Bringing Wood Back to Life with Olive Oil

I'm getting ready for a little photo shoot of my house and my plants needed some sprucing up. First off, I have a black thumb. And a black thumb combined with laziness about watering makes for very dead indoor plants. Plus, I've decided that it's more important to feed the babies than the plants, I think you'd all agree that is a smart choice.

So, I headed over to my favorite plant spot who does my clients plants and had all of my containers replanted with silk plants. Don't judge me, please! I would love to have the real thing but it's just not a reality right now. Plus, having dead plants in every room of your house is not a good look, trust me, I've tried it.

But, then I realized that my beautiful antique wooden container was looking a little sorry too. How amazing is that bowl? I snagged it a few months back at the Rose Bowl Flea Market for $50. Might sound like a lot but I had a few people tell me they had seen similar pieces selling for $500, I call that a steal. Plus, it's huge (18 inches diameter x 10 inches high) and is such a statement piece. It had been sitting outside in an attempt to bring the real succulents back to my life and the wood had gotten sun bleached.

 Before and during shots of the bowl 

All I did was pour a little olive oil onto a micro fiber cloth and rub it on. Can you believe the difference? My mom says just about any oil will work but she used to apply mineral oil to our salad bowl to keep it in good shape. 

 Don't you think my fake succulents look pretty legit?

And just so you don't think I can't keep anything alive, here is my new "real" arrangement for our outdoor coffee table. They told me to water them every 3 weeks, I think I can handle one "real" plant. Wish me luck!

Disclaimer: Please don't sue me if olive oil does something weird to your wood, it happened to work for me but I can't be held responsible if it doesn't work magic for you.