The Smell of Success – Using Your Nose to Decorate Your Home

22 December, 2021 Heloise Garrity

One of the most interesting new interior trends of the moment has to do with the temporal lobe of the brain, which is tasked with organising sensory input. More specifically, it has to do with the olfactory cortex, which is crucial for the processing and perception of scent. This portion of the cerebral cortex also happens to be in the vicinity of where emotion is processed and memories are stored, which makes scent memories some of the most powerful, emotional and enduring of all our recollections in life.

While we are well-accustomed to home inspiration involving the likes of choosing wall colours, moving accessories and furniture about, arranging art and adding textures and patterns to your living space to create a look that exudes ‘you’, how about trying your hand or should we say nose, at scent scaping. This is the layering of fragrances and the differentiating of one space from another with scents that inspire and uplift us, to transform our home and wellness such is the dynamic effect that essential oils and fragrances can have on our mood and emotional state.

In adding another dimension to your home decor with fragrance zoning, as it is otherwise known, it is important to start off by treating your home to a thorough deep clean and air-out, especially in any areas that are an obvious source of smell, including in particular, soft surfaces such as carpets, upholstery and pet beds. Without this clean slate, the introduction of scents have the potential to create an undesirable olfactory combination.

Many scents have well-documented emotional responses, which can help play a profound role in dividing our day up, zoning our spaces and channelling the right mood for working, exercising, relaxing or winding down. Vanilla for example, is sweet, warm and comforting, helping people to feel relaxed and joyful. Similarly, lavender and jasmine have calming aromas that uplift mood and promote a positive outlook. Citrus and ginger notes on the other hand, are invigorating, motivating and uplifting, which makes them an ideal choice as work-from-home scents. Crisp and calm yet energising, grapefruit is the perfect fit for morning yoga and meditation when calling on our yoga flow to awaken and rejuvenate ourselves. A diffuser with lemongrass oil can help to refresh and motivate home workouts while calming and relaxing lavender and juniper are associated with winding down and melting away the stresses and strains of the day, making them ideal for bed and bath rituals.

You can also utilise scent to reflect the change of season or to enhance your favourite decor or interior trends. Scented candles infused with exotic florals are the perfect accompaniment to a tropical interior trend. Reed diffusers and dried bowls fragranced with antique rose, frangipani and other florals will work a treat for spaces that celebrate vintage style.

Varying scents in the home to help define and lend a certain vibe to our spaces to reflect either work or relaxation has never been a more powerful tool in times that have seen our homes practically become our entire world, causing boundaries to be blurred and our mental health and wellness to suffer. There are plenty of ways to draw on scent in this way, be it scented candles, diffusers, wax melts, dried bowls or simply fresh flowers. Ultimately, along with our cosy throws and Hygge-approved sofas, following our nose to structure our day and delineate new spaces with positive boundaries is a surefire way to help keep us inspired and uplifted.