A bowl asks more of a finish than a sideboard does. It holds fruit and bread, it gets handled every day, and a turned or natural edge bowl is full of curves, fissures and end grain that a cloth cannot always reach. Carved work is the same, with detail that a heavy finish will fill and flatten.
Hard wax oil is our choice for tops and broad surfaces, and our guide to applying Oli Natura hard wax oil to furniture covers that. For bowls and carved pieces, we use Oli Natura worktop oil. This guide covers why, and how we apply it.
Why worktop oil
Oli Natura worktop oil is a solvent free blend of linseed, tung and castor oils, made for surfaces that meet food and water every day, such as kitchen benches and chopping boards. It is certified food safe in Germany under LFGB, and tested to the European toy safety standard EN 71-3 and to DIN 53160 for resistance to saliva and sweat.
It soaks into the timber rather than sitting on top as a film, so it deepens the colour and brings up the figure while leaving the surface feeling like timber, with a soft, satin sheen rather than a glassy coat.
The bowl in these photos
The bowl was made by Ted Johnston of Brogo, on the far south coast of New South Wales, from a scribbly gum burl, and he signed and dated it on the underside in 1996. The inside is a run of fissures and checks that no cloth can follow, so we worked the oil in with a soft brush instead, then lifted the excess out of every crack before it dried.
Worktop oil going on with a soft brush. The wet shine in the fissures is excess that still has to come out.
How to apply worktop oil to a bowl or carving
- Dust it thoroughly. Use a soft brush to clear every crack, recess and carved line. If the piece has been oiled before, wash it with Oli Natura wood soap and let it dry completely.
- Shake the tin and apply thinly. On smooth curves, a folded lint free cotton cloth works well. On fissures, natural edges and carving, use a soft brush and work the oil into the detail.
- Give it time to soak in. The timber takes up what it needs. Thin coats soak in evenly, while a heavy coat only leaves more to remove.
- Lift out every trace of excess. Wipe the smooth surfaces along the grain with a clean, dry cloth, and use a dry brush to draw the oil back out of cracks and recesses. Oil left pooled in a fissure or a carved line dries sticky and glossy rather than soaking in.
- Let it cure before use. Worktop oil takes longer to cure than hard wax oil. It is dry to the touch in one to two hours and fully cured in five to seven days, so keep food and water off the piece until then.
The finished bowl: Ted Johnston, Brogo, scribbly gum burl, 1996.
A red mallee burl platter
This natural edge platter was turned by Harold Pinto in 2012 from red mallee burl. He signed the underside with the timber, its botanical name, Eucalyptus socialis, and the year. Red mallee is one of the mallee eucalypts of semi-arid southern Australia, which grow as several stems from a woody base. Its burl is dense and heavily figured, dark red at the centre and paler towards the edge.
Harold Pinto, red mallee burl, 2012.
On a piece like this, a thin coat of worktop oil brings up the contrast between the dark red centre of the burl and the paler timber around it. The natural edge is full of small crevices, so the oil goes on with a soft brush, and the excess has to be lifted out of each one, just as with the fissures in the bowl above.
Laid flat, the platter keeps the uneven outer edge of the burl, left as it grew.
The burl figure up close, with its swirling grain and uneven natural edge.
What a thin oil finish does to carved work
Carving shows what a well applied oil finish should look like. The raised edges catch the light with a soft sheen, while the recesses stay a shade deeper in tone, so every line of the carving reads clearly. Left too heavy, oil gathers in the recesses, dries glossy and blurs the detail, which is why lifting out the excess matters more on carved work than anywhere else.
A carved timber panel from the late 1980s: a soft sheen on the high points, a deeper tone in the recesses.
Looking after an oiled bowl
- Wash it by hand. Wipe it out with warm water and a little wood soap, and dry it straight away. Do not soak it or put it in the dishwasher.
- Refresh it when it looks dry. Clean it with Oli Natura wood soap, let it dry, and work in a little more worktop oil, wiping off the excess as before.
- Keep it out of direct sun and away from heaters, which dry the timber and can open up checks in a burl.
Dispose of cloths and brushes safely
Cloths, pads and brushes soaked in oil generate heat as the oil cures and can catch fire on their own. This applies to every oil finish, not only Oli Natura. After use, lay cloths flat outdoors to dry fully before binning them, or store them under water in a sealed metal container. Never leave them screwed up in a bin or a pile.
Where to buy worktop oil
Oli Natura worktop oil is sold by Superior Timber Coatings, the Australian importer of Oli Natura.
Use the code FOXNWEDGE10 at the Superior Timber Coatings checkout for 10% off the entire Oli Natura range.
For cleaning between coats of oil, we stock Oli Natura wood soap.
A note on our relationship with Oli Natura. Fox & Wedge is an official Oli Natura ambassador. We are not paid by Oli Natura, and we are not paid to endorse its products. We have used Oli Natura on our restorations for many years, long before the partnership began, and we recommend it because it is what we trust on our own work. In return for being an ambassador, we buy our stock at a discounted trade price. The care products in our store are sold at Oli Natura's recommended retail price.
Common questions
Is worktop oil safe for a fruit or bread bowl?
Yes, once it has fully cured. Oli Natura worktop oil is certified food safe in Germany under LFGB. Allow five to seven days before food goes in it.
Can I use hard wax oil on a bowl instead?
We use hard wax oil on furniture tops and broad surfaces, and worktop oil on anything that meets food every day. Worktop oil is made for that job.
Can I use it on a chopping board?
Yes. Chopping boards and kitchen benches are what it is made for.
My bowl has an old finish on it. Do I need to remove it?
Oil needs bare timber to soak into, so a lacquered or varnished bowl has to be stripped first. If you are unsure what is on it, or the bowl is signed or collectable, send us a few photographs before you start. See our restoration service or get in touch.
