Smelling Good, Feeling Good
Managing the scents in your life makes the life you planned more likely.
Posted May 19, 2026 | Reviewed by Hara Estroff Marano
Many of us are about to seal up our homes for the season. We’re getting ready to turn on our air conditioners (northern hemisphere) or our heating systems (southern hemisphere).
After the windows close, it will take a few days for the air inside to get stale and for us to begin to think fondly of the fresh breezes that had once wafting through. You may begin to actively consider scenting your home. But should you “engineer” the scent in your home, and what scents are best if you do?
When we’re in a place that smells good, mood improves, and when that happens, we are more effective problem-solvers, we think more creatively, and we get along better with others.
A space smells good when it smells fresh. “Fresh” is one of those sensory experiences we recognize when we encounter it but find hard to describe in words. If you’re opening windows when you can, have an up-to-date ventilation system, clean/replace your HVAC system’s air filters on schedule, and keep up with the dusting, vacuuming, and mopping, your home is probably smelling pretty fresh.
Once you’ve established a fresh base, what scents should you layer on?
What does the research say about the specific smells you should look for in scented products or air fresheners?
Don’t add too much scent to spaces. People should not even realize a space has been "smellscaped" unless you draw their attention to it. Easy does it.
Managing the scents in your life is one way to make your life much better.
Rachel Herz. 2009. The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell . HarperCollins.
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Sally Augustin, Ph.D. , is an environmental psychologist and the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture .
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This article is part of the Bringwise Psychology Journal — daily insights on human behavior, mental health, and personal growth.