Project

Furniture Polish

Make wooden chairs, benches, and the dining table all shine using a mixture of natural ingredients found at home.

Source: Martha Stewart

Introduction

This idea comes from our friend Ashley Poskin. "Mixing up a batch of furniture polish is one of the easiest all-natural home cleaning recipes you can make," she says. "In addition to it being extremely cost effective, it's also fragrance free, and using your own reusable spray bottle means one less plastic bottle in the landfill—and that's definitely a good thing."

To use, shake well and spray a soft dust cloth (an old jersey-cotton T-shirt is great for dusting) with enough polish to wet the surface. Wring out any excess and polish wood surfaces, going in the direction of the grain. If you only have a few pieces of furniture that need polished, one ounce each of vinegar and olive oil and a half ounce of fresh squeezed lemon juice is the perfect amount.

For more ideas, scroll through our entire collection of DIY household cleaners.

materials

Spray bottle

Vinegar

Olive oil

Lemon juice

steps

Mix ingredients, following about a two-to-one ratio of vinegar and olive oil to lemon juice. Pour into a reusable spray bottle. You'll want to make the solution as you need it, and discard any leftovers instead of storing them with your other cleaning products to avoid having the polish turn rancid.