Soap sizes/shape.. favourites??

[ministeph]

Hi everyone!

I'm in the process of making some new molds, as I'm tired of my big square bricks of soap and would like to have them in 'loaves' instead.

BUT I have a question for all of you.. what is your favourite size/shape of soap?
some people like them tall and thinner, or shorter fat and square.. opinions??

currently my bars measure (after cure) around.. 3.5 inches wide, 2.5in tall, and 1.5 thick.. so they are a bit short and stocky for sure. I'm thinking of deviating from this to make them taller.. but i do love how the stockyness prevents them from snapping in half as they get used.

thoughts??

THANKS! I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend.

 

[kelleyaynn]

Until I made my wooden loaf mold I used a basic 8 bar tray. It makes bars about 1 3/4 x 3 3/4 x 3/4 inches with beveled edges on the top. Long, thin, and rectangular. Looks okay, but the slivers always break in half. I also have a Milk Way 4 cavity rectangular mold (with rounded corners), and the bars measure about 2 x 2 3/4 x 3/4. More stocky, and the slivers don't break in half, but they are small. The bars from my wooden mold are about the size you make, though I cut them an inch deep, not 1 1/2 inches. That's my favorite size. Nice heft, feels big but not too big, and isn't too long for the width.

 

[ministeph]

oh cool! and here I thought I was the only one making 'fat stocky soap' haha.. I ordered some beautiful ones off etsy to try, and they looked so tall and beautiful.. but so impractical when i used them!!! cracked almost into two pieces right away.

 

[Dennis]

When you build your mold, if you put the sides on top of the bottom piece instead of butted to the side of the bottom piece, you will have a bar that measures 2 inches wide by 4 1/4 inches tall by however thick you wish to cut it. Of course the height would depend on how full you pour the mold.
This assumes you are using 1x4 lumber. Lots of options depending on the size lumber used.
A 1x6 would give you a bar 5.5 inches wide etc.
Wood glue and screws is my preference for assembly. Probably overkill but...

I like bars at least 1 1/4 inches thick, most are 1 1/2 - 1 3/4.

 

[kelleyaynn]

When you build your mold, if you put the sides on top of the bottom piece instead of butted to the side of the bottom piece, you will have a bar that measures 2 inches wide by 4 1/4 inches tall by however thick you wish to cut it. Of course the height would depend on how full you pour the mold.
This assumes you are using 1x4 lumber. Lots of options depending on the size lumber used.
A 1x6 would give you a bar 5.5 inches wide etc.
Wood glue and screws is my preference for assembly. Probably overkill but...

I like bars at least 1 1/4 inches thick, most are 1 1/2 - 1 3/4.

My sides are butted to the bottom piece, so the soaps measure 3 1/5 by 2 1/2 (I don't fill quite to the top, or they would be 2 3/4). I used Elmers and wood screws. Elmers to hold them together while I screwed in the screws.

 

[Dennis]

Did you mean 3 1/5? Maybe 3.5? (number police!) :shock:
Properly applied wood glue is stronger than the wood itself. Overbuilt is a good thing.

 

[GreenScene]

Mine are 3.5" wide, usually around 3" tall, and 1" thick. I find that people like the look of big bars, but that anything thicker than that gets complaints once they start showering with them. I have a huge bar that someone gave me at Christmas - 3.5" wide, 3" tall, and 2" thick - and I haven't bothered to unwrap it, simply because really big bars bug me.

 

[kelleyaynn]

Did you mean 3 1/5? Maybe 3.5? (number police!) :shock:
Properly applied wood glue is stronger than the wood itself. Overbuilt is a good thing.

Yeah, yeah, 3.5 or 3 1/2. :wink:

 

[wabeeman]

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I'm a beekeeper so naturally I prefer a hex shape. Just cut, the outer will turn brown, the inner will stay cream color. Bars are about 3" across the narrow dimension.

 

[ministeph]

those are absolutely awesome!! i love how they stay so evenly two-toned. amazing shape!

i love honey soap, i'm sure yours is amazing