You chose interior, darken & amber, maximum durability, maximum sheen
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Option 1 (diffculty: medium): Oil/solvent based Polyurethane / Varnish in gloss finish (difficulty: medium)
This gives a hardwearing "film" finish which sits on top of the wood protecting it from heat and moisture. As it is oil/solvent based, it will slightly darken and amber (yellow) the colour of the wood.
Most can be applied with a brush, foam brush, a roller or sprayed. Some are designed for wipe on application, these finishes are thinner and more coats need to be applied to achieve an equivalent finish.
Once applied and dry, I recommend de-nibbing (sanding) in between coats with some wet and dry paper (I use 400 grit but 240-600 will work too) - how to denib - it also minimises visible brush strokes.
It can be applied to bare wood, or over most other finishes except for wax.
Gloss gives maximum sheen
Ronseal Ultra Tough Hardglaze Polyurethane - 250ml https://geni.us/gD6Af 750ml https://geni.us/clU9r3 2.5l https://geni.us/aLkjHE8 5l https://geni.us/BzsXm (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Blackfriar Polyurethane Varnish Clear - various sizes https://geni.us/ojdzTqS (Amazon Affiliate Links)
151 Clear Gloss Varnish - 180ml https://geni.us/cTQA (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Watco Wipe-On Polyurethane - quart / 946ml https://geni.us/U1Ai (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Rust-oleum Varathane Polyurethane Gloss - gallon / 4.54l https://geni.us/mnH0a6 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Rust-oleum Varathane Polyurethane Gloss - https://geni.us/Yws5t (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Minwax Polyurethane https://geni.us/fAAgKq8 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Palatine Paints Polyurethane Varnish - various sizes https://geni.us/ccquZ (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Option 2 (diffculty: medium): Oil followed by varnish or polyurethane in "gloss" finish
Oils...
Oils soak in to the wood, filling the pores which gives a reasonable amount of protection from moisture. It is not a film finish (i.e. it doesn't provide a protective coating on the surface of the wood) - although one exception is Danish oil which is (usually) a blend of oil and varnish.
There are many different varieties of oils for wood: tung oil, boiled linseed oil, teak oil, mineral oil, walnut oil... There are also products that are a combination of oil and varnish usually sold as "danish oil", although the recipes are different from brand to brand. Danish oil can be used as a finish on it's own, however I have found that it is not as durable as applying an oil finish, waiting for it to cure, and then applying a varnish / polyurethane over it. All of these oils will vary in terms of performance (drying/curing times etc), but most of them will give very similar results in terms of appearance. Even mineral oil will darken and amber wood, even though it is transparent in colour.
My advice would be to read the manufacturer's instructions and make a decision and don't worry too much about appearance - they'll all make the wood grain "pop" and nourish the wood, darkening it and giving it an amber/yellow colour similarly.
Personally, I tend to use boiled linseed oil as it is inexpensive.
If you're looking for a food safe oil for chopping boards, fruit bowls etc., mineral oil, walnut oil and pure tung oil are the safest options, although some people say that all wood finishes are food safe providing they're fully cured before use.
Oil can be applied using a brush, clean cotton cloth or scouring pad
The combination of using oil to "pop" the wood grain and darken and amber the wood, followed by a varnish/polyurethane film finish to add durability works really well.
Bartoline / Rustins / Liberon Boiled Linseed Oil - 300ml https://geni.us/mPgPt3y 500ml https://geni.us/xnJTP 1l https://geni.us/kkgV 2l https://geni.us/iiZH 5l https://geni.us/AkQtPG7 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Bartoline Teak Oil - 1l https://geni.us/wb3H 2l https://geni.us/G1Ziqx 5l https://geni.us/GBglYL5 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Liberon Pure Tung Oil - 250ml https://geni.us/uXnnC 500ml https://geni.us/C8H6Ys 1l https://geni.us/Ca1ZGzj 5l https://amzn.to/3j7145A (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Walnut Oil by Mystic Moments - 500ml https://geni.us/dzQhAe 1l https://geni.us/q3U8GN 5l https://geni.us/ELwvO (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Mineral Oil by Mystic Moments - 500ml https://geni.us/RvzbB 1l https://geni.us/z1QrXGZ 5l https://geni.us/HSSZ (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Danish Oil Rustins (various sizes) https://geni.us/Ir0Ns65 Liberon 1l https://geni.us/aAYA1PU 2.5l https://geni.us/0wuwZD5 Parr's 250ml (labelled food safe) https://geni.us/L51d3YR Parr's 500ml (labelled food safe) https://geni.us/4RTVc Ronseal Colron 500ml https://geni.us/ijJwL Tried and True (various sizes) https://geni.us/8EUVd65 Watco Wipe On - quart / 946ml https://geni.us/AbTKOnA (Amazon Affiliate Links)
A note about varnishing / Polyurethane over oil finishes
Some people say that only only oil based varnishes are compatible over oils, but that is not true. Water based varnishes work great over oils providing the oil has fully cured before application (oil curing times vary: always check manufacturer instructions).
