If you’ve ever returned to the office after a week or two away, what’s the first thing that hits your senses? A damp, lingering mould? The condensed aroma of tightly packed, suited and sweaty colleagues? Or, maybe the completely uninspiring sense of absolutely nothing.
When decorating an office and making it feel less sterile, all the senses should be involved. Our noses have the ability to transport us back to memories gone by, to remind us of people we haven’t seen in decades, and to create entire landscapes imagined in our minds.
Now we’re not advocating daydreaming on the clock, but we are suggesting it’s possible to create a more enjoyable (even, more productive) atmosphere at work by simply engaging the senses. So, read our list of 7 multisensory ways to enhance your office ambience, and make an office feel more like a second home than a whitewashed box.
1. Freshly Roasted Coffee
You always know when someone’s nipped out to the local cafe, because the aroma of their barista coffee trails in before them, enveloping them in an angel-like haze that you can only be jealous of. Flip the switch and add filter coffee machines to your office kitchen space.
That way, the whole office can enjoy the scent of fresh coffee warming up those cold mornings, and you have a pick-me-up ready on demand. What may begin as a simple intention to modernise and freshen up your workplace could result in a more productive set-up, with less costly and time-wasting trips down to the local java joint.
2. Scented Candles
The go-to for home scents, scented candles offer a huge variety of choice with aromas of everything you could possibly think of, from ‘stormy midnight’, to ‘cotton candy cloud’. But why reserve them exclusively for home use? A personal desk candle is a great way to help you settle in a new environment, especially if it’s a scent you associate with home.
Adding scented candles to your office space can be a fun way to play around with the environment you want to create, not forgetting that they emit an ambient, cosy glow with their flickering flame. Mirror the seasons with ‘pumpkin spice’ or ‘cherry blossom’ sentiments, or mix up the feeling with a fresh ‘forest spring’ or masculine ‘earthy musk’ vibe.
3. Wood Reed Diffusers
For a more toned-down ambience enhancer for your office that keeps the smell of disinfectant spray or old furniture at bay, diffusers offer a hint of perfumery without overwhelming it. Classic wood reed diffusers are traditionally a blend of essential oils in a glass vessel, omitted through a room via thin wooden sticks, meaning they tend to have more natural odours.
The scent gradually diffuses and lingers enough that after a while you won’t notice it, unless you have a week off and come back to a pleasant surprise. But for clients and customers, they’ll step into your office and enjoy the scent of a fresh, delicate lift. It’s also a great, less chemical approach to an air freshener in bathrooms and kitchens.
4. Flowers
Flowers don’t have to be saved for exclusive occasions. Not only does a bright bouquet bring some beautiful colour and an artistic display into your office, there are a variety of stems that exude a pleasant, floral aroma too. If you’re inviting clients or stakeholders over, floral arrangements are a simple gesture to let them know you’ve made an effort to spruce the place up in anticipation of their visit.
Lilies, jasmine, roses and tulips are some of the most pungent posies. Just ensure you’re careful with the flowers you choose, and where you display them, as some common flowers are toxic to cats and dogs – that is, if your office lets you take your furry friends to work!
5. Incense
A popular method of scenting homes in Eastern parts of the world, the burning of incense sticks has a history entwined with spirituality, as well as just making your staff room smell nice. Incense burning has been recorded in ancient China, India, Japan and Greece, and is now adopted in contemporary homes and work venues around the world.
Incense sticks and cones tend to be scented with deep, earthy powders such as frankincense, amber and sandalwood. They leave a small trail of ash, so you’ll need an incense boat or waterfall holder to catch it. Incense isn’t for everyone as the smell can be very strong, but if you have a powerful nose, it might be the perfect ritual to unwind with as the day draws to a close when you’re last in the office.
6. Palo Santo
Burning palo santo is a traditional remedy in South American culture, used for reducing inflammation, pain and stress. These thin, wooden sticks burn slowly and emit a heady, fragrant smell that is very distinctive, and different to any other kind of wood scent.
Burn it for spiritual reasons, to cleanse your office of negative energy and attract good fortunes, or simply to enjoy the calming, fresh scent of the palo santo itself. In Spanish, ‘palo santo’ translates to ‘holy wood’, so you can bring a sense of divinity into your boardroom with these humble sticks ahead of your important meetings.
7. Fresh Air
If you work in an open, relatively rural space with decent weather year-round, don’t underestimate the power of fresh air. An open window, sliding door, or en-suite balcony can invite in the smells (and sounds) of nature, from drifting pollen in the spring to faraway bonfires in the autumn. For inner-city workers, the sounds of sirens, cars, and chatting pedestrians down below can also make for some charming ambient noise.
For those who aren’t organically drawn to artificially scenting their offices, fresh air may be all you desire. And what it can guarantee at the very least, is the absence of musk and negative scents that can slowly collect in our workspaces without us even realising.
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Regardless of whether you’re a ‘smells person’ who can’t get enough of feelings through flavours, or you’d much rather opt for something minimalist and clean, there are many different ways to enhance your office ambience, from dense, concentrated aromas, to the harmony of pure fresh air.
Hopefully this blog has provided you with some inspiration to trial and error what feels right. Unless you own your office, you can’t just remove the wallpaper or change the paint colour if you don’t like it, but you can swap out a candle, or experiment with palo santo and incense.
From the simple touches such as coffee machines and fresh air to the more thought-out ambience-enhancers like flowers and diffusers, you should now feel more confident to utilise your senses to create a better working environment.