Soap-making was one of the most loathed chores of colonial and pioneer women, as I have mentioned often here on the blog. And while I have the supplies to make it if my soap stash ever runs out, it is something I have no desire to do. None.
Fortunately, with about 100 bars on hand, it’s something I never should have to do. And that’s because there are quite a few things that can be done to stretch your soap supply, even if you don’t have that much right now.
The easiest and cheapest methods for making your soap last:
Unwrap the soap. Some research showed that soap bars that were unwrapped and allowed to dry for 6 weeks lasted 7% longer than wrapped soap.
Cut the soap into smaller bars. It’s like those little soap slivers that last forever—the smaller bars have a smaller surface area, so the total soap lasts longer. I’m not sure I believe this one, though I do agree that soap slivers last forever.
Take cooler showers. Cool water melts soap slower than hot water. But I am not giving up my hot shower for anything. Death first.
Use French milled soap. This soap is harder and has much less air in it, so it doesn’t melt as quickly.
Move the soap. Make sure the shower spray isn’t hitting the soap dish in your shower. This really erodes a bar of soap quickly.
Dip the soap in paraffin. Dipping half the bar of soap in melted paraffin means that only half of the bar will be lathering you up each time. Dipped soap bars last at least twice as long as bars that are not dipped. To do this, melt paraffin wax in a double boiler. Carefully dip the soap bars in the paraffin and let dry before placing dipped side up on a cooling rack or other surface.
Use a soap rack. Soap dishes that have drainage allow the soap to dry out between uses and help make soap bars last significantly longer.
Convert bar soap into a liquid soap. Place 1 ounce of finely grated soap in 1-2 cups of water and let it sit overnight. Stir well and then pour it into a pump bottle. Shake well before every use.
Felt the soap. Felting soap involves covering the soap surface with 2-3 layers of wool. Basically, the layers of wool fiber are wrapped around the soap bar, which is then placed in a nylon knee-hi. Hot water is used to lather up the soap and shrink the wool around the bar of soap. The nylon is removed, the soap lathered up a bit more to better shrink the fibers, and then it is allowed to dry for a day or two. As the soap is used in the shower, the fibers will continue to shrink around the soap until it is all used up. My large bars of felted Yardley soap last about 8-9 months with daily showering.
Make a soap sock. Alternatively, if you have wool socks that have shrunk or developed holes, you can place a bar of soap in the toe of the sock. Either sew it in place or leave it open so that soap can be replaced as necessary. Or knit or crochet a soap sock. It’s an easy beginning crochet or knitting project and a great way to use up small amounts of wool yarn. I’ll post directions in a future article.
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