Freshen up!

You know the smell - stale rug. Or, dog-smelling rug, cat-smelling rug, kid-smelling rug. In any case, your rug needs some freshening up. Of course, washing your rug is optimal for getting it squeaky clean, but when you don't need an all out wash, what do you do? There are tons and tons of pre-made carpet fresheners out there. Some are full of chemicals, and some claim to be "natural" (uh huh, sure). This past weekend - yes, while on vacation - I decided that I wanted my rug to smell good without the use of a can of powdery chemicals - so, remember these herbs I dried out? ------>

Here is what I did (and it worked!) :
Gather some dried out herbs...something you love the smell of. Crumble them up and sprinkle over your carpets. Now, if you live in a house with wall-to-wall in every room, this could take some time and a fair amount of herbs. We have hardwood, so I only had to treat a few area rugs. After covering your rug with said herbs, walk on them and grind them into the rug with your feet to release their scents and (hopefully) rub it into your rugs. Let them sit for a few, and vacuum. It works great (also makes your vacuum smell great!), and I imagine will last a while. The smell is so amazing, and so much more subtle than "gentle breeze" or "spring rain" or whatever nonsense scent they can come up with, that's for sure. Here's a list of herbs I tried:

rosemary - love the smell, and if we're talking folklore - great for ridding your house of negativity and promoting health and well being

jasmine flowers - eh, this was ok. not a strong enough smell, but I wanted to use them up.

lavender - you can't go wrong with lavender, can you?

yarrow - just like lavender, you can't go wrong with yarrow. Widely used in dried floral arrangements because it retains it's color (yellow works best) and smell.

scented geranium - I think this worked the best because the scent is pretty powerful. I dry the leaves only.

Other herbs/flowers that are worth trying....rose (if you're up for using them. I couldn't justify crumbling and vacuuming my dried rose), chamomile (I'm going to try that next, I love chamomile!), any mint, basil, lemon balm or verbena, or whatever herb you like the smell of. Give it a shot! And please do report back with what worked, and what didn't.

**A word of caution** If you are pregnant or nursing, please be cautious. Some herbs are not suitable for pregnant or nursing mothers. Also, please consider if your dog/cat is a bottom feeder - as in, they'll eat ANYthing. If you own such an animal, good for you! Your floors are probably immaculate. But, some herbs aren't good for their digestive systems. And of course, if you have a toddler/crawler who also likes to clean your floors, please do not try this while he/she is up and about. Wait for nap time :^)