| How to Finish Cutting Boards Posted: 28 Jul 2020 05:00 PM PDT If you've purchased a wooden cutting board, you'll need to apply a finish to prevent the board from becoming damaged with use. The first step is to choose your preferred finish. Cutting-board finishes come in 2 categories: drying and non-drying. Drying oils require only a single application and soak deep into the wood fibers. Non-drying finishes do not dry or harden in the wood, and so will need frequent reapplication.[1] Cutting boards made from plastic do not need to be finished. [Edit]Selecting a Non-Drying Finish - Use mineral oil for an affordable, popular finish. Mineral oil applies easily onto the surface of a wooden cutting board. This option is water resistant, meaning that juicy foods like tomatoes or raw meat won't leak fluids into your cutting boards. Mineral oil is actually derived from petroleum, but is completely food safe. Since it's a non-drying oil, it won't leave an aroma behind.[2]
- You can purchase mineral oil at any kitchen store or woodworking store. Many large grocery stores also sell mineral oil.
- Apply a mixture of beeswax and non-drying oil for an attractive finish. Beeswax and oil form a liquid mixture which soaks deep into the woodgrain. This is beneficial to your cutting board, since it makes the wood look attractive and repels water. But, like other non-drying oils, it will require frequent reapplication.[3]
- You don't need to mix beeswax and oil yourself. Mixtures of beeswax and oil (most often at about a 1:5 ratio) are sold in woodworking stores and catalogs.
- Opt for carnauba wax for a stiff, water-repelling finish. The texture of carnauba wax is similar to beeswax, but the wax itself dries harder than beeswax and is excellent at repelling liquids. Like beeswax, carnauba wax is typically blended with non-drying oil. If you're planning to cut lots of water-retaining foods on the cutting board, carnauba wax may be your best choice.[4]
- Carnauba wax may be a little tricky to find. Check woodworking stores. If they don't stock the wax, find an online woodworking catalog and order the wax from the website.
[Edit]Choosing a Drying Finish - Finish your cutting board with pure tung oil for a durable finish. Tung oil is a thick substance that will dry and harden in the fiber of the wood. This gives strength to the cutting board and will make it highly water-resistant. Unlike non-drying finish options, tung oil does not need to be frequently re-applied.[5]
- You can purchase tung oil at most woodworking stores and through online woodworking catalogs.
- Select raw linseed oil for a cheap and easily attainable finish. Linseed oil is an FDA-approved food additive, meaning that it's among the safest finishes you can put on a cutting board. You can purchase linseed oil at any kitchen-supply store or woodworking store. Many large supermarkets or home-supply stores will also sell it. Linseed is a drying oil, so you'll need to let it sit out for 5–7 days before using the cutting board.[6]
- However, linseed oil also has a few disadvantages. It takes a long time to set, meaning that the cutting board will need to sit out for a few hours after you've applied the oil. Linseed oil also isn't very water resistant.
- Never apply boiled linseed to a cutting board. This processed oil contains metallic drivers and isn't safe for consumption.
- Opt for walnut oil for a dark, protective finish. Walnut oil is a durable, long-lasting finish that will provide a water-resistant coating to your cutting board. The curing time, though, is quite long. You'll need to wait at least 4–5 days for the oil to dry.[7] You can purchase walnut oil at any woodworking store or online catalog. Keep in mind, though, that walnut oil is very dark and will darken the color of the wood you apply it to.
- Depending on how light or dark you'd like your cutting board to be, this could be a positive or negative aspect of using walnut oil.
[Edit]Applying and Maintaining the Finish - Wash the cutting board before finishing it. You don't want to apply finish over bits of food or dirt on the cutting board. So, rinse the board off under running tap water. You can also rub it down with a small dollop of dish soap and a clean sponge.[8]
- After you rinse it clean, let the board dry for about 30 minutes before applying finish.
- Rub a dollop of finish on each side of the cutting board. Pour out a small dollop of finish onto a clean cotton rag. Using the rag, rub the finish onto the cutting board in long horizontal strokes. Make sure to cover the entire surface of the cutting board so there are no gaps in the finish.
- Once the first side is finished, turn the cutting board over and rub another dollop onto the second side.
- Let the finish dry for several hours or days. Different types of oil will take different amounts of time to dry. Non-drying oils will dry in 3–4 hours, while drying oils may take up to 7 days to dry completely. You can tell when the finish is dry by running your fingertips over the wood. If the finish is dry, your fingers will come away clean. If it's still wet, you'll have an oily residue on your fingertips.[9]
- While the cutting board is drying, leave it in on your countertop or another safe place where it won't be disturbed by kids or pets.
- Reapply non-drying oils when the wood begins to look dry. The frequency with which you'll need to reapply non-drying oils will vary based on how often you use the cutting board. Most users will need to reapply the finish about once a month. This includes all non-drying oils like mineral oil and wax mixed with oils.[10]
- If you neglect to reapply non-drying finish, your cutting board will dry out and fluids from the foods you cut will penetrate the wood.
