Decorative soaps in the bathroom

[Buckalew11]

I put foamy hand soap out for guests and clients. I usually buy those from B&BW when they are on sale.
I found 2 bars of decorative soap that I'll put in my master bath in my new house. They are wrapped in a ribbon and have tiny seashells glued to the ribbon. I feel sure one is to just *look* at them and not use them. Hopefully, DH will realize it.

 

[Imzadi]

I would not use those. How do you wash the cloth? I mean just because you are rubbing yourself with soap, you are still getting in all the nooks and crannies and that cloth should be washed imo.

I assume you just rinse and rub it off, since it's self-foaming from the inside, the felt would clean itself off?

Since I recently read about these, I've been wondering myself.

What happens to the felt when it gets wet and you rub it on your skin? I would think it would deteriorate a little and leave tiny little pieces of felt all over your body.
I didn't think you were supposed to get felt wet

Actually a good wool that has been well felted doesn't come apart. The wool fibers actually tangle and fuse together becoming denser and more fused as time goes by. The cheap, little, machine made, felt material squares you get from craft stores probably fall apart. But, felt made from the same wool fibers as a good wool sweater are not supposed to come apart.

I've been learning to make wool scarves. That's how I also happened to hear about using the leftover wool to make these felt covered soaps & was wondering if people actually used them.

 

[DVCLiz]

I think, if it's bath soap, people are afraid of finding ***** hairs on the used bars, or worry about where the soap has been.

OK, that IS disgusting. What kind of hostess would put out a bar of used bath soap with hairs on it? Ew, ew, ew.

In the bathtub?!!!!!!~ Did that hurt?


Bar soap gets slimy.

My bar soap never gets slimy because I use a soap dish that has a way for it to drain. I'm sure if it were slimy I would feel differently!!

The pinecone soap was part of a little gift set I bought. Two pinecones, two acorns and a little footed dish. I used the pinecone up in the shower - it was essentially a round soap after the first couple of uses. Now, the acorn - it was a molded soap and it split in half after the first couple of washes, so then I had four to use up instead of two. I'm almost done, though - ready to move on to the robin's eggs nest.

I hope I live long enough to use up my decorative soaps - I think I'm going to put that on my bucket list...

 

[luvmy3]

Actually a good wool that has been well felted doesn't come apart. The wool fibers actually tangle and fuse together becoming denser and more fused as time goes by. The cheap, little, machine made, felt material squares you get from craft stores probably fall apart. But, felt made from the same wool fibers as a good wool sweater are not supposed to come apart.

I've been learning to make wool scarves. That's how I also happened to hear about using the leftover wool to make these felt covered soaps & was wondering if people actually used them.

oh I see, I was picturing the kind in the craft store. I honestly had no idea that people felted wool.

 

[DVCLiz]

oh I see, I was picturing the kind in the craft store. I honestly had no idea that people felted wool.

It's been featured in a yarn shop where I shop last season and this as well. There are all sorts of felted things you can make, including purses, etc. One of the women who teaches felting has the most adorable set of "soft toy" animals I have ever seen. She does some amazing things to make them - I've also seen her make a whole set of fruits and vegetables for kids to play with. They are adorable!!

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

I agree about the bar soap-it gets slimy and dirty looking. And it is a mess to clean. I haven't set out bar soap in 20 years, I get the foamy nice smelling stuff from Body and Bath.

 

[Imzadi]

oh I see, I was picturing the kind in the craft store. I honestly had no idea that people felted wool.

Yes, when people take a 100% wool, adult sweater and accidentally throw it in the washing machine in hot water, then throw it in the dryer and it comes out the size of a toddler size sweater , all that agitation & heat causes the tangling, shrinking & fusing which becomes felt. That felted sweater can actually be cut up, it doesn't ravel. People have been recycling those too tiny wool sweaters into cute little handbags, mittens, scarves.

DVCLiz is talking about another kind of felting (without the knitting,) that I am also learning.

 

[~Kik-Kik~]

No bar soaps, decorative or otherwise for my guests. There is nothing grosser than using a wet bar of soap after someone else, well maybe using the damp towel draped on the counter to dry your hands after

Liquid soap > all other soaps

 

[bicker]

I think folks who want to "protect" decorative soaps, should leave them wrapped, and provide a high-quality soap, unwrapped, as alternative. Actually, why bother with decorative soap? Just have sculpted wax. That won't get damaged, necessarily, by someone trying to soap up their hands with it, and sculpted wax can be very pretty.

