How to Turn Old Soap Pieces Into New Soap Bars
There is no need to throw away those old, dried-out or unwieldy slivers of soap. You can save them and consolidate them into a brand new bar. Re-purposing soap not only saves money but can give an old favorite a new lease on life. All you need are a few, simple, household items and enough soap slivers to fill 1 cup. If your soap remnants are unscented, you can even add your own fragrance oil.
Things You'll Need
- 1 cup soap remnants
- Measuring cup
- Distilled or filtered water
- Small saucepan
- Silicone spatula
- 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp. fragrance oil (optional)
- Six-well mini-muffin pan
- Paring knife (optional)
Instructions
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1
Break or cut old soap bars into small, even pieces. The smaller the pieces, the easier they will melt. One cup of pieces is needed.
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2
Boil 1 cup of distilled water or filtered water in a small saucepan.
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3
Reduce the heat to medium.
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4
Add 1/4 cup of the soap pieces to the hot water.
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5
Stir the soap pieces with a silicone spatula until they dissolve. They may form ribbons of soap in the water.
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6
Add the remaining soap pieces 1/4 cup at a time. Use the same method as before, stirring the pieces until they dissolve then adding another 1/4 cup of soap pieces. If necessary, add a little water to prevent burning. The soap should be thick and have the texture of mashed potatoes.
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7
Turn the heat off.
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8
Mix 1 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil with the melted soap.
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9
Add 1 tbsp. of the fragrance oil of your choice if you wish.
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Spoon the soap into a muffin pan. Fill the muffin pan wells all the way, and use the back of the spatula to level off each well.
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11
Put the muffin pan into a freezer for one hour, or until the soap hardens.
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12
Pop the finished soap out of the muffin pan. If you have trouble removing the soap, run hot water on the back of the pan.
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13
Trim rough edges of soap with a paring knife if you wish.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Suggested soap scents: Lavender, rosemary, lemon and peppermint or rose.
Use dyes that are labeled soap-safe.
The soap reduces as it melts. Generally, 1 cup of soap pieces melts down to one bar's worth of soap.
References
Resources
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Comments
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Waste not want not. Recycle re-use.. Etc! Just like making icing.. LOL!
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I tried it and it was very time consuming. They seem to have come out too soft to use, but I have them uncovered to see if they will dry out enough to use. Not sure I'd go thru all the trouble and mess again. maybe if they dry out I might reconsider.
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I have laundry and dishwasher soap. NOW bar. thanks
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Born at the end of the Great Depression, I recall watching my grandmother melt soap slivers in a jar sitting on top of her big cast iron stove. I can't recall the particulars, but perhaps a bit of water was added - nothing fancy - and likelyy she used an old mayonaise jar which probably was later broken to get at the melted soap. We lived in a barn, no plumbing of any sort, boiled river water to drink and cook with, so NOTHING was thrown away - everything, including tin cans, had at least one useful purpose left in it's life cycle. Imagination and good old American Ingenuity got us through those terrible times, and NOTHING was wasted - including soap scraps.
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I think I've found the next project for Lizzy and Sammy! Instead of muffin pans, I might try using old plastic candy/cookie molds. Fun!