- If you finished the cutting board with a drying oil, you won't need to reapply the finish.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Finish
- Clean cotton cloth
- Dish soap
- Never apply a lacquer or a varnish to a cutting board. These finishes form a thin film over wood, which will flake off and get in your food when you're using the cutting board.[11]
- Film-forming finishes will also quickly break down and allow liquids from the food you're cutting to penetrate the cutting board.[12]
- Do not apply food-based cooking oils, like olive, vegetable, or canola oil, to your cutting board. As time passes, these oils will turn rancid in the wood.[13]
[Edit]References |
| How to Make Solid Perfume Posted: 28 Jul 2020 09:00 AM PDT Because it's easy to make, solid perfume opens the door to experimentation, creativity, and individuality. Whether you're looking to set yourself apart with a unique scent or you're not so fond of the alcoholic undertones in most liquid perfumes, these instructions will show you how to create an inexpensive alternative.
[Edit]Ingredients [Edit]Sweet and Subtle Perfume - of beeswax
- of almond oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, or olive oil
- 10 drops of sandalwood essential oil
- 5 to 10 drops of lavender essential oil
[Edit]Hearty Cologne - of beeswax
- of almond oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, or olive oil
- 10 drops of frankincense essential oil
- 5 to 10 drops of rosemary essential oil
- 3 to 5 drops of bergamot essential oil
[Edit]Woody and Floral Perfume - of beeswax
- of almond oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, or olive oil
- 10 drops of jasmine essential oil
- 5 to 10 drops of rose essential oil
- 3 to 5 drops of cedarwood essential oil
[Edit]Creating a Scent - Mix your essential oils in a small dish to try out your scent. Before you dedicate an entire dish of perfume to one smell, you might want to test it to see if you like it first. Grab a small dish and use it to test out different scent combinations until you find one that you like. You can try different scents and ratios to experiment with your scent.[1]
- Ramekins are a great size for this, but you can use any small container that you have on-hand.
- Pick 10 drops of a long-lasting essential oil as a base note. Base notes are slow to evaporate and will be a long-lasting scent in your perfume. You can pick cedarwood, frankincense, ginger, jasmine, or vanilla for this note. Pour in 25 drops of your choice as a base.[2]
- You need the most of your base note so it sticks around on your skin the longest.
- Pick sandalwood for a sweet and subtle perfume.
- Try frankincense for a woody scent.
- Pick jasmine for a floral note.
- Add 5 to 10 drops of a middle note that is slightly more subtle. Lavender, lemongrass, orange, and rosemary all make great middle notes. These scents won't last quite as long and help to support the base note.[3]
- Try lavender oil to round out a sweet and subtle perfume.
- Pick rosemary for a more cologne-like scent.
- Try rose oil for a floral perfume.
- Choose 3 to 5 drops of a top note that's uplifting. Top notes are what you'll smell first, but they'll also go away super quickly. Choose from grapefruit, juniper, lime, pine, and tangerine as a short but sweet top note.[4]
- Try bergamot for a citrus scent.
- Mix in cedarwood essential oil for a woody note.
[Edit]Combining Your Ingredients - Put a glass bowl in a saucepan half full of water over medium heat. Grab a large saucepan and fill it up with water from your tap so it's about half full. Place a glass bowl in the center of the saucepan and turn the stove to medium to create a double boiler.[5]
- If you have a double boiler, you can use that instead.
- Beeswax doesn't melt down well in the microwave, and you probably won't get an even, smooth mixture. The stovetop is your best bet.
- Pour your beeswax and carrier oil into the glass bowl. Carrier oil is a fragrance-free oil that will thin out the beeswax. Add of beeswax and of your carrier oil to the glass bowl.[6]
- You can use almond oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, or olive oil for your carrier oil.
- Heat the carrier oil and beeswax mixture for 2 to 3 minutes. The carrier is already a liquid, but beeswax is solid. Heat the mixture for a few minutes until the beeswax melts into a pourable liquid.
- Remove the bowl from the heat and stir the mixture. Use oven mitts and carefully take your glass bowl off the sauce pan. Use a wooden stick to combine the wax and the oil together until they look smooth and shiny.[7]
- Your wooden stick will get wax on it, so don't use anything that you'd like to cook with later on.
- Stir your chosen essential oils into the hot mixture. Gently pour your essential oil mixture into the wax and oil, then use your wooden stirrer to combine all of your ingredients. Try not to spend too long on this, or the wax could start to harden up.[8]
- The essential oil will probably smell really intense at first, but that's okay! It will spread out in the wax mixture.
- Pour the perfume mixture into 3 to 4 small containers with lids. Pick out a few containers that can be sealed with a lid to store your perfume. Carefully pour a small amount into each container, being careful not to spill any of the wax.[9]
- You can use empty mint tins as a cute way to store your perfume.
- Let the wax cool and harden for 1 to 2 hours. Once your mixture hardens, you now have perfume! You can give some of the containers away as a gift or keep them all for yourself to stock up on a great scent.[10]
- Don't use your perfume until it's fully dry, or you could burn yourself.
