I recently joined some friends in a Dough Bowl challenge. Ten of us each styled a wooden dough bowl for 5 different areas in our homes. Over the course of 5 days we shared how we used our wooden dough bowls in our kitchen, dining room, entryway/mudroom, on our coffee table, and in another way of our choice. You can read about that challenge here.
As I was gathering my dough bowls for this challenge, I realized a few could use some cleaning or refreshing. In this post, I share exactly how I clean, revive, and protect my dough bowls.
Big Giant Decor Dough Bowl
My first dough bowl ever was this large dough bowl. She measures approximately 33″ X 14″ X 4″. She is decorative, not antique, and not well made. But she looks great in photos. I guess I’ve had her for about 7 years. I bought her new at a wholesale shop that makes inexpensive reproductions. I purchase about 50 dough bowls of various sizes and shapes to sell at vintage markets.
And I kept this large one. Somehow over the last few years, she was damaged. I will probably fill the break with some wood putty at some point, but for now I will just do a quick repair. It is made from a very soft and inexpensive wood. She sports a dark stain that I am certain is not food safe. Considering her mass produced beginnings, she will not be a treasured or long standing piece in my home. Thus, the quick repair.
Since this wooden dough bowl is used only for decor purposes and is never used with food, I am opting to slightly sand the rough edges near the chip and restain. I will use a dark walnut stain that will make the damage less noticeable. After that, she will get a bath in warm soapy water.
Skinny Decor Dough Bowl
This long skinny dough bowl is another that came from my wholesale stash. The previous dough bowl really is quite enormous and can only be used on large surfaces. I needed a smaller dough bowl that could be used in much smaller spaces. This one fit the bill. I use her in my bathroom on the back of the toilet tank. She fits perfectly on the top of the toilet! Here is the $100 Room Challenge where I updated this guest bathroom.
To clean this dough bowl, I simply give her a bath in warm soapy water and dry with a cotton towel. I allow her to sit to air dry completely for a few hours. Since she is used primarily for decorative purposes, she only tends to get a little dusty so a quick bath is always the answer to a refresh.
Antique Dough Bowl
Every now and then, the antique gods sync with Facebook Marketplace, the thrift store, a yard sale, an estate sale, or a good flea market to bring me an incredible find. So, when scrolling through Facebook Marketplace about 2 years ago, this baby stopped me in my tracks. I call her Grand Lady. She is approximately 22″ X 12″ X 5″.
The owner said it was in her family for 125 years. I mean, who really knows? But she was credible, and lived next to a good friend. So I made the porch pick up and I’m so glad I did. I thought I would removed the orange paint but it really is intact with no peeling so I am leaving her as is for now. There is one mar in the center of the wooden dough bowl that you can see in the above photo. This could probably be remedied should I decide to strip her. But I’m digging this orange for now.
The paint on Grand Lady seems to be oil based and is not chipping at all. So I bathed her in a warm soapy bath. I hand dried her as well with a soft cotton towel and allowed her to dry thoroughly on the counter for a few hours.
Kathy’s Blue Building Dough Bowl
I purchase this dough bowl from one of my friends and dealers when I had my store The Blue Building Antiques. I don’t think it is antique as it is not made of hardwood and is not weighty at all. It appears to be a more expensive version of the decor dough bowl similar to Big Giant and Skinny.
I have been using her in my kitchen to hold fruit, bagged bread, and other supplies. She has a water stain so I decided to clean her up and try to restore her to a cleaner finish.
I gave her a nice warm soapy bath and a firm but gently scrubbing with a soft bristled brush. I used a firm brush on the water stains. The stains were still visible when she dried. So I took a find piece of sand paper and gave here a light scrubbing. I washed her again and applied a liberal coat of hemp oil allowing it to soak in over night. I wiped her with a clean cotton rag.
Here she is on Monday which was Kitchen day. Blu Kathy is the perfect size wooden dough bowl to hold all of my ingredients for meal prep and recipes. It’s so handy to have things all together.
Being the holiday season, I am getting ready to make Cranberry Orange Shortbread cookies. Check back next week for this recipe!
Uncle Ed’s Dough Bowl
I saved my favorite and most cherished dough bowl for last. This beauty belonged to my DIL’s favorite uncle who sadly passed away suddenly and unexpectedly this year.
She has a maker’s stamp on the back but I haven’t researched it yet.
Uncle Ed was a vibrant and colorful man with a great love for his family and an incredible affection for antiques. I traveled with II and her sweet wife to Nashville back in 2019. We spend a night at Uncle Ed’s and it was like spending the night in a museum. Uncle Ed had the largest collection of Fiesta Ware that I had ever seen. I was amazed at the number of rare pieces he had on display in his kitchen. I could have spent a week in his small one level cottage and still not have seen everything. From furniture, to glass ware, to serve ware to art, Uncle Ed had beauty scattered everywhere. And Lord! That man was funny. So when II sent me some photos of items from Uncle Ed’s home that they were considering as mementos, I begged for a wooden bowl. And sure enough, she came to Alabama from Tennessee via Texas a few months later.
Clean and Restore
Since I haven’t researched completely the origin of this bowl, I was hesitant to really sand the wood or disturb the natural finish. So I opted for a nice warm soapy bath and a firm but gently scrubbing with a soft bristled brush.
Once the wood was wet, several imperfections appeared including a small crack and various discolored spots. I suspect some of the spots are from food and oils.
So, after her bath, this bowl received a liberal coat of Hemp oil to feed the wood. Apply the oil liberally with a clean cotton rag. I allow the oil to sit on the wood overnight. Gently wipe away any excess with a clean rag. I used the same rag to buff the wood to a beautiful finish.
I love the life that is riddled in this bowl. It reminds me of the great man who handled her and every time I catch a glimpse of her in my kitchen, I smile.
Isn’t it simply amazing what a little care can do to some old wood? Remember to feed your wood and it will stay around for a long time!
My little collection of dough bowls is growing. I’d like to grab a few small odd shaped bowls for our guest bedroom and bathroom. And I would love to score a giant antique! It’s important to have goals, right???
A Tribute
This post is in honor of Ed Gibbs May 19, 1958-July 13, 2021. Rest peacefully my margarita drinking antique loving friend! I would have loved to have gotten to know you better but you were needed elsewhere.
Someday…have my marg ready! I’ll be sliding in sideways with a bag of antiques for you.
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