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How to wax wooden furniture: the old move, done well

Furniture is waxed in three moves: clean off the old wax with Wax and Polish Remover, apply a Mylands wax sparingly in small circles, let it haze and buff along the grain. Mylands waxes are pure beeswax and carnauba, toluene-free, in 400 g tins. Wax Clear leaves the wood as it is; Antique Brown, Stripped Pine, Dark Oak or Black give it a patina. A second coat goes on after 10 minutes, and the piece is re-waxed once or twice a year. Never on a floor.

Page updated September 2026 · by the Mylands France woodcare specialists

Why wax

What wax does to furniture, and what it does not

Wax does not form a hard film like a varnish; it lays on the wood a thin skin of beeswax and carnauba that repels dust, feeds the surface and gives the silky patina you recognise on old furniture. It goes straight onto clean, bare wood, onto wood already finished, over a pale shellac such as 2000 Pale Shellac Sealer Basecoat, or over a stain: Earth Stain, Light Fast Stain, Nitrostain or water stain.

It has its limits, and they are worth knowing before the tin is opened. Wax stays sensitive to water: a spill must be wiped up at once, or the moisture gets through the barrier. And Mylands does not recommend it on floors: a floor is sanded and lacquered with Mylac. For furniture, it is the simplest and most repairable finish there is.

Warm patina · Wax Antique Brown No colour · Wax Clear Cleaning · Wax and Polish Remover

The method

Waxing furniture in six moves

01

Remove the old, muddy wax

On a piece that has been waxed before, new wax does not take on the old grey layer. Work Wax and Polish Remover in with 0000 steel wool along the grain, wipe off with a clean cloth, and repeat until the cloth stays clean.
02

Check the surface

Wax goes onto clean, dust-free bare wood, onto a sound existing finish, onto a shellac or onto a stain that is fully dry. The full preparation: Wood finishes preparation.
03

Apply sparingly, in small circles

Pick up a little wax on a soft cloth or 0000 steel wool. Work in small circular motions without loading the surface: a thin coat evens up and buffs, a thick one stays greasy and marks. Then even up so no thick patch is left.
04

Let the matt haze appear

After a few minutes the surface clouds to an even matt: the wax has released its solvent and is waiting to be buffed. Do not touch it before then.
05

Buff along the grain

With a clean cotton cloth or a horsehair furniture brush, rub along the grain until you reach the sheen you want.
06

Second coat after 10 minutes, then once or twice a year

After 10 minutes, further coats can be applied for more depth, always thin, always buffed. After that, re-waxing once or twice a year keeps the wood nourished.

Which wax

Six waxes, six pieces of furniture

The colour of a wax does not stain the wood in depth; it shades it: it warms, darkens or whitens the pores. Always test under the top or on the back of a drawer.

1. Wax Clear on new oak

A freshly sanded oak bedside table, waxed with the clear wax: the wood keeps exactly its honey tone and gains a soft lustre that follows the grain. The choice when you like the wood as it is.

New oak · Wax Clear

2. Wax Antique Brown on a walnut chest

A warm, golden orange-brown tone that deepens walnut and evens up a chest whose drawers have aged differently. After buffing, the patina is that of a piece cared for over fifty years, without any film. The wax for antique furniture above all.

Walnut · Wax Antique Brown

3. Wax Stripped Pine on a pine dresser

Stripped Pine M7 is the original colour and the industry standard on stripped pine: it gives dry yellow pine back an old honey tone without the orange. Two thin coats buffed with the brush make the piece.

Stripped pine · Wax Stripped Pine Darker version · Wax Rustic Brown

4. Wax Dark Oak on a period oak coffer

A cold brown, made for antique oak or for a piece that is too light and needs calming. On a panelled coffer, the dark wax settles in the pores and mouldings, and the relief comes forward.

Antique oak · Wax Dark Oak

5. Wax Black for a distressed look

A very dark black wax, on antique furniture or on new timber you want to age: it blackens the pores and the corners, buffs away on the flats, and gives that look of a piece worn and protected at once.

Dark patina · Wax Black

6. Wax Liming on oak

The liming wax: white in the open pores of oak or ash, wiped off the flats, then protected with a coat of Wax Clear. A limed oak sideboard lightens by several tones without losing its drawing. The full method is in How to lime oak.

Liming · Wax Liming Protection · Wax Clear

The choice

Which wax for which wood

All come in 400 g tins, pure beeswax and carnauba, toluene-free, and go on the same way. The difference is the colour.

Wax	Colour	For	The look
Wax Clear	Colourless	Any new or pale wood, painted furniture	The wood as it is, buffed
Wax Light Brown	Light orange-brown, almost clear	Traditional restoration, mid-toned woods	Barely warms; the wax of the furniture colleges
Wax Antique Brown	Warm golden orange-brown	Walnut, mid oak, antique furniture	The patina of a well-kept piece
Wax Stripped Pine	Old honey (Stripped Pine M7)	Stripped pine, dressers, country furniture	The standard on pine
Wax Dark Oak	Cold brown	Antique oak, a piece too light in colour	Darkens, picks out the pores
Wax Antique Mahogany	Warm, very light in the tin	Mahogany and warm-toned woods	The restorers' wax; keep away from pale fabrics
Wax Black	Deep black	Antique furniture, new timber to be aged	Worn and protected

To lower the sheen of a piece that is too glossy, Wax Cutting contains pumice and dulls it down. The whole family: Mylands waxes.

To avoid

What spoils a waxed piece

Waxing over grime. The old grey wax and the dust stay trapped under the new coat, which never buffs cleanly. Wax and Polish Remover first, always.
Too much wax. A thick coat does not dry, marks under a finger and holds dust. Sparingly, then a second thin coat after 10 minutes if you want more depth.
Aerosol furniture sprays. They leave silicones that nothing removes afterwards, and on which neither wax nor varnish will hold.
Wet cloths. Water gets through wax; dust dry, and wipe up a spill at once.
Wax on a floor. It slips, clogs and stops any other finish holding. A floor is sanded and lacquered: see How to varnish a wooden floor.

Frequently asked

Your questions, our answers

Can varnished or painted furniture be waxed?

Yes: Mylands waxes go onto finished wood as they do onto bare wood, and onto painted surfaces. Clean first with Wax and Polish Remover if the piece has been waxed before, dust off, then apply sparingly. On paint, Wax Clear does not change the colour; a tinted wax gives it a patina.

Does bare wood need sanding before waxing?

Bare wood must be clean, dry, finely sanded and dust-free; wax picks out every sanding scratch. The detailed preparation is in Wood finishes preparation.

How often should furniture be re-waxed?

Once or twice a year is enough to keep the wood nourished. In between, dry dusting only.

How do I remove a wax that has bloomed or clogged?

Wax and Polish Remover takes off wax, dirt and the whitish bloom from waxed surfaces, worked in with 0000 steel wool along the grain and wiped off with a clean cloth. The detail, and the case of varnishes, in Removing old wax and varnish.

Can wax go over a stain?

Yes; it is the simplest way to seal a stain on furniture: Earth Stain, Light Fast Stain, Nitrostain or water stain, fully dry, then Wax Clear or a tinted wax. The stain gives the colour, the wax the protection and the lustre. See How to stain wooden furniture.

How to wax wooden furniture: the old move, done well

What wax does to furniture, and what it does not

Waxing furniture in six moves

Remove the old, muddy wax

Check the surface

Apply sparingly, in small circles

Let the matt haze appear

Buff along the grain

Second coat after 10 minutes, then once or twice a year