// Scents and Seasonal Decorating (+ Giveaway!)

One of my favorite things about the holiday season is the smells! From cookies in the oven to the rich pine scent of a real Christmas tree, I love how powerful and memorable the sense of smell can be. In the past Mike and I haven't ever really "decorated" for Christmas aside from putting up a tree. We never went all out with garlands or outdoor lights. Now that we're settled somewhere for the next little while, I've really been itching to really deck the halls. I picked up some outdoor pre-lit garland and some wreaths the other day, and even snagged some lights to lay over our bushes, etc. Of course we haven't gotten around to putting them all up yet, but even just the thought of it has me feeling festive.

Our Christmas tree went up incredibly early (on Halloween!), but I've held off on everything else because I didn't want to get too carried away before Thanksgiving. Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, I'm ready to throw myself into it all. This year will be the first year we spend Christmas Eve at home as a family. Every year since I was born (minus one), I've spent Christmas Eve at my mom's house. Once Mike and I moved in together that was just what we did. This year Toby has requested that we sleep at our own house so Santa can come visit us here. I'm a little heartbroken and excited at the same time. We'll be making new memories and establishing new traditions. I really really love traditions.

Since I only just recently ordered our stockings, things aren't feeling super festive inside our home. The tree is lit and I listen to "Punk Goes Christmas" far too much, but still, something was missing. Holiday scents! From New Year to Thanksgiving, our house smells like honeysuckle. It's my favorite scent and I love how it keeps our house feeling fresh and Spring-like. But between Thanksgiving and New Years Eve, I bust out all of my holiday candles and wax melts, and I constantly wish we had a fireplace. This year I'm melting/burning scents from Air Wick (Spiced Apple Crumble - OMG, and Emerald Woodland - They come in both candles and wax melts.)

I'm a huge fan of wax melts, and if you follow me on Instagram you've probably seen countless photos of my wax warmers in the background of photos. I have one in our room, the bathroom, the kitchen and the living room. If I really want this place to smell good, it takes all of about 10 minutes with all 4 going! I've really loved the Air Wick melts so far because they're "layered" with different scents so you never really go nose blind to them (the candles are multi-layer too!). Just when you get familiar to the smell of the room, you're hit with a new note that is complimentary, but fresh.

Decorating with a Linden around is a little difficult at times. I can't have an open flame or melted wax anywhere he can reach it, so I'm pretty much left to just decorating on the counters or the window shelves we built between the living room and kitchen. However sometimes I also just prefer to pop the wax melts in the warmer and "hide" it on a shelf so there's no distracting light - just an awesome holiday atmosphere. There's something about walking into a space and being greeted with such a warm, inviting smell. I truly think the scent of your environment can greatly impact your mood and experience.

What are your favorite seasonal scents?

If you're interested in snagging 2 of each Air Wick Life Scent candles shown above, pop over to my Instagram (@kaelahbee) and tag a friend! I'll be announcing a winner this weekend! You can have your home smelling delicious before Christmas rolls around, too!

xo KB

This post is in partnership with Air Wick. All opinions and words are my own, as usual.

Turning Your Sleep Space into the Ultimate Nest

 Your bedroom is so much more than just the place that you unwind in or sleep in at the end of the day. This is the space that you'll spend between 6 and 10 hours in every single evening because this is where you sleep. It's the place where you wake up every morning, and it's the room that you go to to unwind at night time. You may have dimmed lights or muted colours.You may have made it comfortable with piles of pillows and blankets. And why have you done that? For the ultimate comfort so that your body can get the rest and the relaxation it needs. 

Your bedroom is your nest. It's the place that you feather so that you can be most at ease and most relaxed. It's the part of your home that you frequent the most, even if you don't feel like it sometimes. This means that it needs to be comfortable, it should be stylish and it should be a sanctuary like  - ie, a nest. It needs to have the right balance between functionality and beauty, and it should be absolutely as comfortable as you need it to be.If you're considering giving your sleep space an overhaul, take a look at our top tips to turn your sleep space into the ultimate nest.

Image source: Pexels

1. Start with the bed. Your bed is the one place that you'll spend a lot of time in your bedroom, which is why it's such a central figure to the room. The right headboard on your bed is a must when you're transforming it into a relaxation zone because it provides that added stability that you need. It also shields your head from the wall and adds some visual appeal to the space. When you pair a headboard and a beautiful bed base with a mattress by Wolf Mattress, you are choosing to put together one of the most comfortable bed spaces you could have. The bed is your starting point because it's the focal point of the room. Once you've got that nailed down in terms of structure and functionality and size, that's when you can move on to the rest of the space.

2. Add some texture. What nest would be nesting without its feathers? Your bedroom is supposed to feel inviting and comfortable, so you have to play around with the plush soft textures. You can do this with cushion covers, fabrics, or even a rug, and this can help to amplify the feeling that the bedroom is going to nail the texture briefly for you. You can combine carpeted floors with rugs, and once you've got your sheets and your blankets on the bed, you can add layers of pillows and other blankets for you to relax underneath. Of course, you don't have to sleep under every single blanket or on top of every single pillow, but it's supposed to look inviting.

3. Add some bedside tables. A practical but stylish bedside table is an absolute must for your bedroom. You should have one either side of the bed if your bed is centered in the room, or you can just have one if it's against the wall. It gives everywhere a home in terms of bedroom essentials. Glass cases, a spare bottle of water, chargers, batteries, a book, a pen, tissues, all of these things can be on your bedside table and with an easy reach so that you don't have to get out of bed to find things. There are plenty of options for bedside tables too, so you're not going to be without choice. 

4. You can get some more window treatments. A big part of feathering the nest in your bedroom is to make sure that your windows are covered enough so that your room is dark at night time for you to sleep and open enough for the light to flood in through the day. You want to make sure that you can adjust easily to natural lighting during the mornings and keep the room at a comfortable temperature. You should think about the size of the window and the colour palette of the river before you choose any window coverings. You might choose both blinds and curtains, or you may just go for one option, but either way, window treatments are just as important as any other effort you make. 

5. Don't forget to adjust your lighting. A lot of people choose not to use the ceiling light in their bedrooms because the light in the ceiling can be harsher than smaller lamps. Keeping the ceiling lights for the bathrooms where you might get ready or the closet where you might get ready is important. Using a blend of natural accent and ambient lighting is how you're going to be able to play with that spatial ambience you've been looking for. Make sure that you've got lamps, especially corner lamps, that light up the darker corners and keep the room at a nice level.

Image source: Pexels

6. Choose your blankets wisely. There's nothing more luxurious than a bed that is piled with blankets and pillows and looks so inviting for you to jump in. The whole idea of your bedroom is for you to be able to curl up and feel comfortable, so adding the right quilt and pillows to the space is important. You want to choose something that is breathable and preferably suited for both summer and winter. However, you can have different sets of bedding for different levels of cold in the year.

7. Maximise your bedroom storage. Whether you have too many shoes or too many clothes, that's not an issue in your bedroom. As long as you have the right storage, you can keep the sanctuary that you've created, neat and organised. Your modern bedroom will likely have an inbuilt wardrobe, but if you need extra space, look at vertical storage like tall boys or shelving that reaches floor to ceiling.