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detergent + booster
When you have a busy or stressful day, the right scent can serve as your one-way ticket to relaxation. Everyone has a routine that comforts them when they need to unwind — maybe you may like to watch a TV show, read, meditate, or listen to music. If you’re looking to take your wind-down routine to the next level, scents might be the ideal next step.
Calming scents can be the perfect backdrop for when it's time to kick your feet up or if your to-do list is giving you the side-eye and you need a quick breather. These fragrances can be soothing and give you a much-needed boost — we're diving into the most calming scents and why you should start incorporating them.
How Can Scents Help You Unwind?
If you’ve noticed that certain scents, like lavender and eucalyptus, can make you feel calmer, it’s not all in your head. There's a reason these scents are tied to relaxation, and it all comes down to the science.
Your sense of smell is strongly connected to your brain's emotional center. Certain smells can act as direct hotlines to your nervous system, and they have the power to help you chill out or feel more energized. In fact, several studies have found that people inhaling relaxing scents experienced lower stress levels.
Specific fragrances can trigger the release of neurotransmitters in your brain, like serotonin and dopamine — these are your brain's happy chemicals that make you feel your best.
Let’s get one thing straight: scents aren't a magical cure-all for all your problems, but they can still be a trusty sidekick along the way. Consider reaching for calming scents when you've had a long day or want to take the edge off.
What Are Some Calming Scents for Soothing Vibes?
With all of this in mind, let’s talk about some of our top picks for soothing scents. At Snif, our fragrances are formulated without parabens, preservatives, phthalates, or synthetic dyes — because your favorite fragrances should bring you peace of mind. They’re also super long-lasting without being too overpowering, making them the perfect addition to your daily routine.
1. Way With Woods
The Way With Woods fragrance is a crowd-pleaser. This is a natural and woody scent with a touch of sweet freshness. It combines white tea, mandarin, sandalwood, amber woods, vetiver, and musk for an earthy, slightly sweet finish.
Scents from nature can have very calming effects, and studies have shown various benefits for physical and mental health — one study found that experiencing scents from nature can help you feel happier and less anxious.
2. Sweet Ash
The Sweet Ash scent is a subtle and sweet fragrance featuring juniper, bergamot, fir balsam, tonka, vanilla bean, white moss, and patchouli.
The juniper and fir balsam give Sweet Ash a woody scent, while fir balsam adds an herbal, woody smell.
The addition of juniper adds a natural, slightly spicy element, like a freshly cut Christmas tree. Juniper essential oil is traditionally used in aromatherapy massages and meditation practices to help create a peaceful atmosphere, making it one of the best choices when it comes to calming scents.
3. Golden Ticket
Few things are more soothing than a cup of tea — and with Golden Ticket, you can bottle the feeling. Golden Ticket is a tea-inspired scent that brings you the uplifting benefits of tea in scent form. With bergamot, black tea, green tea, golden maté, sage, incense, amber, and vetiver, Golden Ticket has a light but musky essence.
Bergamot is a citrus fruit whose scent you might be familiar with if you’re fond of Earl Grey tea. Bergamot has a fresh but gentle scent that’s sure to kick your wind-down routine into gear.
4. Strawberry Moon
Strawberry Moon is a bright, fun scent that comes in clutch when you need a pick-me-up. This fragrance contains jasmine, leather, bergamot, pink pepper, iris, saffron, vetiver, and amber woods for a sweet but warm and earthy finish.
Jasmine is commonly used as a mood booster in aromatherapy, and its sweet and rich floral scent is thought to help with stress relief and sleep — one study even found that the smell of jasmine led to better sleep and reduced movement.
5. Crumb Couture
The fresh smell of baked goods is one of the most powerful. Maybe it brings you back to childhood mornings at the local bakery, or reminds you of your grandparents’ kitchen.
Crumb Coutre bottles the aroma of a warm croissant so you can take that feeling with you wherever you go. This croissant fragrance mixes croissant accord, wild berry jam, blackcurrant, toasted vanilla, tonka bean, and sandalwood.
The fragrance is a fan-favorite and perfectly balances sweet and woody. The sandalwood adds creamy depth and gives the fragrance lasting power. If you quickly become addicted to the warm, buttery vibes, we understand.
What Are Some Calming Candles To Try?
There are many ways to incorporate relaxing scents into your everyday life, from diffusers to soaps, lotions, and candles… but if you ask us, candles are one of the best ways to elevate your living space and surround yourself with zen feelings.
Snif has a wide variety of premium candles in different scents for when you want (or need) to de-stress, and we use the same high-quality fragrances in our candles as we do in our fragrances.
6. Off the Grid
Off the Grid is a warm, calming scent that blends amber, lily, musk, and sandalwood for the ultimate soothing burn. Off the Grid also contains moss, cypress, tuberose, and cedar for an earthy feeling that's ideal when you want to unplug and put your life on Do Not Disturb.
The tuberose in this candle offers sweet hints of honey and ambrosial white blooms, while cypress is a fresh fragrance and lily has green nuances. Together, these scents transform your home into the calming, peaceful environment you deserve.
7. Birds and the Breeze
Heavy scents can overwhelm your senses, so lighter fragrances can sometimes be the perfect pick to soothe your nerves. Birds and the Breeze is a light and airy scent where mimosa petals meet jasmine, galbanum, and cedarwood for grounding effects.
Galbanum is an earthy green fragrance that comes from a flowering plant, and it has been used in incense and perfumery since ancient times — in other words, it’s certainly earned its spot.
8. Way With Woods
Our Way With Woods candle has all the same incredible scents as in the fragrance, like white tea, mandarin, sandalwood, and amber woods. This inviting, crisp scent will help fill your space and make you feel like you’re relaxing in a woodsy escape… even if you’re on the couch (we won’t tell).
9. Sweet Ash
Snif's most popular fragrance is a hit in its candle form as well. The Sweet Ash scent brings sweetness and earthiness together in perfect harmony, and moss, woods, fir balsam, tonka, and vanilla bean will have you wanting to light this candle in every room.
Kick Back and Relax
The positive effects of certain aromas are hard to ignore, and if you ask us, incorporating these scents into your life may be just what you need to welcome some serenity into your days. Whether you opt for a fragrance or a candle, these scents are sure to help put your mind at ease. So, light the candle, spritz your skin, and let the relaxation begin.
Sources:
Smells in nature help us feel more relaxed and cheerful | Earth
Effects of odors on sleep quality in 139 healthy participants | PMC