How to Not Smell Like Cigarettes

In case you don’t know, the smell of cigarette smoke causes thirdhand smoke. As the lingering odour of cigarettes clings to your clothing, skin, hair, and environment, it also helps spread active chemical substances, which can be harmful to those who may be exposed to them.

Aside from the potential harm it brings to those who are around you, cigarette smoke truly has a very strong smell. As a regular smoker, you probably won’t notice how strong it is. But for others, it can bother them right away as soon as you light up your beloved cigarette.

So, how do you remove the cigarette smell from your clothing, skin, and hair? Here’s a quick guide on how to get rid of the odour from cigarette smoke.

How to Make Yourself Not Smell Like Cigarettes

Puffing a cigarette lets you release smoke into the surroundings. This particular smoke then contains a carcinogenic residue on everything it touches. This includes your skin, releasing a smoke odor. You may not be able to smell it as you’re already used to it, but others who don’t smoke can smell it right away. 

One reason why you don’t get to smell the cigarette smoke is nicotine. When you absorb nicotine through the lungs and skin, this particular substance can also affect your sweat glands. It makes you sweat or perspire more as well as taints the odor of your sweat. If you sweat excessively, your skin will begin to emit a foul odour reminiscent of rancid smoke.

Now, the skin can easily absorb toxins and nicotine from the cigarette smoke. It then makes you smell like cigarettes, even if you’re already done smoking. Hence, it’s important that you get rid of the odour from your skin if you’re interacting with others.

Some methods you can do to deodorize your skin and get rid of cigarette smell are as follows:

• Use face cleansing pads: You can clean your face with face cleansing pads to remove cigarette smoke particles and residue. If you are wearing makeup, you might want to retouch after doing this skin deodorizing technique.
• Bath or shower regularly: Taking a bath or shower as often as possible helps in removing the smoky odor from the cigarette. To make this more effective, you can use an exfoliating body wash along with a texture-exfoliating washcloth or loofah to scrub away the dead outer skin and smoke odors. You can do this after sweating a lot since your sweat may already carry a tobacco smell that can be difficult to get rid of with just a simple sanitizer or cleaning pads. 
• Spray a modest amount of cologne or perfume: After washing off as much of the cigarette odours as possible, spray 1-2 pumps of cologne or perfume onto your skin. You can apply 1 spritz to your chest, directly below your collarbone, and to your inner wrist to help spread the fragrance.

How to Make Your Breath Not Smell Like Cigarettes

It can be embarrassing to smell like cigarettes if you are talking with your colleagues, friends, or loved ones, especially if the conversation takes a long time. You see, when you smoke a cigarette, its odour may linger on your mouth, causing your breath to be as strong as burning tobacco.

The strong odour of cigarette smoke can be attributed to over 400 smelly components it contains. Every time you puff a cigarette, these components may stay in your mouth. Without doing anything, your breath will smell like cigarette smoke for hours.

To make your breath not smell like cigarettes, you should do the following tips:

• Brush your teeth: You should brush your teeth as soon as possible after smoking cigarettes. Doing this helps in scrubbing all smoke particles from the cigarettes and removing any residue. You should then spit out most of the foamy toothpaste and brush your tongue as well. Gently scrub the toothbrush over the top, sides, and underside of your tongue to keep your mouth and breath fresh. When you’re finished, rinse out the toothpaste with water.
• Gargle mouthwash: After brushing your teeth, you should follow it up by gargling a minty mouthwash. This leaves your teeth, tongue, and even gums odour-free. Doing these first two things helps in eliminating smoke odors from your mouth. They also help minimize staining, which tar and nicotine may do to your teeth.
• Chew a piece of gum: To help keep the smell of your breath in check, you should chew a piece of gum. After smoking, chewing a piece of gum can help you attain a minty breath that somehow masks the smell of the cigarette smoke. If you don’t have one, you can consume hard candies, cough drops, or breath mints as they can also provide the same minty breath. Remember to opt for those that are sugar-free if possible so you won’t consume lots of unnecessary sugar anytime you consume them.
• Stay hydrated: Before and during a smoking session, it’s important that you drink plenty of water. Doing this helps your inner mouth to remain moist, which helps move odorous particles from the cigarette out of your mouth and through your system.

How to Make Your Hands Not Smell Like Cigarettes

Every time you hold and smoke a cigarette, your hands are among the first surfaces where cigarette smoke can linger the longest. Besides the smoke odour, the burned particles from the cigarettes can touch and remain on your hands, especially your fingers, for an extended period.

