Oil

I finish most wood furniture with oil. I prefer to use Corcol of Aquamarijn. The base of this is linseed oil. It was orginally not developed for wood, but rather for cork floors. But it does work very fine for wood. It gives a good protection against liquids and it gives the wood a authentic, natural look. It is free of solvents and the company Aquamarijn produces environment friendly products. http://www.aquamarijn.com/

Wood that is finished with oil requires maintenance! After about a month it needs a new layer of oil. After that it is recommendable to do this once a year. In case of intensive use (for example kitchen sink units), it needs a new layer more often. Bit by bit the layers starts to look like polish. To avoid that, one can use wax instead of oil, after the first two oil treatments.

Wax

Also this product gives the wook a authentic, natural look. The protection against liquids is slightly less, compared to oil, but the great disadvantage is its sensitivity for heat. A spot will remain when putting a hot teapot on it. Of course this is not so relevant for e.g. a cabinet. Wax can be used on the crude wood, but also on any other finishing, like oil, stain or varnish. For my furniture I mostly use the hard floorwax of the brand Auro. http://www.auro.nl/

Varnish

Most wood furniture on sale in shops, is finished with varnish. Varnish comes in many kinds, with differences in color and shine. Varnish gives wood a slightly different look, as it adds a layer with a nature of its own. However, the advantage is that no or hardly any maintenance is necessary, and that an undamaged layer of varnish gives excellent protection. To prevent the varnish from looking tarnished (after years), a layer of wax can be added, once a year at the most. My favorite varnish is shineless parquet varnish of Hermadix. http://www.hermadix.nl/