It's one of things that's literally right in front of our noses... Yet we never really questioned the fact that even strawberry-flavoured car fresheners are shaped like pine trees?! Well, as it turns out, there's a pretty interesting story behind it. Car-fresheners were invented back in 1954 when a delivery truck driver happened to complain about the smell of spilled milk in his truck to one Julius Samann. It was a lightbulb moment for perfumist Samann, who came up with the idea to seal the fragrance from pine needle oils in an absorbent material and hang it in the vehicle to mask the scent. Mental Floss reports: "He drew up a United States Patent and Trademark Office application for a 'container of volatile substances' and submitted it in 1954." His original patent was not a tree however, no siree. The rascal chose something a little more alluring for his original design. This was the original patent; As you can see, it's modelled on the pin up girls who were so popular in the 1950s. Sales went well, and in 1959 he applied for an improvement on his original patent. Mental Floss writes:  "The incongruity of a pine-scented woman must have bothered him. "The abstract Evergreen tree shape made more sense, both in context and in function. Samann’s invention called for a scented paper covered in cellophane that would trap the fragrance until the consumer was ready to use it." The shape has become so synonymous with the Car Freshner brand that they never strayed from it, and aggressiely protect it to this day. There - so now you know. Images via Google Patents