Given the risks associated with thirdhand smoke, it’s crucial to keep your hands free from cigarette smoke exposure. This not only eliminates the smell of smoke from your hands but also reduces your risk of developing illnesses related to thirdhand smoke.

Here are some ways on how to make your hands not smell like cigarettes:

• Wash your hands: To remove cigarette odour from your hands after smoking, you can take advantage of baking soda. You can mix a teaspoon of baking soda into a few squirts of shower gel or liquid soap and rub the mixture together. You can use this mixture together with warm water to clean your fingers, nails, and areas between each finger.
• Apply alcohol-based hand sanitizer: Applying alcohol-based hand sanitizer on your hand and exposed skin can remove some lingering odors of the cigarette. However, it can irritate those who have sensitive skin.
• Follow up with a moisturizing hand lotion: Using a hand sanitizer may dry out your skin, especially your hands. To minimize this effect, you should follow up with a moisturizing hand lotion. You must opt for one with a light, pleasant fragrance to mask any remaining smoke smell. It should also be hydrating and soothing to help restore your skin health.
• Use a cigarette holder: If you want to reduce the amount of smoke particles that stay on your hands, you may invest in a cigarette holder. A cigarette holder helps you prevent touching the burning cigarettes directly, keeping your fingers free from the cigarette smell. Make sure to buy one from a reputable online retailer or a local smoke shop. 

How to Make Your Clothes Not Smell Like Cigarettes

Whether you smoke indoors or outdoors, expect that the smell of the cigarette will stick to your clothing. The only way cigarette smoke doesn’t stick to your clothes is to immediately remove them after smoking. Unfortunately, if you don’t wash them after each use, your closet will also attain the smell of smoke from the cigarettes. Additionally, it could expose you and others to health risks.

The thirdhand smoke from the clothing can be absorbed by your skin at a similar rate to inhaling secondhand smoke. Hence, it’s important that you keep your clothes free from cigarette smoke particles to save you from any potential health risks.

Some things you can do to get rid of cigarette smell and particles on your clothing are as follows:

• Wash with baking soda: Washing your clothes, either through a machine or manually, with regular detergent with a cup of baking soda as many times as possible may help in removing cigarette odours. You should then line dry the clothes in the fresh air instead of machine-drying them to effectively get rid of the cigarette smell further. Machine-drying them only bakes the tobacco smell in, which makes it harder for you to remove it.
• Use dryer sheets: To remove the cigarette smell from your clothes in a pinch, you should rub them with a dryer sheet. You can apply this to your hats, scarves, gloves, shoes, or shoes since they may absorb the cigarette smell whenever you smoke or are close to a smoker.
• Spray with a deodorizer: A fabric-freshening deodorizer is your companion if you want to remove cigarette odour from your clothing. While the smell of the deodorizer can be overpowering, it can help you get rid of the smell that might be sticking to your clothing stubbornly.
• Apply an essential oil spray: One spraying product you can use to conceal the smoke smell in your clothing is an essential oil spray. It doesn’t remove the cigarette smell from your clothing, but it is enough to mask the odour if you are outside and don’t have the chance to wash your clothes right away. An essential oil spray may come in scents like grapefruit, lavender, orange, or eucalyptus. Keep in mind that it doesn’t negate the health risks related to thirdhand smoke. You must also not apply this product directly to your skin, especially if it’s undiluted.

How to Make Room Not Smell Like Cigarettes

Cigarette smoke smells strong, which may not sit well with those who don’t smoke their entire lives. But even some cigarette smokers find the smoke odours irritating at times, especially if they accidentally inhale them from others.

The problem with cigarette smoke, even if you are already done smoking, is it sticks on both hard and soft surfaces for months. So, if you always light up a cigarette in your room, expect the surfaces of your tables, chairs, bed, or even the walls and ceiling to be filled with cigarette smoke particles. Your room may then smell like cigarettes, which non-smokers can tell right away once they enter. The smell of cigarettes can be very unpleasant to non-smokers and may even linger for a long time. Not only that, but the lingering cigarette smoke can also pose health risks to anyone who comes into contact with these surfaces. It’s important to consider the impact of cigarette smoke not just on your own health, but also on the environment and the people around you. Therefore, it’s important to be mindful of where and when you smoke to minimize the negative effects of cigarettes on yourself and those around you.

