love everything about this set. The scent is lovely, and once absorbed and wiped down, doesn't carry over to food or anything used on the boards. I used this to treat my large, cherry John Boos cutting board, a cheap little acacia wood board I use for cheese & crackers, some bamboo utensils, and, surprise - accidentally discovered it worked great to polish & shine my granite counters, stainless steel sink & fixtures, too. My boards were not in bad shape, but they were dry & had been neglected for a while. I'm a vegetarian, and do a lot of bread baking, using my Boos board to prep lots of veggies and to knead & shape dough, so it gets a lot of use and often dries out, esp after a couple of batches of bread, and then being scraped clean with my bench knife. i tried the Boos oil & cream, but even leaving a thick coat on to soak overnight for several nights in a row, there were areas on the board that never seemed to seal, and would absorb flavors, juices & color from things like garlic, onions, peppers, fruits, winter squash, etc. and no matter how quickly I cleaned it, how much I scrubbed, or what soaps I used, the odor would linger, and the odor & taste would then transfer to other foods or my bread doughs. No more! I hadn't used the board for about 2 weeks, hoping that onion & garlic would dissipate, but it was still there. I tried the Clark's soap first - rinsed quickly & easily, so the board didn't have to stay wet long. Couldn't detect the bad odors afterwards. Then, used my hands to wipe on a coat of oil - soaked in after 30 min, so I added another, and let it sit overnight. All soaked in! Boos oil always left it spotty - soaked in some areas, dry or pooled in others. Gave it a quick wipe with a paper towel, then used the sponge (so much easier & neater than paper or cloth towels) to apply the wax evenly all over the board. Let it sit for a few hours, then rubbed it lightly with a paper towel to remove a little excess from the surface. Looked beautiful, and after use, it wipes clean easily, things don't stick to the board, nothing, including odors, is soaking in or staining the surface, either. My little acacia board was always rough, and slightly warped, with a small crack on the middle seam. I used the soap to clean it well, and then sat it on my counter, wrapped in a damp dish towel, with the Boos board on top for weight, for a few days to flatten it. Then, I unwrapped it, and did the same process - 2 coats of oil soaked in, and then the wax. It's like new! Feels smooth now, the crack is invisible, it's not absorbing moisture or stains from cheese anymore, and nothing is sticking to it like before. Same with the bamboo utensils. The caddy makes it really easy to grab what I need and keep bottles upright, and the sponge clean, too. Very nicely made, not a rickety, cheap couple of pieces of wood. Looks nice out on my counter, too. Scent of the products is nice. Not that fake, flowery lavender smell. Smells just like the real lavender & rosemary in my herb garden. Accidentally grabbed a paper towel I'd used to wipe up excess wax from the boards, to wipe up a spill on my counter, and discovered it did a great job of polishing the granite counters, and the cherry wood trim along the backsplash. That led me to try it on my sink, fixtures, and even the cabinets - custom, solid natural cherry. Worked beautifully! And, it's much less expensive than the fancy, stinky spray that the granite guys sold me with the counters, and knowing it's food safe is nice. Also used the products on some old/antique furniture & frames around the house that looked dull and worn. It really brought out a soft sheen and enhanced the color, makes them look lovely again. So, I'll be tossing out all the cans of furniture polish, granite cleaner & polish, stainless steel polish, etc. and just using this on everything in the house. Made fingerprints disappear on the appliances, and water beaded up in the sink and around the faucets, and took a lot longer than usual for the white, crusty mineral deposits & spots from our water to appear after using this in & around the sinks. Knowing it's food safe & non-toxic if our pets or visiting little one touch things, or if we touch things while working in the kitchen, is nice, too.
