Household odors
In the past twenty years, consumers have been inundated with shiny, media-driven ad campaigns, to FEAR odors. I guarantee you if you sit down and watch 30 minutes of TV, you will see everything from odor-controlling garbage bags, aerosol room sprays, to contraptions that emit froo froo smells every time it senses movement. The ads are intriguing and meant to play on all sorts of emotions essentially saying, “A HAPPY home smells good, A well organized home isn’t complete without vanilla apples, (and my favorite,) What must your neighbors think!?” So for 25 seconds you watch an over joyed housewife running through her bedrooms, through the family room, and into the kitchen destroying all evil odors.
Air fresheners
What most of you don’t realize is these marketing gurus are carving out a money train, putting the fear of odor in your brain, that must be replenished every thirty to sixty days, Cha-Ching! Kinda like those prescription drug ads: Does your house have dirty socks? How about a trash can? Does your kitchen smell like food?….OMG! They are talking about me, I have that! So you run out and buy up every apple cinnamon air freshener on the shelf. The good news is your home will now smell like cinnamon apple dirty socks and kitchen trash! yummmm!
Commercial air fresheners are toxic. They contaminate the air and have major health hazards thanks to petroleum distillates, chlorinated hydrocarbons, ketones, and other dangerous solvents. Some will deaden unwanted odors but as Carla Emery states in her book, Country Living, “most are designed to deal with you.” Air fresheners basically mask natural odors by overpowering them with highly concentrated commercial chemicals, or worse designed to COAT your nasal passages with an oily film to impair your ability to smell. Some even consist of nerve-deadening agents called phthalates, that attack your nasal passages so you may not be able to smell that cat box, but your guests can. Phthalates are starting to be phased out of the US and Canada thanks to birth defects, infertility and being carcinogenic. Not to mention the Center for Disease Control did a test on numerous women of childbearing age and found 7 different types of phthalates in their urine….but that was in 2006 and you can still buy apple cinnamon and a myriad of other flavors at your local market.
The biggest issue here is your health. Whether you’re trying to get pregnant, suffer from allergies, or are trying to survive a pandemic, we need to eliminate as many toxins as we can so our immune system has a fighting chance to help us!
The Solution:
Instead of buying the commercially driven, air freshener death wish, opt for a homemade, DIY, environmentally safe option instead.
Air freshener alternative
What you’ll need:
1C vodka or isopropyl alcohol
1C water
1 Spray bottle
essential oil or oils of your preference
I always make my DIY linen and room spray with vodka because it is one of the most prevalent ingredients at the Gates Interior Design office, and at home…but isopropyl alcohol works too! In a large container mix all the ingredients together and add in your essential oils last. Gently shake or stir the ingredients. With a funnel pour what you’ll need into a small 2 or 3 oz bottle and keep the remainder in an air tight container in a dry cool place. Will keep up to two years if stored properly.
Simple and easy to make, safe for you and the environment, plus, alcohol kills a lot of germs. I actually use this as a cleaner too. I will use this to clean my counters, wipe down glass, and wipe down other surfaces and it makes my home smell amazing.
images: Debbie Atwood, Time health,
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Do you mean spraying something from a can that smells like lemons and then inhaling what is left for for an hour is not good for you?
I like your solution Amanda. Defintely makes sense to me.
Thanks for the recipe -great post!
I used to use the commercial air refreshers, and fragrant laundry detergent, but had to stop because they made my lungs very congested and I couldn’t breathe well – plus lots of coughing at bedtime because the sheets were washed with the “lovely” fragrant toxin.
I bought a good air purifier that removes chemical odours and I can finally breathe normal again. It took a while to remove all those horrible fragrances from the house – opening up all the windows helped to air it out but it wasn’t enough.
I will try your recipe – I’d like to have a nice scent in the home.
Love this post, ab! I don’t use any of those crazy things, either. Love your solution. And, hey, when it really gets stinky in your house? How ’bout opening a window!?
Looks like a great idea! Will have to try just to freshen things up. I am one that doesn’t believe in air freshener because I consider it a mask for odor, but this would be great for a clean scent!
Teresa
xoxo
I never use air fresheners because they are so artificial..prefer lavender as scent or bicarb to remove odors. You make me laugh with your vodka recipe and I almost went to buy it once but it was too expensive . I am more likely to try isopropyl alcohol. : )
xx
Would chocolate vodka work ? Cause that’s all I have at the moment ………
Yuck. I hate air fresheners and sprays. I do, though, burn the occasional sugar cookie-scented candle if my house smells like bacon or something. Thanks for the recipe – sounds like a great idea!
buy some incense, open a window, take out the garbage, give the dog a bath, clean the frig, I happen to love eucalyptus incense, it smells so healthy and relaxing, that’s what I use, I don’t like the ones you plug into the wall, and I don’t like their fragrance either.
my culprit is usually something in the frig, today I threw out some brussel sprouts that I let go from frozen to mushy – ugh what a smell!
Oh this is really good to know. Thank you for the cool DIY recipe too.
I am sticking to my scentsy candles for winter.
I am trying to make my own cleaning solution as well!
Hi Amanda,
I enjoyed your post.
I tend not to use any air freshners or floral scented candles in my home, becaue my nose stings and my eyes water whenever I do.
I have a chemical sensitivity, however…the only non-aerosol air freshener that does get used in my home is “Pure Citrus”. “Ingredients: 100% natural delightfully fragrant oils found in fresh oranges” It is available at your local super market and online.
I don’t really use sprays, but I’d like to try this recipe. Do you know where I can find more info about air fresheners being toxic (other than the book you cited-is there more info?)
Yes! Just google phthalates or toxicity of air fresheners. Hundreds of articles have been written on it. Also click on my link above from TIME health.
I could hug you for this great tip! I just made a spray for my house – I used the alcohol not the vodka – and I had orange oil leftover from some scrub I made. My house now smells like a freely cut orange! I going to the store tomorrow to buy more oils.
By the way – an easy body scrub:
1 cup of epsom salt
1/4 cup grape seed oil (buy at trader joes’ if you have one – cheap)
couple drops of oil
put in plastic container
Sooooo good!
Thanks donna!!! Love it!
I find it astounding that these horrible, sickening, toxins are so widely used, Living in Apartment complexes is brutal, Wafting in through the doors, Try Opening a window, not to fresh air but nothing but these chemical toxic smells, Walk down the Street, one has to hold their breath,—- Many use them to cover up cigarette smoke,What a lovely mish mash of cancer producing poisons, some of us are forced to live with—-