Wooden Box DIY Restoration ~ Creative Day Thursday

Hi Friends,
We are looking at how to take a precious old box and give it new life without a smelly sealer.

This is an easy DIY on my Silver Box.

Each Christmas, Easter & Special Dinners I bring out the Silver Service. This year, however, I notice my box had taken quite a beating. Here is a Quick DIY to rejuvenate old wood.

 Clean with a soft sponge/cloth and water only. Don't use the scratchy side of the sponge, it will damage the wood and patina.

 Let the box dry after the light cleaning. This way the oils will saturate and not bead up on the wood surface.

 Use natural, unsalted, unroasted Walnuts or Pecans to fill in the scratches and dents on the box. The natural oils will remain and stain the wood scratches.
Be careful of the large dog who loves to eat Walnuts & Pecans! There were 4 pieces on the box moments before the next photo!! Ahhhhh

 Use just a few pieces of nut. I had 4 but there are now three. I started with one and used only 2 of them. Raider got the other one plus the one he stole! WINK*

 Contrary to what is said, rub the nut pieces across the grain of the wood so the oils can get down into the cracks, dents, and scratches.

 Work this way all over the box. Let set for a few minutes, grab a cool drink for yourself.  Then take a piece and run it the length of the boards, following the grain from on side to the other. That would be side to side on my box. Run the piece over the edges, around corners, all over the sides, inside hinged pieces of wood and on the back. Let sit to absorb the oils from the nut pieces.

 After the covering the areas with the nuts into the raw wood areas, wipe down the surface, gently, to remove any nut residue, particles and some of the oil.

 The box is already looking better. The nut oil will soak into the wood helping bring back the natural patina. Some of my scratches are a bit deep, so they look better, but are still visible.

 I use this brand of wax, a fine wood wax that is liquid and has no harsh smell.  (the flash does not show the visible scratches, but they are now filled with the nut oils and are less visible. You can see the shine already coming up!

 Add a bit of the oil onto the box.

  Again, let dry a bit to soak into the wood grain, cracks, dents and scratches. My box soaked all the oil in, but you can take a clean soft cloth to wipe down the box.

 This is after!

Everything looks nice and shiny in it's place in the box. Oops! I forgot to polish the knives!

Anyway, you get the idea.

This is a restoration project, not a stripping project. This box will be passed down in the family and for it to be authentic, it can't have any of the old patina removed.

Hope you liked this tutorial!

Enjoy!

CJD.Sign