oven on low heat.

Burn some beeswax candles

Oh, and bleach your bin, it makes a big difference.

IMHO there is nothing worse than a smell that is being 'masked'. The only cure is to get rid of the smell at source and keep the windows open for a really good airing.

Put a few drops of tea tree oil in some water and spray the house. (it is a natural disinfectant/antiseptic).

Plug in variety of freshners seem to get noticed in my house. Particularly the cinnimon one or mulled wine. The floral ones are almost as bad as a cheap perfume.

Get a breadmaker

Diptyque scented candles are the only ones that don't smell like loo cleaners, imo, and the smell does linger. They are expensive, though. Flowers (hyacinths, freesias, lilies) are also a good idea (splash out on a bunch of scented roses from The Real Flower Company - absolutely the best smell in the whole wide world, other than my kids when they've just woken up!!)
Or put washed clothes on a radiator!

But avoid those awful plug in things. Gawd knows what all those chemicals do to your insides.

Open the windows & bake some cakes, love that smell!

Thats after you have opened your windows, of course

fresh air is best and for now a squirt of oust (and febreze on any areas the DC's were sick) we try and have fresh flowers DONT get one of those airwick freshmatic thingies. They are HUGE, and incredibly noisy! I also have a mildy scented candle for instant nice smell

But for now fresh air to circulate the smells out

Open the windows and use some essential oil in water to dampen a cloth for dusting (lemon or lavender is nice).

Message withdrawn

A friend of mine has an aromastone - it heats up essential oils safely and makes her house smell lovely.

I have some Culpepper aromatherapy essential oils I burn in an oil burner, too, for extra pongy times.

Put bicarb anywhere they were sick too

If you put a dab of essential oil on your light bulbs they will make the room smell lovely when your lights are on. You have to air everywhere first though - no point masking nasty smells.

How do you clean carpet / fabric in a way that gets rid of whatever generates that sick smell?

yankee candles are lovely

Message withdrawn

Try white vinegar mixed with the bicarb (test it on a small area of carpet first though).

i'd agree with Chloe. I cleaned the carpets in our house recently and hired a machine for the day (was 15 quid or so) and filled the resevoir with a tablespoon of baby shampoo and a mugful of white vinegar and about 5 litres of water. Carpets came up lovely and clean and smell great.

If you can't hire a machine, then just use a sponge and then some old towels to blot the carpet dry - leave the heating on, and windows open until it's dry, as others have suggested.

Vinegar shifts the nastiest smells