Cleaning the Air with Aromatherapy

It has long been established by scientists that smell is one of our strongest senses and the most powerful trigger of our memories. Who isn't thrown back in time to when we were young and over at grandma's house with the simple wafting of the smell of baking brownies or cookies? Scent can also play a role in how we perceive our surroundings. After all, if something smells clean, then it must be clean, right? Conversely, if something smells old or musty, then we pretty much think that whatever room we are in must be dirty and moldy.

There is more to aromatherapy than simply sprinkling a few oils around or lighting some candles. By using or making your own aromatherapy products you can achieve the same results that you would pay out the nose for commercially. All of these methods, if used properly, will save you some money while also cleaning the air in your home (while you clean other parts of your home).

• Floors. For a great way to clean your home's linoleum or tile floors, mix together about 15 drops of orange essential oil, 8 drops of essential lemon oil, 2 tablespoons of liquid soap and a gallon of hot water. The resulting mixture will work almost as well as any commercially available floor cleaner and make your room citrusy fresh.
• Carpets. Using rosewood essential oil (about 25 drops), eucalyptus essential oil (about 35 drops), and lavender essential oils (roughly 30 drops) mixed with 4 cups of baking soda or cornstarch will create a fantastic homemade carpet freshener. Simply sprinkle it on your carpet fifteen minutes prior to vacuuming and you will have some fantastically fresh carpets.
• Countertops. Tee Tree oil (or Tea Tree oil) and lavender essential oils have proven anti-bacterial properties that you can use to help disinfect and clean countertops around the home or office. Simply put around five drops of oil into a spray bottle and spray onto the countertops that you want to clean, and wipe it off. For larger jobs, like cleaning an entire room, put around 50 drops of oil into a bucket and mix it all together.