The ancient Greeks polished their wooden and metal weapons with olive oil.
Growing up I remember my mother after cleaning the house, she polished the furniture with olive oil. She said that olive oil preserves the wood. Our furniture, because of the olive oil, looked like they came out of the showroom, although they were old. I continue to do the same.
I read in a magazine sometime ago, that Joe DiMaggio the baseball player, rubbed his baseball bat with olive oil and sometimes he soaked it in olive oil for over a week. This kind of treatment gave his bat an excellent spring.
Make it a habit to clean your floors with olive oil. It works on wooden floors and a variety of tile, marble or stone. Sweep and mop the floors. Then apply olive oil on, in moderation of course, and watch your floor sparkle and shine.
Best way to shine the furniture and floors is to oil your hands well and wipe them with a cotton cloth. Do this a couple times and then use the cloth to dust and polish the furniture. The cloth should be moist, not very wet. Too much oil makes the floor slippery.
A tradition that Greeks, Italians and Spanish are well known of, is entertaining friends and family. Every time my parents invited guests to the house, the most important things were the food preparation and the preparation of the house to welcome the guests. Olive oil was the main ingredient for both.
My mother when my father’s side of the family was coming, went out of her way to have everything in perfect condition and especially the house. I don’t know if there is any other culture in the world like the Greek culture. When your husband’s family comes over, and especially your mother in law you are under a microscope. The mother in law will run her fingers on the furniture, looking for dust. That way she can criticise the daughter in law. (We are a little strange.)
My mother polished the doors in the house also. She mixed 1 cup of vinegar, 1/2 cup of olive oil and 1 cup of water, she dipped a cotton cloth in the mixture, she wrung it well and polished the doors. You can use this mixture for the floors and furniture. The vinegar cleans the wood and the oil shines it and preserves it.
Now before you walk down the aisle of your supermarket’s cleaning and polishing products, don’t buy without reading the labels. They are full of warnings. Protect yours and your family’s health. Protect your environment from toxic and dangerous chemicals.
The alternative to these chemicals is in your kitchen cabinet. Grab the bottle of olive oil. Stick with the “liquid gold.” It isn’t only good for eating. It has many many uses. It is more economical and you don’t have to use the extra virgin olive oil for polishing and dusting.
Make your life simple with a bottle of olive oil.