There are a lot of things you can do to make your room not smell like cigarettes. They include:

• Ensure proper ventilation: Ventilating your environment can help prevent your room from smelling like cigarettes. You can do this by directing a fan to blow smoke out the window. You must also only smoke cigarettes near open windows.
• Use an air purifier: To make your room not smell like cigarettes, you should use an air purifier. It helps get rid of smoke odours as well as the particles it carries whenever you smoke by filtering the air. As it filters the air, it traps pollutants and cycles purified air back into your room. When choosing an air purifier, make sure it has an Activated Carbon Filter and a true HEPA filtration system. You must also ensure it’s large and powerful enough for your space.
• Spray odour-neutralizing products: Deodorizing products help minimize the smoke fumes without saturating your room’s air with too much fragrance. If the contents are pressurized, remember to shake the spray canister first before directing the nozzle toward the center of your room and spritzing it into the air. Remember to only use this after smoking as it is highly flammable.
• Keep everything clean: If you smoke in your room and want to get rid of cigarette smells, make sure to keep everything clean. You can start by steam cleaning your upholstered furniture, carpets, and other soft surfaces. You must then wash curtains, draperies, tablecloths, and other similar things once a week. You should likewise clean the floor, walls, windows, and other hard surfaces with cleaning solutions that contain baking soda, vinegar, or bleach. Ultimately, change filters and clean out the air ducts of your air conditioners, heaters, or furnaces as often as possible.
• Mask the smell: To mask the smell of cigarette smoke, you must burn incense or use essential oils. Doing these things, however, may not be effective in getting rid of smoke particles that are deemed harmful to you and others.

How to Make Car Not Smell Like Cigarettes

Just like inside your room, the smell of cigarettes may also linger in your car. The nicotine from the cigarette smoke may build up in the dust on your dashboard and other surfaces in your vehicle. Even if you smoke outside your car, the cigarette smoke is bound to enter your vehicle, filling it with smoke odour as well. To make your car not smell like cigarettes, you must do the following tips:

• Keep windows open while smoking: Cigarette smoke may circulate repeatedly inside your vehicle if you keep the windows closed. Keep the windows open every time you smoke a cigarette to minimize the smoke particles that stay on your vehicle’s hard and soft surfaces.
• Wash the interior surfaces: You must wash your car seats and carpets with a bleach and water solution to remove the smell of cigarettes. You can also use hydrogen peroxide and water or white vinegar and water to clean the interior surfaces of your beloved car. 
• Discard cigarette butts: After smoking cigarettes, you should discard the cigarette butts in the proper trash bin. Never leave cigarette butts in your car as it will only make your car smell like cigarettes, especially if they are left for a long time. 
• Leave charcoal containers open: To absorb the odour of cigarettes in your car, you must leave charcoal containers open. Charcoal is known for absorbing any bad odour. Hence, leaving a can of charcoal open may help get rid of the cigarette smell from your car.

If you want to still consume nicotine without leaving cigarette smells on surfaces, try nicotine pouches instead. These products are available at NativeSmokes4Less in varying nicotine strengths and flavours.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you avoid smelling like cigarette smoke?

To avoid smelling like cigarette smoke, you should only smoke in well-ventilated areas or outdoors to minimize smoke clinging to your clothing, hair, and other parts of your body. After you smoke, you should wash your hands and face, and use mouthwash or mint gum to eliminate lingering cigarette smells.

How do you not smell after smoking?

To not smell after smoking cigarettes, you should wash your hands thoroughly with soap. You should also use a scented hand sanitizer or lotion to neutralize lingering cigarette smells. You should likewise brush your teeth and use mouthwash to freshen your breath. If possible, change your clothes and use a hair spray to eliminate smoke residue.

What cancels out the smell of cigarettes?

To cancel out the smell of cigarettes, you must wash your hands, brush your teeth, and rinse with mouthwash. You must also apply scented lotions or essential oils to freshen your skin while cancelling out cigarette odours. To clear your room, you must air out the area using an air purifier or activated charcoal.

How do you not get caught with cigarette smell?

To avoid getting caught with a cigarette smell, you must wash your hands thoroughly, rinse your mouth with mouthwash, and chew gum to freshen your breath. You should also spray a neutral or lightly scented deodorant or body mist. You can then spray a fabric refresher on your clothes to mask any lingering smell of cigarettes.

Summary

The smell of cigarettes can linger on your skin, hair, and clothing for a long time, especially if you don’t do anything to get rid of or mask it. To make sure you won’t smell like cigarettes, you should take proactive steps to get rid of the odour by washing your hands with the right solution, spraying neutral or lightly scented deodorant or body mist, and brushing your teeth after smoking.

However, the best way to not smell like cigarettes is to quit smoking. If you don’t smoke cigarettes, you won’t smell like burning tobacco. You don’t also keep yourself and others from getting sick due to secondhand and thirdhand smoke, which may often lead to developing lung cancer, heart disease, and many more illnesses. You won’t even compromise your sleep quality if you don’t smoke.