Gilboys wax polish - the best you can buy

This article is about a wax polish that was recommended to me by a restorer. Whilst it is probably the most expensive wax polish I have come across, it is the best I have come across. Let me explain why.

@Gilboys

Disclaimer: I am not earning any commissions from Gilboys. This article is based on my own opinion, experience and results using this polish compared to many others I have used and tried.

The Problem with Conventional Polishes

Walk down the cleaning aisle of any supermarket and you'll find shelves heaving with aerosol furniture sprays. They smell pleasant enough, and they certainly make things look shiny - for about an hour. But here's what most people don't realise: many of these products contain silicons and synthetic solvents that sit on the surface of the wood rather than nourishing it. Over time, they can actually build up a residue that dulls the natural grain and makes future restoration considerably more difficult.

Believe me, I have tried several supermarket (and others) polishes, and I know the issues and I know why I am never satisfied with them.

Wood is a living material. Even after it's been felled and worked and polished and sat in your dining room for a hundred years, it breathes. It expands and contracts with changes in temperature and humidity. What it needs isn't a chemical coating - it's something that feeds it at a cellular level.

That something is beeswax.

Beeswax has been used to protect and beautify wood for centuries, long before petroleum-derived products existed. It penetrates the grain rather than sitting on top of it, feeding the wood with natural oils and creating a protective barrier that actually gets better with age and buffing. The result isn't a brittle, glassy shine - it's a warm, living lustre that makes the grain of the wood sing.

At Gilboys, founded by Simon Gilboy and based in Dartington, Devon, the philosophy is refreshingly simple: make the best beeswax products possible, and nothing less.

As Simon himself puts it, "the intention has never been to compete with other brands on price or volume - just on quality".

Their range reflects that focus. The flagship beeswax wood polishes come in different shades - a clear 'pure gold' for lighter woods, a warmer 'rose gold' for mid-century teak, and a deeper 'antique gold' for traditional dark furniture - so you're not just slapping a one-size-fits-all product onto a piece of irreplaceable craftsmanship.

Gilboys wax polish - the difference

This is wax polish - re-invented.

• It is the composition of the wax polish that makes all the difference.

• It is made from pure beeswax

• The wax is mixed with Pure Pine Turpentine, no petro-chemicals here!

• It leaves the finished article shiny.

• There is no residue.

• It cures hard.

• It buffs to a wonderful shine.

• It lasts.

• You don't need to maintain it as often as other polishes (once or twice a year for a dining room table for example).

• It is easy to use.

For details of this polish, have a look at what Simon says "excuse the pun" here.

The Restoration That Stops You in Your Tracks

Read through any collection of customer reviews for Gilboys and a pattern emerges. People aren't just happy with the product - they're emotional about it. One customer described spending several days working through the restoration stages on a 1960s folding dining table that had belonged to their in-laws, only to feel genuinely moved when they finally buffed up the wax and saw the grain glowing again. Another brought antique walnut pelmets back from Gibraltar to their workshop, filled the wormholes with coloured wax, buffed them up, and reported: "They look amazing."

This is what good beeswax does. It doesn't just clean — it restores. And restoration, when it works, carries a particular kind of satisfaction that no other DIY task quite matches.

Restoration and care

I have a saying. "Cheap tools and cheap products are expensive."

The right tools and the right products are how you elevate your work.

This Gilboys wax polish finishes hard, so it lasts a long time.

I have used this on a number of my restoration projects with fantastic results, an example is this 19th century writing slope.

It is my only 'go-to' polish and a preference over any varnish finish, including shellac.

There's something counter-cultural about caring for old things in a world that would rather you replace them. Every piece of furniture that gets rescued from a skip, every antique table that gets a second life, is a small act of resistance against the throwaway economy. It takes time, patience, and the right products - but the results are objects that carry stories, that have texture and meaning, that will outlast the flat-pack alternatives by decades.

Gilboys exist for people who believe that. Whether you're a professional restorer, an antique enthusiast, or simply someone who'd rather save that beautiful old sideboard than see it go to landfill, their products were made with you in mind.

Just an aside...

I am a leather craftsman. I restore antique leather articles and I am a maker. Now I know that Simon did not design his wax polish for leather, but... me being me, and understanding leather and the Gilboys wax polish, I thought I would give it a go on some of the work I do. Whilst it is not designed for leather, it certainly works - in some cases and for specific purposes!

I used this wax on this violin case preservation and conservation project.

This polish has upped my game!

Explore the full Gilboys range at gilboys.co.uk 

If you need help with your restoration project, Somon gives great information here.