How smells can take you back

Who hasn’t caught a bit of a long-forgotten scent and felt instantly transported back to childhood? Whether that’s orange blossom from your granny’s garden, exotic scents from that once-in-a-lifetime holiday, or pine needles from the first time your family bought a real Christmas tree, scent can trigger wonderful memories.

Many people mention similar fragrances when they think about happy times as a child. Common favourites are fresh linen, fish and chips, lavender, soap and freshly mown grass. More unusual choices include creosote, cigars and bacon.

In our brains, the sense of smell is the one most closely linked with memory – far more so than sight, sound, touch or taste. We store accurate information about scent for years – all it takes is the slightest hint of an aroma and we’re off down memory lane.

So with just a little help from our noses, it’s easy to cheer ourselves up. You can feel happier just by scenting the aroma of something with a good memory attached to it. So think about the scents that make you happy, and use Ambi Pur with a touch of Febreze to bring them into your home. It works in two ways.  First it eliminates any unpleasant odours, then it replaces these with something altogether more pleasing to your nose. There are loads to choose from – from reminiscences of childhood scents like Meadow, Vanilla or Cotton Fresh, to uplifting florals like Wildflower, Lavender Sensation or White Petals, it’s easy to recreate those aromas that mean so much, and enjoy a happy home filled with scent.

Now, it’s over to you – we’d love to hear which aromas get you remembering good times from when you were a child. Do you take a trip back in time whenever you smell roses, or are you transported when you catch the scent of old-fashioned soap?