Bringing the winter scent of Pine inside to freshen your home naturally

It’s Winter. Most of us have our windows closed and the heat turned on. Our houses may have a bit of a smell, but we love our dogs so we will deal with it. Some deal with it by buying an air fresheners from the store. But what they don't realize is that there are chemicals in that product that are very harmful to ourselves and especially to our dogs. A dogs sense of smell is more that 400 times stronger than a humans. Imagine what they are smelling when we plug that product in!

I just love taking a walk in the woods. Being outside in nature is such a wonderful feeling. When I'm out in the woods it is a perfect opportunity for me to harvest some fresh pine. If you live in the city maybe a little day trip into the suburbs is just what you need. If neither of these options are a possibility you can always order dried pine needles here on Etsy from several shops. Using the dried plant will be just fine. I usually harvest a basket full and dry it out to use all winter long.

Remember to only take a small amount of what you see before you. It is always nice to give back and to say thank you. You can leave a bit of your hair for the birds to weave into their nests. Always give back!

Here is super easy, inexpensive way you can have a wonderful fresh smelling home all winter long. You can change it up by adding some different spices like clove some days and cinnamon on others.

It is so easy to just add all of the ingredients into the crockpot and add some water. As the water level goes down during the day just add more. You can use these same ingredients for an entire week by just heating for an hour or two per day. After you unplug the crockpot, top of the water and you are ready to heat it up the next day and enjoy that wonderful scent.

All Natural Winter Crockpot Air Freshener

Ingredients and equipment:

Pine pieces - about 3 sprigs

Cranberries - a handful of either fresh or frozen

Orange - cut in half or in pieces (a small tangerine works fine)

Cinnamon sticks - 1 or 2 broken up

Cloves - about a tablespoon of whole pieces

Small crockpot (plug in type that holds about a cup or two of water)

Directions:

Add all of the above ingredients into the crockpot. Cover the ingredients with water and plug in. Enjoy the warm scent for a few hours. Unplug and refill the water level back to the top and plug back in the next day. This batch will last for about a week depending on how long you keep it on.

Beware and understand

just what other air fresheners are doing to your dog and yourself!

I know those store bought air fresheners smell so good. The companies that make them do tons of research to see what is pleasing to our sense of smell. We then buy these products because we want our homes to smell good….. but did you know your are harming your pets everyday as well as yourself. There have been studies done that show the chemicals in these products are endocrine disrupters. They are so very bad for us and our pets. Just what is an endocrine disrupter you ask, let share you some articles that explain it well.

Here are some articles by some very reputable dog sites

These articles may help you understand why it is so important that we use natural air fresheners

Dogs Naturally

Whole Dog Journal