Our homes get stale after a while. Dust, dirt, and our odors fill the house with old or musty smells. You can eliminate the odors, or you can cover them up. 

Here are five ways you can get a better smelling home in a hurry:

Refresh your linens

Our clothes take on the smells of our home. After days of cooking meals, spraying hair products, and running the HVAC, our fabrics take on the smell of all those things. Getting your home smelling better may take a little extra work and laundry, but it worth the effort. Remember to toss in extra bedding, curtains, and rugs at least once a month to keep down funky odors.

Deodorize your carpets and beds

These fabric areas need some attention and love every few weeks. Mixing up a little baking soda, essential oil, and cornstarch in a shaker jar is a great way to deodorize these areas. If you do not have a shaker, you can make one with a mason jar or oatmeal container. Use a nail and hammer to punch holes in the lid. Add the mixture to the jar and shake liberally. Leave on the surface for at least 15 minutes, then vacuum. Baby powder works well on beds.

Add a fragrant scent

Putting an essential oil diffuser, wax melter, incense burner, or scented candles throughout the home will add a fresh new smell. You can purchase items that eliminate odors, have natural ingredients, or add a new scent. There are scent warmers you can plug into the outlet that warm-up and emit one or two smells for a certain period.

Another way to make your home smell wonderful is by making a homemade potpourri. You can put dried orange and apple peels, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, cloves, or other spices in a pot with a lot of water and let it simmer on the stove. If you do not want to monitor the pot to add water, then use your crockpot. You can turn on a mix of your favorite spices, and the scent will permeate your home all day long.

Try a new recipe

Like using an air freshener, cooking puts a new smell in the house and helps get rid of stale smells. Garlic or onion recipes will add foul odors. However, you can use these items sparingly in your favorite dinner, and the house will smell amazing. For sweet smells, you can bake a batch of cookies or go a little more extravagant and make a fresh pie.

Chase down musty odors in closets and areas you use less often

Areas of the home that see the least activity are the places that often harbor the worst odors. Corners, closets, basements, and attics will attract scents and collect them all. The only real way to get rid of these odors is to empty the space and clean everything inside out and top to bottom once in a while. Your seasonal cleaning should do the trick, but you can use a potpourri satchel or powerless air freshener in these spaces between cleanings to eliminate bad smells.

Cleaning, refreshing, deodorizing, and using low effort products like dryer balls will help you make your entire home smell good. Regular washing and frequent fragrance use will improve the air in the house. Wash coats, purses, bags, and shoes often.