Silly Question: Wrapping Plastic Wrap!

[VelvetDragon]

Okay, I got the making of the soap thing quickly, it went very smoothly and my soaps came out very cute. But then, after unmolding, I got to the hardest part -- wrapping the darn things up in plastic wrap, as directed!!

Okay guys, how do you get it so smooth? I see soap wrapped so beautifully here and on Etsy, etc.! Augh, I don't know what I'm doing! First, it had bubbles all over the top, and then the sides were all annoyingly wrinkled, and the bottom, there's just so much overlap, the bars can't even lie flat.

Is a hairdryer employed? How big do you cut the piece of plastic wrap? How do you deal with excess? Are there any video tutorials showing how to do this? It was so awkward for me.

Hehe, thanks. Definitely makes me feel like a total newb.

 

[cwarren]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSq0WD0p72Q"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSq0WD0p72Q[/ame]

its shrink wrap

 

[VelvetDragon]

Thank you cwarren! Definitely if I start making lots of soap, I'll go that route. I've only made four bars so far. >_> Hehe.

 

[Sativa Skin Care]

Some people have had luck with regular plastic wrap and a hairdryer. Worth a shot! I got a heat gun off ebay for $20 and some plastic wrap at Costco and it works perfect.

 

[VelvetDragon]

Thank you Sativa!

 

[Sativa Skin Care]

Thank you Sativa!

No problem, good luck!

 

[Tabitha]

Plastic wrap & a hair dryer is bad news, the plastic melts.

Shrink wrap is probably not your best bet either. I find it leaves an odor, like burning plastic, on the soap bar, and besides that, the heat from a shrink wrap gun will likely melt your soap bar. Also, if the bar is detailed/decorative, when the recipient removes it from the shrink wrap (which is no easy task) the bar will get all dented & dinged up. CP soap is

I find cheap saran wrap is best, it is thinner & stretches better. It just takes practic learning how far you can stretch the wrap to get it smooth but not break the wrap.

Lay the bar face down on the piece of plastic wrap, fold the left side over holding it in place then gently fold the right side over stretching it just a bit, hold in place w/ a small piece of tape. Repeat with top & bottom pieces.[/b]

 

[cwarren]

there is no 1 way to do anything ... LOL

 

[VelvetDragon]

Thank you Tabitha! I'll look for some cheap wrap. Tess mentioned the cheap stuff is thinner and people have more success with it.

 

[jadiebugs1]

I think I've learned from here a good kind of plastic wrap to use would be the Wal-Mart/Sam's Club brand...I bought a big roll of it a few months ago....it works great. It stretches a lot and clings well. Then I found in my cupboard the 'BRAWNY' brand from a dollar store somewhere, it did not work nearly as well. Every time I would try to pull it to stretch it...it would break. HTH

 

[VelvetDragon]

I'll order that from the WalMart online store! Thank you! (The nearest WalMart is unfortunately an hour trip by bus here. Such a pain!)

 

[TaoJonz]

I use both shrink wrap and costco wrap, depending on the size/shape. One thing that works for me with the Costco wrap is to lay the wrap on top of the soap, push it down into the mold it came from, lift it from the loose edges and it is perfect! I twist the ends together, put a label/sticker on it...and done!

 

[rosewand]

I put the cake of soap into a paper bag, slide the paper bag into a cellophane bag, which are bio degradable and can be put into compost bin. give it a quick jiggle until soap falls out of paper bag into the cellophane bag. Then I use my old hair curling iron to seal the end of the bag or tie shut with string.

Luckily there is a shop locally that I can buy a variety of sizes in cellophane bags at very good prices and I feel good knowing I am helping the environment too