Soap slivers

Good Morning Ya'll. I went to my tips and was going to just post a tip for a mothball substitue which involves using soap slivers. Of course, that got me to thinking about "soap slivers". There has to be other uses for them, right? I personally save my slivers and then melt them in the microwave and make a new bar.

Mothball Substitute: Take your leftover soap slivers and put them in a vented plastic bag. You place the bag with seasonal clothes before packing them away. Not only will the scent prevent them from moth harm but also they'll smell great when you pull them out.

I've been saving my soap slivers and re-using them. I either melt them and make a new bar or had an idea of putting the slivers into "re-cycled pantyhose", knot the ends and then place into your suitcases when your not using them to keep them fresh smelling. Also put them in your sock drawer, underwear drawer or lingerie drawer. Here are some more idea'a and recipes for re-using your soap slivers.

Save the soap slivers and add water, then slowly melt them down on the stove and use as liquid soap. Or melt them down without water and pour into greased jar lids or anything you want to use for the a mold and you have new bars of soap!

Place Pieces In A Scrubbie-I will take all the leftovers and collect them for a while. Then I take apart one of those scrubbie things most people now use in the shower (I can buy a pkg. of 4 of them at the dollar store), and put the soap in there, and tie it up. I would think cheesecloth would work, too, but I haven't tried it. It works well for the kids since the sudser already has soap in it.


Use the little soaps to write on glass. If your car is for sale, or if you have a shop window, you can write on the glass for an easily removed message. Or write a love note to your sweetheart on the bathroom mirror some morning.

Shave the soaps down and melt in a mold, in your microwave, to create a bath-sized bar. Add soap fragrances (such as lavender)and a bit of oatmeal for mild sloughing qualities. Use yourself or give away as gifts for the holidays.

Shave down and add glycerin. Melt in the microwave and keep in a jar for a homemade liquid hand soap.

Repackage Hotel soaps in nice little fabrics and ribbons that match your guest bathroom, and put out when you have overnight visitors. Tell them they can use them or take them home. It's a lovely little gesture.

Place opened soap in an old sock, and hang it in the shower. it makes a wonderful body scrubby that lathers effortlessly. Keep adding used soap slivers at will.

Shave down and use in powdered form for handwashing delicate clothes.

Here are some more tips (basically the same ideas, but perhaps different recipes) I found for re-using soap slivers at this page :

1. To make soap on a rope, sew up a drawstring bag, say, out of an old washcloth, and deposit your soap bits inside. Next, throw in a couple of tablespoons of dried herbs, like chamomile and lavender plus a couple of tablespoons of medium ground oatmeal to act as a skin softener. Hang the bag from your showerhead and it’s ready to use.

2. To recycle your soap scraps into new bar soap, place 2 cups of grated soap scraps in a saucepan and cover them with water. Let them soak for 24 hours, giving them a stir every now and then. Next, bring the pan to a boil, remove it from heat and add a tablespoon of vegetable oil for each cupful of soap soup. Pour the mixture into molds–milk cartons work great. After they’ve hardened, you can cut them into smaller bars, but let them cure for two weeks before you use them.

3. To make gel hand/body soap, put the soap bits in a jar of hot water and add some lemon juice and glycerine. Shake well, and you’re done.

4. To make a cleaning gel, place 2 cups of grated soap bits in a saucepan, covering them with water. Wait 24 hours, stirring the soap soup now and then. After 24 hours, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce to a simmer and then whisk or mash the mixture to completely dissolve the soap. Remove from heat and allow to cool. For each cup of soap gel in the pan, add two cups of talcum powder and two tablespoons of mineral turpentine. Mix the concoction well and store in a wide-mouth container with a tight-fitting lid. This super-soap can be used as a general purpose household cleaner as well as a laundry aid.

5. To make an all-purpose stain remover, put 4 cups of finely grated soap bits in an enamel or stainless steel saucepan along with 3 tablespoons of eucalyptus oil, one cup of methylated spirits and one cup of boiling water. Alan then says to, “Stand the saucepan in a larger pan of hot water over a medium heat, stirring the mixture until it turns clear.” After that, you’re to poor the soap into molds–again, empty milk cartons work best–and let them cool. You can cut them into small bars later, but you should wait 4 weeks for them to fully harden. When it’s time to remove a stain, moisten the bar and rub on the offending spot and then launder as usual. Probably because of the methylated spirits, this recipe is particulary good for removing grease stains.

6. If you feel a bit more decadent, you can turn your soap leftovers into yummy honey and oatmeal soap. To do so, place 2 cups of grated soap scraps into a saucepan, cover with cold water and let stand 24 hours. Then, add 2 tablespoons of honey and simmer, stirring occasionally until the soap melts. Remove the pan from the stove and then stir in 1 cup of medium ground oatmeal and 2 tablespoons of glycerine. Mix well and then pour into molds. After they have cooled, you can cut them into smaller bars, but let them cure about 6 weeks before you use them.

I am just sitting here laughing at myself and how much of a tightwad I must be. I decided to do a little math, just approximations, and this is what I came up with. Let's say you use a brand new bar of soap every other week (26 bars) and you pay, let's say 50 cents a bar. So that little sliver may cost at most 5 cents (and that's probably stretching it). So 26 bars times 5 cent's = $1.30...hm. And I'm saving those little slivers to save money. I am such a flippin' tightwad! LOL Oh well, at least I can laugh at myself. I'd rather be "thrifty" than wasteful.

Have a good day.
Hugs,
Jill Marie