Scent Your Space

There’s something incredibly satisfying about preparing a home-cooked meal—savoring all the hard work, and then placing the very last dirty dish back. On the surface, everything looks to be back the way it was two hours ago, but one thing might not return to its original state quite yet: the smell.

Whether it's glazed salmon wafting from the kitchen, worn-in running shoes blocking the doorway or your dog, well, everywhere, there are countless variables floating around your home that influence the overall aroma. Worse yet: we may be so accustomed to the smell that we don't realize there's room for improvement until it's too late.

Of course, there is no guarantee that your home smells, but the more these everyday scents blend together the greater the chance that the combination fails you. Which is why 74% of Americans are currently concerned about how their homes smell, according to a recent survey.

Scented candles are a trusted method to clear the air, but while they're stylish, they tend to be a tad subtle for the occasions you really need to freshen up. Plus, they can quite literally burn a hole through your savings if you're trying to mask an entire house.

Sure, the plug-ins of the world can refresh a room with ease, but they also provide limited scent options and resemble the deodorant aisle at your local pharmacy with options like lavender, vanilla and of course the seasonal pumpkin spice. What may have worked in dorm rooms to cover up laundry bags and leftovers is not up to the quality or sophistication we expect today.

Fortunately, companies have married more elevated fragrances with the ease of a Febreze and a new trace has taken over. Brands are manufacturing room sprays that can not only cover up a burnt meal, but upgrade a home's overall odor. Simply spraying a mist before leaving the house, or twice after cooking, will do twice the work of a candle in spreading a new bouquet around the home with minimal effort. Think of it as cologne for your place, where a multi-layered fragrance develops and changes throughout the day. Here are some of our favorite room sprays that we're currently spritzing around.