Homemade Eco-Friendly Furniture Polish

Growing up, one of the few chores that I liked was polishing our wood furniture with that classic lemon furniture spray. I loved the satisfaction of seeing the wood shine and getting all the dust and dirt out of the carved designs on my mother’s antique desk.

I was recently at the store and was thinking of picking up some the that spray to clean a few of our new-to-us wood pieces, but then I started looking at the chemicals and thought about having those toxins floating around our home. We’re already exposed to so many toxins, that we didn’t need another one in the mix.

The solution: Make an Homemade Eco-Friendly Furniture Polish that still has that lemony scent and leaves a beautiful shine! The great thing is that you probably already have everything on hand!

 

What you’ll need:

• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• a few drops of mineral oil (or olive oil)
• a few drops of lemon essential oil (optional)
• small container
• clean cloths

 

Pour the vinegar into a small container, adding in a few drops of olive oil and a few drops of lemon essential oil. Screw the lid on top and give it a shake. This will help distribute the oil evenly in the vinegar.

I’ve only been making enough for each cleaning, as olive oil can go rancid. It’s easy enough to make that I can do it quickly in small batches, as needed. Updated: You can also use mineral oil (in the pharmacy aisle). It won’t go rancid like olive oil.

 

Now dip your cleaning rag into the solution and start cleaning your wood surfaces. This is the top of an old cabinet we have in the dining room that has a few scratches and gouges on the top. All of that was buffed up and gone with a few swipes of the cloth. Just look at that clean shine on the right! This is great for bringing some life back into older pieces.

 

The vinegar pulls the dirt and dust out of the wood, while the oil conditions it, giving it that “just been polished” glow. The lemon essential oil is purely for scent and to cut some of the vinegar smell. You can use whatever essential oil you have on hand, or cut it out if you would prefer.

When we first started switching over to homemade cleaners and eco-friendly products, I was a little worried about the time it would take to whip them up. Now that we’ve been doing it for about a year, I’ve found that the little time it takes to mix together your cleaning solutions is minuscule when you think of the benefits to your health and your wallet!