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Instant Air Freshener For Small Spaces

081009_small.jpgYesterday we were flying back to LA from Seattle and had to take a series of smaller airplanes with just the one compact bathroom in the back. Normally these get pretty...stuffy early on in the flight and the people sitting close to it definitely have a worse flight. But on one of the flights we noticed that upon entering the bathroom it smelled kind of nice, but not like an air freshener, it just smelled pleasant. Shutting the door, we realized what it was:

 
 

081009_tea.jpgThere, hanging on the back of the door were 4 tea bags (Good Earth Spiced Tea to be exact). Because of the spices they held, it filled the tiny space with a natural aroma that wasn't overpowering but just enough to absorb/mask the other smells. One of the flight attendants must have put the tea bags there to make it more pleasant for everyone. We loved how simple a solution it was using what they probably already had on hand. We plan to raid our tea drawer and try out some mint or chai tea in a hall closet or our own bathroom. Have you seen/used this trick before?

And if this is old news to you, check out everything Gregory uses loose leaf green tea for around the house.

(Image: House Tour: Scott's Silver Lake Bachelor Pad and S. Baker)

Tags

bathroom, diy, air freshener, small space

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Comments (33)

unused or used tea bags?

posted by pier723 on August 10th 2009 at 2:34pm
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This is great I'm going to try it with maple maple tea! Thanks for the great idea!

posted by dapperboy on August 10th 2009 at 2:40pm
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I thought that this post was going to be about plants and how they clean the air.
Good idea though! Maybe I will try it at work because the bathrooms here are not well ventilated at ALL.

posted by plumeria on August 10th 2009 at 2:43pm
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I haven't seen this before but will definitely be trying this out for myself! Mint tea would be nice...

posted by rma on August 10th 2009 at 2:43pm
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Brilliant - I love drinking Good Earth Tea and am often complimented on the aroma it gives here in the office.

posted by bepsf on August 10th 2009 at 2:44pm
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Hey, I have that same piece of tile artwork by Harris Strong! It's supposed to hang horizontally but I like it that way as well. I might have to dig it out of storage!

posted by stt64 on August 10th 2009 at 2:56pm
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I have some tea that has a wonderful smell but only so-so taste. Maybe I will cut some teabags open and pour them into a small bowl for the bathroom.

posted by MrsMittens on August 10th 2009 at 3:20pm
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Anyone know where the bathroom shelves are from?

posted by sofubi on August 10th 2009 at 3:34pm
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I've heard that tea bags also help cut that awful fridge smell.

posted by emmabemma on August 10th 2009 at 3:37pm
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target

posted by missmay on August 10th 2009 at 4:05pm
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I'm all about Celestial Seasonings Tension Tamer myself :)Unused bags are perfect little sachets at home. At work, I tend not to throw my used bags out until close to quitting; the used bags have a great, strong scent.

posted by Kinky Gazpacho on August 10th 2009 at 4:25pm
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Same as bepsf - my coworkers love my Good Earth tea!

posted by Emily the Cat on August 10th 2009 at 5:13pm
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what a great idea.
i will definitely be trying this in my tiny bathroom!

posted by abigailbelle on August 10th 2009 at 5:53pm
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My coworkers always comment on my Chai...and one day I had a bag in my purse that ripped open and the inside of the bag still smells so good, even though I cleaned it out!

posted by Erin Lang Norris/Yellow Canoe on August 10th 2009 at 6:01pm
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Many years ago I visited the Celestial Seasoning factory in Boulder, CO. They kept a separate room for the peppermint tea, so that it would not 'infiltrate' the other spaces ... when we were in that room it was very powerful ... especially if your sinuses were blocked!

posted by mirandabee on August 10th 2009 at 6:07pm
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That's a great idea.
I'm wondering if anyone out there has tried using the tea bag's to get rid of funky cat odors...

