How to Make Your Home Smell Like Christmas Without Candles

Do you know the feeling of walking into a room and getting hit with such a wonderful scent that you want to melt into the floor and stay there forever? Some smells are so comforting and cozy, that they immediately make you want to cuddle up with a good book or spend time with loved ones. It is the power of the nose! But how do you make your home smell like Christmas without candles?

There are a lot of reasons why you might not want to use candles in your home. Although I am a little candle obsessed, I do understand some of the reasoning people have when it comes to avoiding candles.

So, if you are trying to make your house smell like Christmas without candles, I have some ideas for you! I love making my house smell good during the Christmas season. When it is winter, and cold outside, all activities move indoors. Spending all this time inside, I want it to be enjoyable, and that includes every sense.

During the winter season, I am doing everything I can to stay warm and cozy, and certain scents evoke this. Fragrance companies know what they are doing when they release spicy and gourmand scents during this time of year.

Now that pumpkin spice has left the chat, I am here for all the Christmas scents! In this article, I am going to give some easy and candle-free methods to making your home smell amazing!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I make a small commission through these links with no impact on your purchase.

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Why Would you Want to Avoid Candles?

Listen, I will say this upfront, I am a candle lover. If you couldn’t tell by my post on Bath and Body Works, I have quite the collection of scented candles. So while I am telling you these reasons for wanting to avoid candles, know that I still use them… a lot.

But I do understand a lot of the reasoning behind wanting to find alternatives to candles when adding fragrance to your home. So, here are some of the reasons!

1. Candles can be dangerous: I mean, it is an open flame in your home, of course they can be dangerous. I get nervous lighting candles sometimes because I hear all the horror stories involving house fires and candles. So you always have to be extra careful when burning candles in your home. This is especially true if you have wiley children or pets in your home.
2. Most candles aren’t natural: I will admit, I have no idea what is in the Bath and Body Works candles that I burn. Companies are not required to tell customers what is in the “fragrance” ingredient in products to protect formulas. So, if you are trying to have a natural home, most candles will not fall in that category except a select few.
3. Candles are expensive: So true! I do not want to know how much money I have spent on candles. They can be so expensive if you are not purchasing them during sales like Candle Day. And if you burn them often, it becomes expensive having to keep a consistant supply.

As you can see, there are so many reasons people would want to avoid candles. But having something to add fragrance to your home may still be important!

What Kind of Scents are Perfect for the Holiday Season?

There is a certain psychology behind the way the olfactory system works in humans. If you haven’t noticed, most of us gravitate towards the same types of scents during different seasons, no matter how different our preferences are.

Having worked for a candle retailer, I have seen what scents people love during the holiday season, and I also know what I like.

• Gourmand Scents: These are the sweet, cookie, cake better type scentes. When these fragrances are in your home, it smells like you have a fresh pan of cookies you just pulled out of the oven. These types of fragrences are definitely a “you love it or you hate it” kind of thing.
• Spicy Scents: These are your cinnamon, clove, nutmeg type fragrences. These give the illusion that you have some cinnamon rolls baking in the oven. These types of scents also feel very warm, which is the goal during the winter season.
• Natural Scents: Winter often makes us think of nature, especially during Christmas time when we bring an entire tree into our home. So many people enjoy the natural, pine type fragrences that go along with Christmas trees and long walks in a snowy park. It can be nice to have a pine scent in your home especially if you use an artificial tree.
• Clean scents: When I think of winter I think of snow. When I think of snow I think of clean and white. There are a lot of crisp, clean fragrences that are well-loved during the holiday season. Sometimes it can be a refreshing change from the sweet and warm scents.

Everyone has different preferences and opinions when it comes to anything, but especially scents. One person’s favorite can make another person nauseated. But one thing most people have in common is the desire to have a nice-smelling home.

Why do People Want a Nice-Smelling Home?

As I said, there are a lot of reasons someone would care about their home fragrance. Here are a few.

• They have guests coming over
• They have pets (they can get smelly)
• Personal preference
• They are selling their home

Whatever the reason you want to make your home smell good without candles, I have some options for you!

How to Remove Odors from Your Home Naturally and Without Candles

Firstly, if you are trying to make your home smell like Christmas without candles, you are going to want to remove any bad smells in your house, which is super easy. Sometimes you aren’t aware of how your home smells because you have gone nose blind to it. So, to make sure you are starting with a clean base smell, here are some natural ways to remove bad odors from your home.

