Refinishing Wood Furniture

Lindsey
by Lindsey
2 Materials
$10
5 Minutes
Easy
Do you own a solid piece of wood furniture that used to look great but now it’s a little dinged up and worn? Do me a favor, don’t EVER get rid of it! I found a super easy and cheap (probably free if you have the items on hand) hack to restore wood. You will never guess the two household items that I used to refinish wood furniture to make it look new again.
A friend of mine was moving and getting rid of a really nice solid wood desk, so I jumped on the opportunity to grab it. I loved the style of this antique piece of furniture.  It had obviously been used to write on. It was all scratched up and the top piece of wood was a different color than the rest of the desk.
YOU CAN SEE ABOVE THE SCRATCH MARKS AND DISCOLORATION FROM YEARS OF WEAR AND TEAR. ALTHOUGH THIS DESK WAS NOT IN TERRIBLE CONDITION, I STILL WANTED TO REFINISH THE WOOD AND MAKE IT LOOK NEW AGAIN.


My first thought was, “Duh, I just needed to buy polish.”  The problem with polish is that it looks great for the first hour or so after you’ve cleaned it.
I needed a product that would really absorb deep into the furniture piece and remove the scratches and make it look new and refinished.
The two items that I used were:
  • 1/2 cup vinegar
  • 1/2 olive oil


Mix these two ingredients and use a cloth to dip and rub all over the furniture. You should be able to see the scratches magically disappear!
For those of you who are visual (like myself) here is a you tube video of the process:




After I rubbed the vinegar/oil solution over the piece of furniture, I let it sit about 10 minutes. After about 10 minutes I took a dry cloth and wiped the excess moisture away. I honestly expected to see the scratches reappear, but magically about 90% of them are gone!


Who knew that a few household items would make such a difference!
For more details about this post check my blog post below.
Thanks guys!
Lindsey
Suggested materials:
  • Vinegar
  • Olive Oil
Lindsey
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 23 questions
  • Jud28640003 Jud28640003 on Sep 23, 2017

    Are you using apple cider vinegar or distilled vinegar?

  • Lou Lou on Oct 03, 2017

    Would this work on a butcher block counter top?

  • Jacx Jacx on Dec 26, 2019

    No wonder you hopped on to this piece! So charming. I only paint as a last resort, sometimes the surface just can't be brought back but I try first! Especially if it was good furniture to start with, why not try? Love what you did and will put it in my possibilities bag. Thanks for sharing.

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