2010-02-15 Wood care

By picking and boring into a piece of wood the so-called “łyżkarze" (from “łyżka", meaning “spoon") have been manufacturing beautiful wooden spoons, containers, troughs up to the present. Those serve us today in the kitchen on a daily basis.

Items produced with picking and boring techniques used to be considered more solid and resistant to damage than hollowware or pottery. Wood, if we want it to serve us for long, has to be cared for - especially when considering that “łyżkarstwo” is an occupation is becoming increasingly unpopular in Poland. In consequence, unless youngsters learn the craft of picking and boring into the wood, there will be less and less handmade goods on the market.

1. Soak newly purchased wooden items in apple cider vinegar and leave this way throughout the night. It will prevent the items from absorbing the smell of the food. Dry them with kitchen roll towels.

2. Wipe the new wooden bowl with a rag soaked in small amounts of  dining oil. Do not wash it with a detergent, instead rinse it with hot water and, when dry, rub it with oil.

3. Cracks and crevices can be sealed by covering wooden manufactures for several hours with a wet cloth, which will cause wood fibers to swell. Remember the wood is “active” -  it shrinks and swells depending on humidity.

4. Old wooden objects that have been stained can be restored by wiping them with soft metal shavings in the direction parallel to grains (put on safety gloves). Next, rub them in small amounts of vegetable oil