I'm having a heck of a time getting rid of the smells—inside a teeny bathroom that my guests also have to share with the cat :P

posted by unnecessary::necessaries on August 10th 2009 at 6:16pm
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Genius!

posted by prettypirate on August 10th 2009 at 6:35pm
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Great idea, I will definitely be trying this out!
http://notyourgoddess.blogspot.com/

posted by Harpa on August 10th 2009 at 7:03pm
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Several years ago I flew on a number of flights that used those pre-measured coffee pouches for this purpose, but I've never seen tea bags used. It makes perfect sense, though. In fact, I'm going to toss a couple into my freezer right now and see if they help with the weird smell that's emerged in the last day.

On my last couple of flights, I've wondered why they didn't have coffee pouches in the lavatories. They certainly needed them!

posted by How Green Is My Valley on August 10th 2009 at 7:51pm
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You can also put a few drops of essential oil on a cotton ball and stuff it inside the cardboard tube on your toilet paper. It refreshes the air each time you grab some t.p.!

posted by mrsjonessoapbox on August 10th 2009 at 8:06pm
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What a great idea... can't wait to try it out....

posted by gottahaveit555 on August 10th 2009 at 8:53pm
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I'm an ER doctor, and you can imagine that we get some pretty unique odors; the tea-bag-in-the-face-mask trick is an old one that works really well for all manner of funk!

posted by drtaekim on August 11th 2009 at 2:49am
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I have a plant on my bedside table and for the past few months I have been adding some used tea leaves to the soil, most recently lemon tea. Maybe I'm weird but I find fresh, clean citrus scents to be soothing and relaxing and it's nice waking up and smelling that.

I'll see if I can incorporate some tea into my bathroom. I don't have any tea bags but I'm sure I could rig something up and retire the lavender that's currently in there.

posted by Cheryl K on August 11th 2009 at 8:25am
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Cheryl, my dad is a master-gardener type, and he swears that coffee grounds and tea leaves are magical for plants.

posted by Brandyjane on August 11th 2009 at 10:03am
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I do this already with Constant Comment. Mmmmm.

posted by kuroneko on August 11th 2009 at 12:08pm
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Wow, great idea. There's a couple tea bags going over the cat litter in 5 seconds.

posted by warrenpeace on August 11th 2009 at 12:47pm
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What a great idea. Love that little hallway and bathroom as well. I also use natural oils (tea tree, peppermint) for cuts and scrapes, cleaning, etc. Like one post above, I put a few drops on a cotton ball and stash in my bathroom and it lasts really well. I've even dropped a bit on the light bulbs (make sure they're off and cool) and when you turn the light on the heat really activates the oil. I'm all about aromatherapy!

posted by pixie95 on August 12th 2009 at 2:01pm
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Give that flight attendant a raise! ...oh, wait.

posted by keltrue on August 13th 2009 at 12:20pm
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Very cool! I hate potpourri and typical air freshener scents, so I'll definitely be trying this.

posted by miyagisan on August 17th 2009 at 6:09am
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I have allergies and the artificial scents destroy my sinuses so this sounds perfect for the kitty litter bathroom.

also, thanks, Brandyjane, i thought coffee grounds were good for the plants but couldnt remember where i heard it, so now you are verifying it.

posted by sassydo on August 17th 2009 at 7:57am
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Never heard of. But I definitely will give it a try.
We hate those artificial odors which should cover bad smells but only make it worse.
Many thanks

posted by Reni on August 17th 2009 at 8:44am
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Masala Chai teabags smell divine! I have the spices at home but I'm currently away, mum-sitting (!!) and bought a box of these teabags a few weeks ago. How such a subtle aroma managed to mask the less-than-subtle odour that occasionally wafted from the cat litter tray amazed me, although, obviously I'd bought them with the intention of making tea. That said, there's a traditional teacake made in Wales called Bara Brith that requires cold tea in the recipe and I was thinking of making some with the chai bags but I've since run out and can't remember where I purchased them. All that I have left is the empty packaging, the scent still clinging to it, and the all-too-frequent reminder that my mother has pets...

posted by AcrossThePond on August 17th 2009 at 8:34pm
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I see this now that I just spent $10 on basic Glade air fresheners a couple days ago...

I'll be trying this soon.

posted by nick0326 on August 24th 2009 at 2:29pm
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