Homemade Wood Furniture Polish
June 21, 2012
This homemade wood furniture polish is really simple, inexpensive, and effective. It will make your furniture look incredible.
Homemade Wood Furniture Polish
This homemade natural wood furniture polish is easy to make, simple, inexpensive, and effective.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Ingredients
to polish:
- 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
to clean:
- 1 cup filtered water
- 3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
to restore:
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/8 cup distilled white vinegar
- 1/8 cup flax oil
Instructions
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To make the wood polish, hake in a glass jar and apply with a very soft cloth to naturally clean and polish hard wood furniture. You only need a little bit.
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To make the wood cleaner, use a soft cloth to wipe down wooden furniture and give it a good cleaning before polishing and restoring.
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To make the wood restorer, mix together and use a soft cloth to restore wood furniture.
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To use the water-spot remover, rub to remove marks with the grain. Wipe off with a soft cloth.
Recipe Notes
To remove condensation:
Mix equal parts of distilled white vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil.
Photo by Trent Lanz and styling by Alicia Buszczak
Comments 59
Will definitely be using this method from now on! Thanks for the great tip. Is it safe to use a damp cloth containing water and eculaptus oil on my wooden furniture?
Pleasure. I have absolutely used diluted eucalyptus oil to wipe down some wooden furniture. But I have not used it to clean valuable antiques. I would always test a tiny back area before slathering it on the whole piece just to make sure on some surfaces. But it should be fine.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on homemade furniture polish. Looks interesting.
Great. This is a good natural alternative.
Would this clean the normal buildup of cooking grease, wax, etc from kitchen cabinets, or do I need to deep clean them and follow with this as a polish? My mother has maple and I have dark cherry cabinets that we’re trying to restore.
Thank you for any advice you might give us!
I would always wash /clean any greasy build up before polishing. Always test a small part of any surface (the least visible) before smearing over the entire surface.
Does anyone know if I can substitute the olive oil with soybean oil? Its all I have access to at the moment. Thank you for your input.
Yes, you can use soybean oil. Just always test a small part of the surface (the least visible) before using.
How long is the shelf life? Can you mix a big batch ahead n clean as needed with it?
The vinegar and oil solution and the vinegar and water keeps. But, the fresh lemon juice needs to be used within a few days for the best results. I make it in a batch and polish all of my furniture in one hit.
Apart from the environmental benefits from these cleaning products, the other benefit is they are so much cheaper. I am all for eco friendly cleaning materials. I like it a lot. I’ve got pets so this is really important to me. Thanks for this article.
Best regards! Preston Carpet Cleaners Ltd.
Thanks for sharing.
Question! 😉 I’m curious as to how long this keeps? And how to store. I made both the polish and cleaner and LOVE it. Thanks for sharing!!
The cleaner will keep for months. The polish won’t really be good past a week because of the fresh lemon juice. I keep that one in the fridge. I need to revise this post. Thankyou for the prompt.
Would this work to clean the sticky grim on kitchen cabinets or do you have something else to suggest? I don’t want to have to refinish them, or use something that is harsh enough to remove the finish or sealant. Also I need something for removing smoke film from furniture. Would this work?
I use vinegar and water with a good brush for grime. This is more of a polish.
I use equal parts apple cider vinegar and linseed oil. Rub on with a steel wool pad000. You can also use a steel pad0000. Wash down with a mild dish detergent. Your cabinets will look brand new.
Fantastic. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!
Pleasure. I hope you find this recipe useful.
I’m restoring an old wooden trunk, can i use coconut oil instead of flaxseed oil? And what would you recommend using as a selant to Protect my trunk from water after i restore it? definitely want to keep the integrity of the wood and lettering that’s stamped on it.
You can absolutely use coconut oil for polishing wood. I find it get better results with flax oil. But, every surface is different. Test a very small section that can’t be seen to test which is going to be most effective. With regards to a sealant, try this: Melt 1/2 cup of grated beeswax with 1 1/2 cups olive oil. I hope this helps.
Could I use the apple vinegar or does it need to be the white vinegar?
You will get better results with white vinegar.
What I do with lemons is that I juice them and freeze using an ice cube container. Once frozen I place them in a closed container in the freezer. Then I just thaw the cubes I need for whatever I am preparing.
Yes! Great way to preserve your lemon juice. I do the same thing.
I used your furniture restore recipe and was most impressed with the results. I only discovered your blog by accident and am greatful that I did. Thank you and I hope you enjoyed your Aussie adventure
Great !! Thank you.
Thankyou. I am so glad this recipe gave you great results. Great to be connected.
Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou. All these natural hints are fantastic and save me heaps of dollars.
Wonderful. I am so pleased.
Thanks for sharing this simple homemade eco green wood furniture polish. Good read.
I loved it on an old table that lost the shine but Why the table stays sticky?
Great. Make sure you use a clean cloth to polish it after you apply. This shouldn’t make the table sticky.
This is what happened to me. I think the vinegar may be dissolving the varnish
Possibly. It could also vary with different surfaces and furniture.
I should probably polish my wood furniture more often. I only do it when I am very bored, which doesn’t happen much. Good for me, bad for my wood!
Ha! I’m not good at doing mine on a regular basis, either these days.
OMG. Please people, stop the save the whales party, and just go a get a can of pledge. Its cheaper, and much more effective and we dont have to hold hands around the bon fire and sing kumbiya.
David, your comment is just hilarious.
Hi! Super happy I came across this article. Was just wondering, based on your knowledge, would it damage my wooden tables if I were to clean/polish it twice a week? Thanks in advance 🙂
It depends on the wood. Always test a tiny piece in a place on the furniture at the back or at the bottom before polishing the entire piece that often. I would think it would be absolutely fine. But, I don’t want to say yes, as there are so many variables, and I wouldn’t want you to ruin anything.
Can you use just extra virgin olive oil? I cannot find cold pressed where I live.
Yes. I have amended the recipe to just say extra-virgin olive oil.
Wonderful web site. Thanks for all the tips. Have a wonderful time with family:)
Thanks Roy!
I have been making a similar wood cleaner (1c. water, 1c vinegar, 1Tbs olive oil, 1Tbs Dawn) and using it for months. It works great. However, I notice that now the finish is coming off of my wooden kitchen table. What do you think is causing this? The vinegar?
Nancy, I’m sorry to hear that. I would reduce the vinegar.
Hi, could you clarify what exactly is wood restorer and how it is different from wood cleaner and polish?
Raj, use the cleaner to remove spots, and use the polish to shine, buff, and moisturize.
Yes. I’ve amended the recipe to just say extra-virgin olive oil.
Thank you for your site. We had used a commercial oil for polishing and it left a grimy film on my Jarah indoor furniture. Reading your post helped me have a go at undoing the mess. I cleaned with fine steel wool and then applied the coconut oil on one piece off furniture. This looks sensational. Can you please explain why the lemon is necessary.
Lemon is an acid which is really effective for cleaning grime.
Also when making the polish of coconut oil and lemon, how should it be mixed – stir with a spoon or whisk it up?
I whisk it up.
David OMG. If you can’t say something nice…didn’t find your comment of any use.
This has multiple uses make the polish. It lasts forever. And the vinegar ,oil,and lemon juice are used for cooking ect. BAM! David!! Kumbiya! My friend!!
David, I grew up with Pledge and love the smell of it, but I have asthma and can’t breathe if it’s used when I’m in the room, and it gets a film on everything. Enjoy that childhood memory, though!
Love the Wood Polish!!! Unbelievable!! Can I also use it on metal/iron furnishings?