1. Get some houseplants! Believe it or not there are house plants that can absorb the odors in your home! Check out this list of 11 hosue plants that absorb in from your home.
2. Clear our old food! A lot of time, kitchens can hold all sorts of bad smells because of bad food. Clear out your kitchen space of any old or expired foods to eliminate the sources of the bad smells.
3. Clean all fabric surfaces! Fabric is so good at holding onto smells. So clean them! Wash all blankets, pillow cases, rugs, and more. For large pieces like couches, make some DIY fabric fragrence spray, or buy some Febreeze from Amazon. Check out this DIY recipe for Lemon & Lavender Fabric Spray from Clean Mama!

After you have created a neutral base, you can start to make your home smell like Christmas without candles!

Ways to Make Your Home Smell like Christmas Without Candles

1. Stovetop Potpourri (my personal favorite): I use stovetop potpourris every year during the holidays. It is so easy and smells amazing!
   • You know how the smell of the food you are cooking permeated through your entire kitchen? That is exactly why stovetop potpourri works so well.
   • Grab a pot or a stovetop steamer, like this one from Amazon. Fill it with water and a mixture of fragrent ingredients. Put it on the stove at a low heat and let it simmer for however long you want.
   • Hint: You can do the same think in a crock pot on low heat! Just take the lid off so the smell can travel throughout the room.
   • Your house will smell like Christmas for hours with a stovetop potpourri simmering!
   • What ingredients can you include in stovetop potpourri?
     • Orange slices
     • Lemon slices
     • Apple slices
     • Cinnamon sticks
     • Clove
     • Pomegranate seeds
     • Rosemary sprigs
     • Cranberries
   • You can really include whatever you want to create the fragrence experience that you love.
   • You can find so many recipes online. Check out this recipe for some inspiration!
   • Hint: You can easily make this an apple cider by including only apples, oranges, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg in a huge pot with some water or apple juice. It not only makes your home smell amazing, but it tastes delicious as well!
2. Regular Potpourri
   • Want a fragrence that lasts a little longer and doesn’t use any electricity? Try some regular potpourri!
   • Potpourri comes in any scent or smell you can think of, and they make a ton perfect for the holidays. Amazon sells so many scentes like this Cinnamon Cider Potporri which is perfect for the holidays.
   • You can also find scented pinecone potpourri in grocery stores and craft stores this time of year. This always smells amazing and just like any regular potpourri, it makes fantastic Christmas home decor as well!
   • This is a great way to have your home smelling amazing without the troubles of lighting a candle or having the stove one.
3. Bake
   • We all know that our home smells amazing when we are baking! It is an undeniable fact. So, if you are having a holiday get together, or you want your home to smell amazing on Christmas, get to baking!
   • Some of my favorite baked goods to make are sugar cookies, cinnamon rolls, pecan pie, gingerbread, and pumpkin bread. All of these treats smell amazing and taste even better!
   • The best part of this method is that you get to eat the yummy treats at the end of it.
4. Essential Oil Diffuser
   • Usually when you think about essential oils, you think of fresh scents like lavender and eucalyptus. But did you know that you can make your home smell like Christmas using essential oils?
   • If you want to stick with one scent, grab a bottle of cinnamon essential oils and start diffusing! This oil makes your home smell like the inside of a Cinnabon store! It is the perfect smell for the holidays.
   • Or use peppermint to make your home smell like a candy cane. Amazon sells sets of essential oils perfect for Christmas that include peppermint, vanilla, cinnamon, and more.
   • You can also get fancy with essential oil blends. Some companies on Amazon have created gingerbread essential oil blends and sugar plum essential oil blends.
   • Hint: If you are looking for natural home fragrence, make sure you are buying 100% pure essential oils. Don’t buy any blends labled “fragrence oil” or “scented oil”
   • Warning: If you have pets, always make sure the oils you are using are pet friendly.

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Who doesn’t want a good-smelling house, especially during the holidays? If you are planning a Christmas party, or want your home to smell good on Christmas Day, I hope you found some helpful tips and inspiration from this post.

I have always been a lover of fragrance and that has only grown over the years. With all the different home fragrance companies out there, I am always looking for new and exciting ways to make my home smell amazing.

These tips to make your home smell like Christmas without candles are used every year in my house! I can’t wait to have some cozy nights in this holiday season with cinnamon and spice wafting in from my stovetop potpourri!