It is very easy to make your own furniture polish if you want to skip the chemicals in commercial furniture polishes. There are two ways to make olive oil polish, depending on the level of polishing that your furniture needs. This kind of polish is best used on furniture that has an oiled finish rather than a shiny varnish. It's not a one-size-fits-all solution, but an alternative that some people may find worth trying.

Steps

  1. 1
    Choose cheap olive oil for furniture polish. The cheapest oil, olive pomace oil, is just fine for the purposes of making furniture polish.
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Method 1
Method 1 of 2:

Deep Cleansing Furniture Oil

  1. 1
    Combine the olive oil and vinegar (using proportions specified below) in a glass or ceramic container.[1]
  2. 2
    Apply the polish with a soft polishing cloth. Do not rub it in too hard but leave it to soak in.[2]
  3. 3
    Allow to air dry.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 2:

Regular Cleaning Furniture Oil

  1. 1
    Combine the oil and lemon juice in a glass or ceramic container.[3]
  2. 2
    Apply with a soft polishing cloth.[4]
  3. 3
    Use the soft cloth to shine the furniture by rubbing briskly.[5]
  4. 4
    Allow to air dry if it hasn't already through buffing.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    Does the mineral oil and lemon juice mixture clean leather furniture?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    The most effective way to clean leather furniture is to use water-diluted lemon juice, then wiping the furniture with clean water. On more heavily-stained furniture, a few drops of vinegar mixed in with the lemon-and-water solution will help further to remove the stain.
  • Question
    What kind of vinegar should I use?
    Caeiia
    Caeiia
    Top Answerer
    Plain white vinegar is good.
  • Question
    Can someone give three examples of homemade polish?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    You can use coke, lime or lemon and you can also purchase polish from the store.
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Warnings

  • Applying this polish on fine, antique furniture may result in an undesired haze.
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  • Using any other kind of vinegar may stain.
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  • Do a test on a small section of the furniture first. If you find that the mixture leaves your furniture too oily, or you're worried about the oil getting rancid in hot weather, alter your proportions to include less oil.
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Things You'll Need

Polish #1:

  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • soft polishing cloth


Polish #2:

  • 1 Cup olive oil
  • 1/2 Cup of fresh lemon juice
  • soft polishing cloth

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, 24 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 357,159 times.
336 votes - 89%
Co-authors: 24
Updated: August 10, 2021
Views: 357,159
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