When after Steaming to Shrinkwrap?

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soapingfool

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Hi! I’m sending my first wrapped soap gift off tomorrow. I’ve never steamed before, but I just tried it and my soaps do look pretty good afterwards!
Question though: How soon after steaming can I shrinkwrap my soap? I’m assuming I need to let it dry from the steaming first, so this may be a “no duh “ type of question… just wanted to make sure.
Soap is cold processed and fully cured. I can’t afford the biodegradable perforated shrink wrap right now, so I’m just using regular shrink wrap from the hobby store. Thanks so much to anyone that could answer!
 

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my soaps do look pretty good afterwards!
YES! :thumbs: :thumbs:
Soap is cold processed and fully cured. I can’t afford the biodegradable perforated shrink wrap right now, so I’m just using regular shrink wrap from the hobby store. Thanks so much to anyone that could answer!
I've been making CP since 2003 and NEVER used shrink wrap. My understanding is that CP needs "to breathe"; shrink wrap is good for MP to keep it from "sweating".

You have many options for labeling CP soap, but with those shapes, I think it's going to be a bit of a challenge. 🤔 Hmmm. I'm wondering what others recommend.
 
I shrink wrap all my soap after cure, then label. I have soap that I made in 2015 still in shrink wrap and it's fine. Go ahead and shrink wrap if that is what you prefer. I use the 'smell-through' kind of shrink wrap.

Soap still shrinks over time even though they are shrink wrapped, and a quick run over with the heat source will tighten the wrap, when that happens.

You are correct, it does need to be completely dry prior to shrink wrapping. After steaming, I wipe them dry with a microfiber cloth, then let them dry for a few days at least, but if you have to do it earlier, as long as it is dry that's fine.

I did not see you ask about how to label, but to answer Zany's question about what others would recommend, here is what I do with various shaped soap (hearts, eggs, whatever different shape I may have):

Because I shrink wrap, the labeling is really quite easy! I print my labels, cut them to fit the surface I want them on, and shrink wrap over the label. In some cases, I may attach a label like that on the outside, but even with hot glue, the label will eventually fall off. When I noticed that was happening with the 'differently' shaped soaps, I started shrink wrapping with the label on the inside.
 

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