So you can use either oil based or water based varnishes. Details of oil based varnishes are above under "Option 1" but there is no reason to apply oil in addition to an oil based varrnish - the varnish will do the job itself.
Below are some great water based ones in gloss for a high sheen:
Water based varnish
Ronseal Varnish Clear Gloss 250ml https://geni.us/Wc9RvY 750ml https://geni.us/ea8Ci 2.5l https://geni.us/ATOKZ3 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Everbuild Clear Gloss Varnish - various sizes https://geni.us/B57ytD (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Rustins Clear Gloss Varnish 250ml https://geni.us/s8oL 1l https://geni.us/Tdt8 (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Liquitex Gloss Clear - various sizes https://geni.us/XaUx (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Littlefair's Varnish Clear Gloss - various sizes https://geni.us/rH6FMcx (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Motip Spray Varnish 500ml Gloss https://geni.us/qHTa (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Varathane Polyurethane Gloss - 1 gallon / 4.54l https://geni.us/ByIoUlp (Amazon Affiliate Links)
General Finishes Polyurethane Gloss - quart / 946ml https://geni.us/vFoB (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Sadolin Polyurethane Varnish Clear in Gloss - various sizes https://geni.us/f1dI (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Minwax One Coat Polyurethane Gloss - quart / 946ml https://geni.us/rf1ArOH (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Minwax Wipe On Polyurethane Gloss - 1 Pint / 568ml https://geni.us/ktvG9b (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Minwax Polycrylic (various sizes) Gloss - 1 quart / 946ml https://geni.us/wDT25v quart / 946ml https://geni.us/gg38EM gallon / 4.54l https://geni.us/2oFIhh Spray 11.5oz https://geni.us/MIeTE (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Varathane Triple Thick Transparent Polyurethane Spray Gloss - 6x 11.25oz / 319ml https://geni.us/vrzGf (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Option 3: Shellac followed by varnish or polyurethane in "gloss" finish (difficulty: hard)
This is a similar concept to option 2, basically using shellac to bring out the grain of the wood plus darken/amber it, followed by varnish for maximum durability and protection. The difference is that shellac is itself a film finish, whereas oil soaks in to the wood. However shellac isn't particularly durable on it's own, but it is a very beautiful finish, and is typically used on antiques using a technique called "french polishing".
It dries extremely quickly, and you must work fast and maintain a wet edge at all times while applying to get an even finish - therefore it is one of the more challenging finishes to apply well. The more coats you apply, the more depth and sheen it gives.
For a top quality smooth finish, I recommend de-nibbing (sanding) in between coats with some wet and dry paper (I use 400 grit but 240-600 will work too) - how to denib.
Can be applied to bare wood or over almost all existing finishes (except for wax).
Apply using a brush, clean cotton cloth, or wrap a cotton cloth around a piece of cotton wool to create a soft application pad.
Available pre-mixed in many different colours (ranging from light or "blonde" to dark or "garnet" and everything in between), or as flakes that can be diluted using solvents. Personally, I stick to the ready mixed liquids. It is sometimes sold as "sanding sealer", "button polish", "french polish"
Optional extra: Shellac can be over coated with a furniture wax for added protection and smoothness if desired.
Shellac options...
Briwax Shellac Sanding Sealer - 500ml https://geni.us/q7JjdDT (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Rustins French Polish - 125ml https://geni.us/HeoK French Polish - 300ml https://geni.us/zWzlZW Sanding Sealer - 300ml https://geni.us/hlgAs Button Polish 300ml https://geni.us/TXuBn (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Liberon French Polish 1l https://geni.us/VZaBB2 Sanding Sealer 500ml https://geni.us/y5ABQ Garnet Polish 250ml https://geni.us/VR0uw Black Polish 250ml https://geni.us/hRdi Easy French Polish 250ml https://geni.us/diWX (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Zinsser Bulls Eye SealCoat 1l https://geni.us/zjPHv Bulls Ete SealCoat Quart / 946ml https://geni.us/SLAhx Shellac Quart https://geni.us/AAyrDHl (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Liberon 250g Blonde Shellac Flakes https://geni.us/msBlvH Lemon Shellac Flakes 250g https://geni.us/BYcSL Garnet Shellac Flakes 250g https://geni.us/aj4Wg (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Old World Shellac 16oz/454ml Super Blonde https://geni.us/yyDe 16oz/454ml Blonde https://geni.us/oFTt 16oz/454ml Platina https://geni.us/Ckxd (Amazon Affiliate Links)
Varnishes
For varnish options, see those listed under Option 2.