[Edit]Using and Storing the Perfume - Rub a cotton swab or your finger over the perfume. You don't need to press down very hard to pick up the scent of your perfume. Gently dab your finger or a cotton swab onto the waxy surface until you see a slight indent in the perfume.[11]
- The more perfume you pick up, the stronger the scent will be.
- Dab the perfume onto your wrists and behind your ears. Perfume smells the best and lasts the longest on your wrists, your neck, and right behind your ears, since you emit more heat from those areas. Gently rub it into your skin for a soothing, pleasant aroma.[12]
- Solid perfume isn't quite as strong as liquid perfume, so you don't have to worry about applying too much.
- Store your sealed perfume in a cool, dry place for 6 to 12 months. Keep a lid on your perfume container whenever you aren't using it. If you used grapeseed as a carrier, use your perfume within 6 months. If you used olive oil, jojoba oil, or almond oil, you can keep it around for 12 months.[13]
- Grapeseed oil breaks down faster than other types of oil, which is why it doesn't stay as fresh.
- When you make your own perfume, it's customizable to what you like. Experiment with different scents to figure out what you'd like to smell like.
[Edit]Warnings - Always use oven mitts when taking the beeswax off the stove.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Small dish
- Saucepan
- Glass bowl
- Wooden stirrer
- Small containers with lids
[Edit]References |
| How to Crochet a Celtic Square Posted: 28 Jul 2020 01:00 AM PDT Celtic squares are great crochet projects that use only a small amount of yarn. While they look complex at first glance, they are actually fairly easy to make and don't take up a lot of time. This wikiHow will teach you how to make this fun crochet project. [Edit]Making the Center Square - Grab the yarn of your choice. Now do a slip knot. One way to do this is to fold the yarn and hold it between your thumb and index finger. Twist the string to form a loop, and pull the rest of the yarn through the loop. Then insert your crochet hook into the loop left.
- Chain 28. To do a chain stitch, yarn over once to get two loops on your hook. Pull the first loop through the second loop to finish the chain stitch. Repeat this 27 more times before moving on to the next step.
- Slip stitch into the first chain. To do this, insert your hook into the first chain. Yarn over while your hook is still in the chain. Pull the loop you thread over through the first chain and the other loop. You should see a circle/square like shape forming now.
- Chain 3. After the slip stitch, chain 3. This is to prepare for the double crochet that you will be doing afterwards.
- Double crochet into the next stitch. Start the double crochet by yarning over once. Insert your hook into the next stitch, and yarn over again with your hook in the stitch this time. Pull all the loops through the stitch. You should now have 3 loops on your hook. Yarn over again and pull through two loops. Yarn over one last time and pull through the remaining loops.
- This stitch can also be called treble crochet in UK.
- Do 4 double crochets in the next stitch. This reason to do four is because this is a corner, and you need four to help you turn and change direction.
- Double crochet in each of the next six chain stitches. There should be only one in each stitch now, as this is not at a corner.
- Do 4 double crochets in the next stitch, again. This is a corner once more, which is why there are four double crochets crowded in one stitch.
- Repeat. Double crochet in each of the next six chain stitches, do a corner; repeat this until you get to the first double crochet made.
- Slip stitch into the 3rd chain of the first double crochet. This 3rd chain was formed when you chained 3; so slip stitch into it. Now, you should be able to see the square shape clearly.
- Finish off the square. Do a chain stitch, and pull tightly to form it into a knot. Cut the thread, and weave in the ends.
[Edit]Making the Ovals - Get another yarn that is a different color from the center square. Do a slip knot, and chain 36.
- Double crochet in the fourth chain from the hook. Then do another double crochet in the stitch after.
- Do a corner. This is the same as for the center square: four double crochets.
- Double crochet in each of the next 16 chains.
- Be sure to count the exact number. If you are having trouble keeping track, try counting out loud.
- Do a corner again.
- Double crochet in each of the next 14 chains. You can now finish it off. This time, however, do not weave in the ends. You will need them for closing the oval later.
- Repeat the steps to make a second unclosed-oval. This one, however, should be made of yarn that is a different color from both the center square's and the other oval.
[Edit]Assembling the Pieces - Grab the center square and one of the unclosed-ovals. Take one end of the unclosed-oval. Weave the end over one side of the square and under the opposite side. Now take the other end and do the same, except opposite: weave the end under the first side and over the opposite side.
- Take the loose string. Weave it back and forth between the two ends. This will close the previously unclosed-oval. Then weave the remaining part of the string in.
- Grab the other oval (that is still separate from the center square). Like before, take one end of it. This time, though, weave the end over one of the two sides of the square that has not been woven by yet, under one side of the other oval, over the other side of the other oval, and under the opposite side of the square. Then take the other end and reverse the process: under, over, under, over.
- Close the unclosed-oval as you did for the other oval. Your Celtic square is now finished!
[Edit]Quick Summary |
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