A couple of years ago I inherited the danish modern credenza that had been sitting in my grandmother's living room for at least my entire life. She took incredible care of it and so I've tried to do the same. This means dusting, coasters and frequent oiling:
What You Need
Materials
- Unwaxed Teak Furniture
- Teak Oil
- Dusting rag
- Oiling Rag
- Well ventilated area
Instructions
1. Dust: With a damp (not wet!) cloth, dust the piece of furniture so that you get every bit of dust off of it. Use a bit of elbow grease if somethings actually dirty. (If it's really really dirty you can use an oil soap, but that's for another day). Allow it to dry completely.
2. Open a Window: Teak oil is very toxic so you should either take your furniture outside or apply the oil where you can open some windows so you don't gas yourself out.
3. Apply Oil: Using a clean cloth dedicated to Teak Oil, either put the oil on the cloth or, if the furniture is going to need a lot of oil, pour some directly on the surface and start wiping it in. You don't want pools of oil to stay sitting on any surface, so wipe it in and sop up any excess. It will stay shiny and sticky to the touch, so don't put anything back on top, allow the oil to be absorbed.
4. Reapply Oil: If after an hour all the oil has been absorbed by the wood and you still can see dry spots, reapply the oil and allow it to dry. Note: make sure to wipe the top of the teak oil can before you put the lid back on otherwise you will have a heck of a time trying to open it the next time you need to oil.
5. Let it Dry: I like to allow my final oiling to dry over a 24 hour period so that I'm sure it's all been absorbed. If you're finding that you used too much, wipe up the excess with a clean cloth. I've found that teak can absorb quite a lot of oil.
6. Maintain: Now that your teak is shiny and new looking, make sure to use coasters under glasses, dust it frequently and try not to have it in direct sunlight as this will expedite fading and drying out.
(Images: Laure Joliet)
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Comments (20)
Beautiful piece of furniture! How lucky :)
A slightly dumb question: where would I get teak oil? My local hardware store doesn't seem to carry it.
Another dumb question, how do I know what kind of wood my piece of furniture is? Also, is there an oil that would work for all kinds of wood?
Any thoughts on using tung oil? I hear that's really great to use on teak. Is there a difference?
Also, how often should one oil one's MCM teak furniture? How frequent is "frequent"?
I use Howard's Orange Oil for my teak and walnut pieces its non toxic and makes my George Nelson cabinet look new.
You can purchase at Ace Hardware.
Is there something else you can use that is not toxic?
Maybe this is really wrong and I'm in the dark about it, but I use Old English for touch-ups and it seems to work just fine. I thought teak oil was used mostly for outdoor furniture?
I heard you could use olive oil on teak. Anyone know if that's good advice?
How often should you oil it?
The beauty about Howards Orange oil is its not toxic and because the orange oil is a great cleaning solution it also replenish the wood to an amazing shine.
I use it every two weeks and light dusting in between.
http://touchoforanges.com/qufupohopror.html
Use or rub oil on woods such as teak, walnut, mahogany, rosewood and some oak(fumed or smoked) if the original finish of the furniture is actually oil finish. This is true to most vintage Danish/Scandanavian pieces. Do not use oil on finishes with clear coat or polyurethane and blond finishes or its useless. Oil needs to be absorbed so its best applied on soild woods and heavier veneers. For non toxic oils (or wax), use the kind recommended for food use like butcher blocks and teak salad bowls. If its done right like three to four coats with buffing in between (depending on manufacturer's instructions) once a year is plenty.
Tung oil finish should be used if this was the original finish. This is what studio furniture makers such as George Nakashima and Sam Maloof used and if Mr. Nakashima is still alive today, he will most likely tell everyone not to over do the oiling and waxing too often because it tends to hide the aging and the patina of the wood.
Howards Orange oil and Old English are dressings not finishes. This is what antique and vintage dealers use everytime thay want you to buy something in their store.
How often I think depends on climate, we live in Calgary so it's dry here especially now and our pieces always "drink" a lot when oiled. I have used tung oil accidentally but find it leaves a bit of a gummier surface. Also, if you do get a water mark and you catch it reasonably quickly, I have found a blow-drying from several inches away (don't want to over-dry it) works wonderfully to make the mark disappear (oh, the joys of children not using coasters!). Applying the oil with 600 grit water sandpaper works well too for a super finish.
I'm trying (quite unsuccessfully) to control my envy! I love this piece!!! Do you mind giving the info: maker, year, etc? I will definitely be searching for one of these babies! Thanks!
nice credenza.
julietjuliet--look on ebay. Search danish furniture. There's tons of them.
I oil my teak credenza once a year and that seems fine for me!
julietjuliet
the credenza/sideboard is by arne vodder (1950's) and prepare to pay top dollar, this is a well documented piece. or you could look at a real one in a vintage shop/gallery, study and memorize the details every inch of it, maybe on your lucky day you will encounter one someday and the seller has no clue about its provenance. knowledge is power, this is how i ended up with four rare unmarked chairs being sold by a dealer as by paul mccobb, they are actually handmade chairs by george nakashima in the late 1940's. don't add insult to injury by correcting the dealer and i also kept my mouth shut until they were in my possession. good luck!
Your using the wrong oil for indoor furniture. The Watco oil is intended for outdoor furniture and boats. ONLY use danish oil which is made with non-toxic Mineral Oil. This can be purchased at any Danish Furniture store (the one near me, Dane Decor outside of Philadelphia, sell it clear or colored for stain hiding. They also offer free refills!) However, mineral oil can be found anywhere. I often buy it at Ikea where they sell it for wooden ware like salad bowls. It used to be available at Dansk outlets which are now incorporated into Lenox outlet stores - maybe it's on their web site. The best part is the wonderful smell, unlike Watco which smells like turpentine.
all of this is great advice for indoor teak, however, i just got a patio set from teak warehouse in los angeles and caring for outdoor teak is a bit different.
(from their website)
"Teak requires very little maintenance apart from the occasional scrub with a mild solution of soapy water to remove accumulated dirt. This is followed by a rinse with clean water. To remove grease spots, a light scrub with a degreasing agent is recommended. This is followed by a rinse with clean water. (This is why teak garden furniture is so perfect.)
If you want to remove the silver-grey patina and restore the furniture to its original color use a teak cleaner which can be purchased from a marine store."
with this cleaning routine, my furniture will eventually patina to grey, but if i want to keep it the honey color, then
"If you want to preserve the color of your teak furniture, a teak sealer is recommended. Teak sealers are usually solvent based with water like viscosity containing mold, ultraviolet light and moisture protection. A variety of shades are available if you want other than the natural color. Sealers are easy to apply and are generally applied every 6-12 months. If you choose to use a sealer we recommend you visit a marine store and purchase speciality teak products as used on boats."
they were very helpful and knowledgeable!
www.teakwarehouse.com
No one has mentioned that oily rags should not be kept. If you can spread them out outside do that until they dry or submerse them in a jar of water.
Finishing oils combust and are the oily rags you may have read that should never be stored in your basement.