Smells like home: Fragrances help make spaces more cozy
Published 9:50 am Monday, October 4, 2010
You may have sensed, pardon the pun, that there are hundreds of new home fragrance products in stores. The industry has sniffed out a trend: We’re spending more time at home, and we want our rooms to smell good.
“Good” might mean clean, or exotic, or even yummy. Always wanted to visit a Moroccan bazaar? Craving a spa day? Comforted by the scent of a fresh-baked cookie? Whatever your preference, chances are there’s a spray for that. Or a luminary, plug-in or diffuser.
Among the newest products are scent “stories” that cycle through a timed series of fragrances, wooden wicks that evoke crackling fires, flameless candles and no-spill diffusers.
“The most notable trend is toward fragrances that transport you; that have a dreamlike or escapist quality,” said Barbara Miller, spokeswoman for the National Candle Association.
Holly Bohn, founder of online retailer See Jane Work, says her go-to product is Good Home Co.’s Beach Days. It’s part of a category known as the “ozones:”: scents that are considered refreshing and evocative of fresh air and water.
There are half a dozen versions of crisp, clean linen alone. Citrus-based scents are similar; many find them a finishing touch to a newly cleaned house. And they’ll provide a temporary freshening-up for closets or bathrooms without laying on heavy fragrance.
Mei Xe, founder of Chesapeake Bay Candles. says gourmand fragrances — like vanilla and pumpkin — bring back happy memories, making you feel safe and warm.
Pier 1 has also focused on “cozy,” with scents such as Spiced Cake and Fall Fireside.
Glade and Febreze, mass market leaders in home fragrances, recently launched an array of products with scents for fall including Cranberry Pear, Pumpkin Pie and Cashmere Woods.
To avoid fragrance overload, Xe recommends “staying within the same category, whether it’s florals, fruity notes, woodsy fragrances, whatever. Don’t mix fragrances that are too different from each other.”
Not sure what you like? Take the fragrance profile quiz on the Chesapeake Bay Candle website. www.chesapeakebaycandle.com.
Christopher Brosius, the first artist to have fragrances showcased by New York’s Cooper Hewitt Museum, won two Fragrance Foundation awards. His perfumes and home sprays carry names such as Gathering Apples, Burning Leaves and In the Library. Others capture his interpretation of Russian caravans (smoky black tea and bergamot) and gardens (hyacinth, green shoots, moss).
Marie Gartshore, spokeswoman for New Jersey’s Research Institute for Fragrance Materials, said the industry is always looking at what scent chemicals might cause problems. A five-year study into potential irritants is under way. So far, she said, “no fragrance material has been shown to be a definitive” allergen.
Natural scent
For those who prefer to go completely natural, essential oils such as citrus, rose, lavender and others can work well as air fresheners. Mix 4 ounces of distilled water, 2 ounces of rubbing alcohol and 30 drops of essential oil (or blend fragrances such as 15 drops of orange and 15 drops of clove for a winter holiday air freshener) and put in a carefully labeled spray bottle.
