I haven't tried this yet, so I don't know how well it works. Plus I'd like a bar shape, so I suppose you could use a plastic soap dish like you travel with. Has anyone done this?
Save up those last soap remnants in a container. I keep a plastic traveling soap carrier on the tub and when the soap bar gets too small I toss it in. I make sure the the other bathrooms are equipped with the same carriers for easy storage.
Step2 Place the scraps into a saucepan and pour water over them enough to cover them. Let them soak overnight.
Step3 The next day, bring the water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir well while boiling.
Step4 Pour the hot mixture into greased muffin tins. Be careful not to burn yourself! I use a soup ladle for for neatness and cleanliness. Allow the mixture to harden. Once hardened, pop them out. Voila! new unique soap bars!
I'm glad you posted this Gail. I had tried some time ago, not much luck, thanks.
My Mom always had an antique "soap saver". She would put the "scrits" of bar soap into the basket. To use, just shake it back and forth, as you fill the tub or the sink, to make lots of bubbles. She'd use it in place of liquid soap for washing delicates... or in the tub for us kids! You can still find these cheap sometimes at junk shops or flea markets... but they can also be expensive, as this one I found online was listed for $29.! I found one for about $5.00 a couple of years ago and instantly bot it!
Quite a few years ago, I got a recipe for making soap. But it didn't turn out like it was supposed to.
The recipe said to get some inexpensive soap, not a beauty bar or a deodorant soap. So I got some Jergens soap. You were supposed to put the cut-up soap in a microwave bowl and heat it for a few minutes and it was supposed to melt. Then you could put it in whatever mold you wanted and you could add color and fragrance.
I just ended up with the soap turning into the consistancy of marshmellow fluff. LOL It didn't mold too well either!
Has anyone heard of making soap this way?
I haven't used bar soap in years--can't stand the mess. I only use liguid soap BUT I dilute it up to half. It works just as well.
You can take scraps of soap, wet it and stick it to the back of your new bar. Works well and no waste and no fuss.
I wouldn't try using a plastic bar-shaped soap box to mold the soap in...it'll melt the plastic I'm sure.
Here's another way to utilize soap scraps...save them up and Use a pretty ribbon to tie netting material. You can use these packets as sachets, pot-pouri, or to bathe with. All the pieces are kept nicely until they dissolve completely!
I am not a germ freak, feeling like we all have to comsume and be exposed to our fair share of dirt and germs in order to remain truly healthy, BUT I would not feel good about using soap that was a 'community' catch, even if it was my own family and/or friends. Yeah, perhaps that's just the way I think, but I'd only feel right if I was the only contributor saving the soap slivers, because then I would know there wouldn't be any gross body hairs showing up in the new bar of soap - UGH!
Dove is the only bar soap I've used for years, and hen it reaches a too small size, I 'stick' it to a new bar and it's attached to keep going because of it's creamy consistancy. Otherwise, I use body wash in the shower, or hand wash by the sinks, that's diluted in another pretty bottle so as not to contaminate the whole product that sits for weeks. Works for me!
Oh duh, there ya go, Moonglade....who'da thunk it? That makes a lot of sense....thanks everybody for the responses.
And I live alone so no worries on the germ thing.
