Homemade Furniture Polish (2024)

I love making my own homemade cleaners with essential oils. Whether it’s my DIY dusting spray, my magic shower cleaner, or my natural laundry recipes, I love how easy it is to make natural, non-toxic cleaners for my family.

And that’s true of this homemade orange oil furniture polish, too.

Store-bought wood polishes and cleaners can dull furniture over time and leave a haze on the wood’s surface. That’s because many of them contain silicone. Every time you clean with a silicone-based polish, you add another layer over furniture. Over time, dust and dirt get traps in these silicone layers and a haze builds up, dulling the wood’s finish.

Unlike store-bought polishes, this homemade orange oil furniture polish doesn’t build up. You can safely use it week in and week out, and wood just gets more beautiful with each use. It safely restores luster and shine, preventing wood from drying out and becoming brittle.

And it couldn’t be simpler to make. It’s just 4 ingredients and it only takes seconds to make.

What’s in homemade furniture polish

This website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.

• olive oil

Olive oil attracts and picks up dust, helping to trap dust and dirt on your cleaning cloth.

It’s also great for moisturizing and conditioning your wooden furniture as it easily sinks into wood and creates a protective barrier on the wood surface.

It helps leave furniture and baseboards with a subtle, beautiful shine.

And unlike some other carrier oils, olive oil has a long shelf life and doesn’t leave a sticky residue- making it the perfect carrier oil choice for this furniture polish!

• vinegar

Vinegar is a fantastic natural cleaner.

It disinfects, deodorizes, and easily cuts through dirt, grease and grime.

• vegetable glycerin

Vegetable glycerin is a humectant, so it attracts moisture. That helps make wood shine and helps keep it shiny longer.

• sweet orange essential oil

Not only does sweet orange essential oil smell great, it’s a powerhouse natural cleaner. It’s an excellent degreaser and cuts through dirt, grime, and buildup on furniture.

Want to customize your wood polish? Here’s how.

The recipe above uses my preferred ratios of oil, vinegar, glycerin, and orange essential oils in a furniture polish, but you can vary the amounts if you’d like.

• More olive oil makes wood polish more lubricating and shiny, but too much oil will leave buildup and feel oily to the touch.
• More vinegar improves cleaning ability, but too much vinegar has a sharp scent and diminishes conditioning and shine.
• More orange essential oil improves cleaning power, but it also gets more expensive.

How to make orange oil furniture polish

step 1: add 1 1/4 cups olive oil to a 16 ounce spray bottle

tip: Choose a spray bottle that’s made from materials safe to use with diluted essential oils. Glass, stainless steel, and certain types of plastic (plastic #1 HDPE or plastic #2 PET) work well.

tip: Using a funnel makes it really easy to add ingredients to a spray bottle.

step 2: add 25 drops sweet orange essential oil

step 3: add 2 tablespoons vegetable glycerin

step 4: add 1/2 cup white vinegar

step 5: add the spray top on and shake well to mix

step 6: add a label (click here for a free printable label)

tip: You can print this label on full-sheet label paper, or do what I do and print the label on regular printer paper and attach it to the spray bottle with packing tape. It’s cheap and easy to do. Plus, I find that the labels stay on better using packing tape than with regular label paper, and the packing tape protects the label really well, which keeps the labels looking great for a long time.

tip: To help the label stick really well, first wipe the tube clean with a little rubbing alcohol. Allow to dry and then apply the label.

How to use orange oil wood polish

• Use for wood cabinets, tables, chairs, bookcases, stair railings, and other wood surfaces
• Do NOT use on unfinished or unsealed wood surfaces
• No need to pre-clean surfaces before using this furniture polish. Not only is it a wood polish, it’s also a wood cleaner and dusting spray, too.
• Before you apply polish, check wood for any water marks. These look like white spots or beverage rings where a glass or house plant, diffuser, or something else sat on its surface. For water marks. put a small amount of full-fat mayonnaise on spot and rub gently. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes and up to a few hours, then wipe away. Mayonnaise pulls moisture out of wood’s surface. When water spot is gone, then use wood polish.
• Shake well before each use
• Spray on wood surface or onto lint-free cloth for light polishing
• Wipe with cleaning cloth until surface is dry and shiny
• Always rub in the direction of the wood grain. You should see furniture start to regain its luster almost immediately.

tip: As with any cleaner, spot test in an inconspicuous area before using to make sure that it works well for your wood.

Where to get supplies?

This website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.

olive oil – I get olive oil at Costco. You can also find it at your local grocery store. You don’t need fancy, expensive olive oil for this wood polish. Cheap olive oil will work just as well.

white vinegar– Because I use vinegar in so many of my homemade cleaning products, I get giant bottles of white vinegar at Costco. You can also find it in your local grocery store.

vegetable glycerin– find it online here

16 oz spray bottle– find glass bottle here, find PET plastic bottles here

free printable label & recipe (click here)

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Please note: Products mentioned in this article have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products and information on this page are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This website is not a substitute for professional care. Always consult your medical doctor regarding your medical care. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

Disclaimer: Please know that this website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.