It wasn't long before I regretted my rebellion, once again I discovered the inevitable. Mom was right. My Tupperware turned a weird yellow color and became brittle. My knife handles dried out and some of them even cracked under the extreme heat that a dishwasher produces when washing and drying the dishes inside them. Since I had a toddler my water heater was turned down to a temperature I thought the wood and plastic could handle in the dishwasher but later I found out that a dishwasher generates it's own heated water which is practically scalding.
So, never put wooden handled knives and utensils into a dishwasher and never let them sit in the soapy dishwater waiting for you to wash them. When the original finish begins to wear off the handles, get some boiled linseed oil (available at The Home Depot, Lowe's, Art supply stores, etc) and a rag and wipe generous amounts of the oil on the wooden handles. Rub in as much as the handle will absorb and then wipe off the excess oil. This will keep the wood in as close to its original condition as possible if this process is done at least once a month. Notice the difference of the handles in the photos below...
Before using linseed oil - dry and "grey" looking |
After using linseed oil - like new! |
Hope this helped someone's knives before they hit the trash can because the handles dried out and cracked!
Have a blessed day!