How to Cover the Smell of a Cigarette

Whether you promised someone you would quit smoking and haven’t been able to or you just don’t want to go into work smelling like smoke, sometimes you need to hide the smell of a cigarette. Luckily, there are a few tricks you can use to cover up the smell and prevent smoke from clinging to you in the future.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Covering the Smell on Yourself

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    Chew gum. Keep gum handy to pop a piece in your mouth after you've smoked a cigarette to give yourself minty breath. Along with other methods, chewing gum is the easiest and best way to mask the smell of cigarettes. You might even consider chewing some gum while you smoke and then pop in another piece when you're finished.[1]
    • If you get a chance, brush your teeth before anyone gets the chance to smell you. The smell of breath spray usually wears out quickly, but it's another efficient method, as well as mouthwash.
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    Wash your hands well with soap. The hand in which you hold your cigarette will have the most lingering smell. Washing them thoroughly is the most practical way of getting the smoke off your hands. Use a strongly-scented liquid soap to get the most effective cleaning.
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    Clean your face. Washing your face with soap and water is also important. Scrub your face quickly as you wash your hands, particularly around your chin and mouth. If you have facial hair, pay particular attention to getting deep in your beard and scrubbing.
    • An alcohol swab, or a big spray of deodorant will do the job, effectively but might also be a conspicuous masking smell. If you're trying to keep people unsuspecting, coming in reeking of cologne might do more harm than good. Instead, just dab a bit of deodorant near your neck. This way people will just think you put on a little bit too much of it, and not that you're trying to cover something.
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    Air out your hair. If you have long hair, put it back in a ponytail before smoking and let it down when you're finished. Walk around a bit before you have to be around people, or drive with the windows down to get the smell out naturally.
    • If you have a combing cream, you might consider using it, or other hair products that you usually use.
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    Use dryer sheets or Febreeze on your clothes. To make your clothes smell like clothes, use fabric sheets, which are made to absorb smells like smoke. Febreeze has a light natural smell that serves a similar function, working to remove the smell rather than merely mask it like a cologne, aftershave, or perfume.[2]
    • Never keep half-smoked cigarettes or cigarette butts in your pocket. These smell much more strongly than smoke and the ashtray smell they bring will be much harder to get out. Don't litter them, but find a proper receptacle for your butts.[3]
    • Keep a smoking kit in your car or desk that includes some gum and dryer sheets. Making use of these two items and washing up is an effective combination. Cut down on your stress by keeping your anti-stink kit with you whenever you might smoke.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Airing out a Room

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    Keep the window cracked. If you're going to smoke indoors and want to ease up on the aftermath, smoke near open windows. Blowing the smoke out the window and keeping your burning cigarettes as close as possible to the window is the best way to cut down on the lingering smell of the smoke.
    • To ensure that the smoke doesn't drift back through the open window, consider using a small desk fan aimed toward the window. Keep the smoke going outward, and you won't have to worry much about masking the smell later.
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    Use a homemade smoke scrubber. All you need to create nice-smelling smoke on your exhales is a toilet paper tube, some dryer sheets, and a rubber band. Stuff as many dryer sheets as you can into the TP tube and fix one sheet at the end, holding it in place using the rubber band. When you smoke, blow the smoke through the other end of the tube. It'll smell much less strongly.
    • Doing this won't eliminate the smell of the smoke, but it will make it smell much less intense. The smoke coming off the cigarette while it burns is still a major issue, though, so combine this with other methods, like smoking out the window and using masking scents.
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    Burn incense and candles. Keeping a good supply of scented candles and strong incense to burn while you smoke is a good idea in masking the smell of the cigarettes. Incense is a particularly good option, especially if you already burn it regularly because it smells like smoke already. Suspicious parents or roommates might not recognize the undertone of cigarette funk underneath the Nag Champa.
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    Vacuum. If you're in a carpeted room, there's that much more opportunity for the smoke to become embedded in the room. If you want to get rid of the smoke smell, consider getting out the vacuum and giving the carpet a once-over. Vacuuming won't be enough by itself, but just agitating the carpet some can help air it out a little bit.[4]
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    Spray Febreeze on curtains, carpet, and other fabric. Febreeze is a smoker's best friend. Its odor-eliminating properties and clean scent do wonders for masking the smell of cigarettes indoors. Keep a bottle handy and regularly treat fabric surfaces (as well as clothes) that you want to remove the clinging smell of smoke from.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Preventing Smoke Smells

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    Always smoke outside. If you're worried about being caught, smoking indoors tends to make the smoke cling to you even worse, making it difficult to get the smoke smell off. Go outside where the air circulation is better and where the breeze can naturally carry the smoke away from you. It's even more effective if you can wait for cooler temperatures.[5]
    • If it's windy, turn your back against the wind. This way the smoke will blow away from you, not back into your face, clothes and hair.
    • Some smokers think that smoking in humid or rainy weather makes the smoke less clingy. If you can find cover to keep your cigarette dry, smoke while it's raining to see if it works.
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    Remove outerwear before smoking. If you can, take any jacket or coat you're wearing off before smoking and keep in a separate room, or keep clear of the smell of the smoke. You'll be able to keep your first layer smelling smoke-free. You'll still carry the smell with you, but there's considerably less of your clothing that will smell like smoke.
    • Alternatively, wear a smoking jacket. Choose a thick wool or leather jacket that you only use for smoking.
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    Wear a hat and gloves. When you smoke, you can have a whole outfit set aside just for smoking, so that you can change into and out of it and avoid getting caught. Cover all of your hair with a stocking cap and wear thin gloves.
    • Take them off before you go inside and find someplace to stash them. Leaving them outside, maybe in a shed or your car, will let them air out far away from prying noses.
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    Smoke standing up, so the smell doesn't get into your pants or shoes. It might sound stupid, but keeping the cigarette as far away from your body as possible will cut down considerably on the smell. Most of the stink doesn't come from the smoke you inhale and exhale but from the smoke from the burning cigarette. Keep it away from you by setting it in an ashtray or on a log when you're not smoking to cut down on the cling.
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Warnings

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References

  1. ↑ https://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-05/fyi-how-does-chewing-gum-freshen-breath
  2. ↑ https://lifehacker.com/how-can-i-get-the-smoke-smell-out-of-things-1633743079
  3. ↑ http://laundry.about.com/od/stainremoval/f/removcigsmoke.htm
  4. ↑ https://www.esquire.com/lifestyle/advice/a46154/how-to-remove-smells-from-couch/
  5. ↑ https://www.westword.com/marijuana/smoking-in-cold-weather-do-lower-temperatures-help-the-smell-of-burnt-weed-disappear-11001800

About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 33 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 686,674 times.
52 votes - 79%
Co-authors: 33
Updated: May 14, 2020
Views: 686,674
Categories: Cigarettes | Indoor Air Improvement

Medical Disclaimer

The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, changing, or stopping any kind of health treatment.

Article SummaryX

If you need to hide the smell of a cigarette, brush your teeth and wash your hands as soon as you can. When you wash your hands, use plenty of soap and focus on scrubbing the fingers that held the cigarette. Additionally, if you have some, chew gum after smoking to freshen your breath. Finally, spray your clothes with Febreze or buff them with dryer sheets, and make sure you don't have any cigarette butts in your pockets, since they give off a strong smell. For tips on airing out a room, keep reading!

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