Wrapping soaps

[sunflwrgrl7]

What do you use and how do you individually wrap your soaps?

The reason I ask is cuz saran wrap hates me.... I just can't get that stuff to cooperate!

Oh, and if it makes any difference, all I'm doing is MP soap... hubby won't allow lye in the house while we have a small child...

 

[uplandermom]

I use Saran Wrap.

I lay it out on a wooden board, place the soap bar top down, and wrap. I also trim the ends if I need to ...

I found some great craft boxes on www.kangarooblue.com, which I decorated with stamps.

Even though I'm a beginner, it made my soap bars look really professional.

 

[Soapmaker Man]

I cut my shrink wrap myself. 8) I use 200ga. shrink wrap tube, 4" wide. I cut them on my paper cutter. I cut them 4-1/2" long. When I place my 3 sides cigar band under the wrap, it shrinks well and keeps the label and the bar free from damage. The ends are exposed a little bit to get air and let the customers smell my product. I print my labels 4 to the sheet, and buy the roll of tubing that is 1300 feet long. It will last me several years! I have less than $.02 cents per wrapped bar. The actual cost of the shrink wrap jacket is 1/4 of 1 penny each! That's right 4 shrink wrap tubes for 1 cent!

Paul.... :wink:

 

[soapbuddy]

I use soap boxes, but we have no humidity here at all.

Irena

 

[Tabitha]

M&P will stick to cardboard boxes under most circumstances & tissue everytime. M&P needs to be air tight as well or it will shrink, shrivel & crack.

I wrap mine in saran then drop them into cello nags. You can skip the saran if you like but your soaps will bounce around in the bags & leave skid marks.

 

[pepperi27]

I use saran wrap as well but I hate it LOL. I've been making more hand milled soaps than mp lately so havent done a lot in a while. But I also trim the sides and keep it together with some transparent tape when available LOL. I heard the ones from sams club are really great so maybe you could try those.

 

[Gigi2]

When I do MP, its saran wrap, then in a cello bag or box. CP does well with just a label.

 

[Guest]

I just started the stretch wrap. I hate it. I am looking into tulle for later. much quicker and easier.

 

[Bret]

So far, I've done ok with saran wrap. Regular saran wrap. I'm looking into boxes, but I don't know yet... I like how it looks in the saran and don't want to hide it too much.

 

[Tabitha]

Good point about the Sam's wrap, the cheaper the wrap, the thinner, therefore the stretchier so you can pull it snugger.

 

[Soapmaker Man]

I've heard this about the Wal-Mart and Sams wrap at a couple other forums in the past. My good soap making friend Grandpa in Florida uses this kind of wrapping system and his soaps present nicely! I just like the shrink wrap jackets.

Paul.... :wink:

 

[dragonfly princess]

Has anyone ever tried a vacuum sealer with their M&P?? They just came out with a handheld one. I think I am gonna try it. I don't like Saran Wrap either. The last time I used it I got stuck to my dining room table and I looked like a mummy, had to get my Ninja cat to claw it open. Ok maybe that was a nightmare, but you get the point!!

 

[sunflwrgrl7]

Wow, thanks for all the replies and the tips!! I'll have to check out Sam's club wrap, see if it's any easier to work with. Maybe I just have to tear out a big peice at a time and then do a lot of trimming, that sounds like a feasible plan for now... I definitely need to wrap them in SOMETHING. Right now - for ease of use, and because if I don't wrap them, they are sweating like mad - I'm using Glad Press n Seal. Nope, NOT pretty, and not what I plan for my finished product!! LOL!

Uplandermom - those are really nice soap boxes, thanks for sharing. I bet your soaps look VERY pro. When I start making flatter bars, I'll be looking into those!

Paul - I was curious about your shrink wrapping - is the soap affected at all by the shrink wrap heat source (heat gun, blow dryer, whatever you use)?

Dragonfly Princess - if you try out the vacuum sealer, let us know! I would be very interested to see how well it works! That would be such an easy solution!

 

[Bret]

Has anyone ever tried a vacuum sealer with their M&P??

I used my Food Saver to "save" some Lush soap that was a limited edition. It worked quite nicely. However, that can get expensive, and isn't too pretty!

 

[pink-north]

Hey Paul, I like your idea for shrink wrapping soaps. I would like to try boxes though. Does anyone know a good Canadian supplier for soap boxes. I would order from the south, but the duty is killing me.

 

[Soapmaker Man]

..............
Paul - I was curious about your shrink wrapping - is the soap affected at all by the shrink wrap heat source (heat gun, blow dryer, whatever you use)?...............

Nope! Now remember, I only do CP soap no M&P. I also won't wrap a bar until it is at least 4 weeks "old" and had that amount at least to cure. But no, the temp from my heat gun which is 1200 degrees (no temp. setting) does not affect the soap...only the shrink wrap. It literly takes a second to shrink each side of the bar from a distance of about 6 or 7 inches away from the gun to the wrapped bar. If I'm not careful, I can burn holes into the shrink wrap sleve! The shrink wrap I use shrinks 40% in all directions.

Paul.... :wink:

 

[PudledukFamilyFarm]

We buy muslin fabric at Joann's and make pouches for our soaps. We add twine to close to the pouch. Kind of the same design they sell at health food stores for teas.

We like it because they are totally re-usable and our customer's appreciate that.

 

[Tabitha]

Pudle, that would be for CP & not M&P right?

 

[Tabitha]

I shrink wrap my M&P from time to time. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

You have to be VERY careful not to melt the M&P soap with the heat gun.

Some shrink wrap makes the soap smell really bad. With CP you do not have to make the soaps air tight, Paul leaves his ends open. With M&P they do need to be air tigth & that is where the burning plastic odor can get trapped inside & effect the scent if your soaps.

If your soaps are fancy shaped, it is highly likely your customers will destroy the soaps taking them out of the shrink wrap if the wrap has not already damaged the designs by cutting into the delicate areas of the shape.

 

[sunflwrgrl7]

Thanks for the insight, Paul and Tabitha! That's kind of what I figured, shrink wrapping is not for MP. I will just "sally forth" and master the saran wrap. I have 3 weeks to get it looking pretty before my first craft fair, LOL!