Finishing White Cypress

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to make a picture frame out of some reclaimed cypress. I haven't got a photo if the frame to post yet, hopefully tomorrow, but it does have similar patterns to this:

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f8/specky-wood-123725/

I'm hoping to get some advice on ways to finish it.

I was hoping to use Danish oil or something similar that I could easily layer on with steel wool or a rag. Would an oil work?

I am very apprehensive about using any kind of gloss varnish, as I have had terrible experiences with such finishes before. I really don't want to ruin the timber.

I haven't had any problems with the timber splitting (mind you it is about 20mm thick) and it has been stored for about 10 months since the original reclaimed piece was trimmed.

Hope I haven't confused people and I really hope that someone could provide a bit of assistance. I have minimal skills, less knowledge and I'm really lost here.

Brad