 

[NMAmy]

I think I HAVE to answer this thread...

You will all be happy to know that I DO NOT have decorative soaps!

(If I see them in the bathroom of another home, I wouldn't use them, but that was probably a given!)

Kudos to you for being such a good sport!

I think liquid soap is one of the best inventions ever so we have liquid soap in all our bathrooms. DH is the only one who uses bar soap and that's in the shower.

My mom always had guest soap that no one could use. Little dusty rose-shaped soaps.

 

[JerseyJanice]

My mom always had guest soap that no one could use. Little dusty rose-shaped soaps.

My mother had those too, along with the towels you weren't allowed to use.

When I get decorative soap as part of a gift (because I don't buy it), it goes in the soap dish that's attached to the wall, and I expect it to be used. I always have liquid soap in the vanity too because that's what my family likes to use.

We use body wash in the shower and everyone has their own pouf. If someone is staying over, I give them a washcloth.

 

[monkey68]

We only have one bathroom, so our guest bath is our regular bath too. No decorative soaps, no decorative towels. Mostly because we use that bathroom, and I can pretty much only use Dove soap, all the others cause my skin to turn red. So when we have guests, they're also going to be using Dove soap. Occasionally, we'll have liquid soap if I get it as a gift set, but nobody really uses it.

 

[Crystal0608]

I don't buy or use them, well except hotels. Bar soaps get too gooey. I keep pump hand soap and hand sanitizer at the bathroom & kitchen sink and body wash and johnson buddy bars for the kids in the tub.

 

[Micca]

FYI--the Basin store at DTD is loaded with decorative soaps including some with Mickey heads

 

[My sister's princess]

I agree about the bar soap thing too. We have foaming soap dispensers but I have flowers that the petals are soap. You pluck some petals and wash up. No soap sharing.

That sounds really cute where did you find it?


And just to be on topic, I use liquid soap, in a super cute dispenser that matches my bathroom set, however if I had a guest bathroom, I am sure that I would have towels and soap that were not meant to be used

 

[Becky2005]

I think I HAVE to answer this thread...

You will all be happy to know that I DO NOT have decorative soaps!

(If I see them in the bathroom of another home, I wouldn't use them, but that was probably a given!)

I read your response and just started laughing. Of course, you had to reply.

I don't have decorative soaps but I always put out a brand new bar whenever we are having guests -- It is bath sized but I would think it should be obvious it's brand new (until the 1st person uses it) & considering there is no bathtub/shower in the guest bathroom, hopefully that's fine.

I'm tempted to now to snazzy things up -- gets some decroative type towels in baskets & fancy soaps. I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year...I think I may have to freak out my family but stepping it all up a notch after these posts.

 

[Imzadi]

I'm tempted to now to snazzy things up -- gets some decroative type towels in baskets & fancy soaps. I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year...I think I may have to freak out my family but stepping it all up a notch after these posts.

But, will you let people use them, or are they just supposed to look at them. Remember all your guests will be untrained. They won't know to NOT use them.

 

[KirstenB]

No decorative soaps here. All the sinks have Bath and BodyWorks liquid soap. The only bar soap we have is some Lava soap for when dh works on the car, or something messy like that.

 

[aristocatz]

If we have house guests, I usually leave out the soap bars from our last Disney World vacation (unopened in the package of course). Our guests are free to use them for showers and what not and we just throw out what's left over when they go home. If they are the only ones using the bars, who cares? We will also leave out the Disney shampoos and lotions.

If we are having dinner guests or day guests, we generally leave out foam liquid soap.

 

[Becky2005]

But, will you let people use them, or are they just supposed to look at them. Remember all your guests will be untrained. They won't know to NOT use them.

Definitely to USE them. I think the only thing decorative in the house is kid's pictures on the wall. Everything else is fair game. Although, I can see my mother yelling from the bathroom "AM I SUPPOSED TO USE THIS STUFF?" It will confuse her immensely for me to get fancy on her like that. Hence the reason I really want to do it plus it will look nice. I do some sewing (by no means an expert but I can do a hem!), so I'm thinking a new tablecloth, matching napkins & if I can figure out how to work with some terrycloth to match would be fantastic.