Cleaning and Maintenance

Cleaning is best accomplished by using warm lightly soapy water. Use of a dishwashing soap with a citrus base is best. Simply wipe the item with a wetted damp rag and then wipe dry with an absorbent dry towel.
To maintain luster, use a spray on furniture polish wax. Direct exposure in the sun light will cause the oil to fade due to UV rays. Over time the oiled surface can be refreshed by cleaning and then applying a light coat of neutral natural wood oil.


Note: Naturally finished wood packed in cardboard boxes may develop surface mold due to air moisture and contact between cardboard and wood. The wood is a natural heat sink and warms and cools creating moisture inside the box. The wet cardboard causes surface mold to form occasionally After removing from the cartons simply clean as above. The piece will adjust to its new climate and stabilize over time and the surface mold will stop forming

NOTE*

Please note regarding our products and their finishes: Our wood products ship with cracks, inclusions, and tool marks already in them. This cannot be avoided as they are hand carved and we do not use chemicals to treat the wood. The color tone is different on every single piece from the picture shown. Note that pictures shown in a group are all the same piece turned at different sides to view. This is because we use translucent natural oils with a tone. The underlying wood dark and light sets the base and causes the different color tones.

Products are made in the tropics and the wood adjusts to the new climate by shrinking and expanding depending on what season it is there. There will be cracks but the item still functions.

All of our products are carved by hand from one piece of solid wood. In this case Monkey Pod aka Rain Tree, Koa, Acacia all the same wood species family, just depends on country harvested for name. We cut and carve to order as this wood must be carved while still wet and has an IMC (Internal Moisture Content) of 50%+ when we carve. Can you feel the wood grain? yes but we finish with a natural plant chemistry oil hand rubbed into the wood. These oils contain natural lacs that come to the surface and form a semi sealing matte finish. The more the piece is rubbed the harder and smoother the oil finish will get. The oils are translucent and only a tone of the color (walnut, golden oak, etc..) is imparted and you can clearly see all the natural wood grain, inclusions, tool marks, etc... and the underlying wood tones as in light and dark. The underlying natural wood tone colors set the base for how dark the oil tones look, and it varies over the whole piece.

This wood is a medium hardwood and is cross hatched in grain structure, so it does have some rough spots that do not cover smoothly which some call defects but, is just the nature of the wood. We then apply a thin coat of natural clear floor wax to protect while shipping. We do not work with any particle board, pre-processed (chemicals) wood, or wood type products.