11 Unexpected Uses for A Bar Of Soap Around The Home
To support the running costs of Moral Fibres, this post contains affiliate links. This means Moral Fibres may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to readers, on items purchased through these links.
Have you ever looked at a bar of soap and wondered if there are ways to use it beyond washing your hands? No, me neither! Thankfully, some other clever people have come up with 11 unexpected uses for soap, so we don’t have to ponder!
After the last few years, we all know now that the humble bar of soap has cleaning and germ-busting superpowers. But illustrator Yumi Sakugawa’s series of illustrations for the website WonderHowTo takes soap to the next level.
This illustration of 11 unexpected uses for a bar of soap is particularly brilliant, and I had to share it. Who knew there is more to soap than just washing your hands!
Clever Household Uses for Soap
There are so many uses for soap that I wasn’t aware of. From stopping squeaky floorboards to avoiding getting dirt under your fingernails whilst gardening! And ones like using soap to help your saw cut straight and to make your screw go in straight, are just pure wizardry!
To make this guide on clever uses for soap accessible to all I’ve transcribed it below. What will you learn?!
1. Use Soap to Make A Pincushion
To make a pincushion, simply wrap a bar of soap in a cloth and stick your pins on top. As well as corraling your pins, the soap will also lubricate the pins for easier insertion.
2. Marking A Hemline on Cloth
Continuing on the sewing theme, did you know you can mark a hemline on cloth with a sliver of soap? Yes, and even better, it’s much easier to wash off than chalk.
3. Stop Your Glasses From Fogging Up
During cold weather, you can stop your glasses from fogging up by rubbing soapy water over them, and then wiping them off. This technique can also stop your glasses from steaming up when you wear a face mask. This is the knowledge we need in 2023!
4. Check For Gas Leaks
Think you can smell gas? Try smearing wet soap on your gas pipes if you suspect a gas leak. If soap bubbles appear, then you have a leak. If you are in any doubt at all, do call a gas engineer to stay on the safe side.
5. Always Cut Straight When Sawing
Rubbing a little soap on your saw’s blade will help ensure your hand saw cuts straight. I don’t know how this works, but it does!
6. Use Soap to Create A Dirt Barrier
Love tending to your garden but hate the dirt that gets under your nails? Next time, put a little soap under your fingernails before gardening. This helps to avoid getting dirt under your fingernails, so you can say goodbye to vigorous scrubbing after gardening.
7. Natural Deer Repellent
Do you live in the countryside and are bothered by deer eating plants from your garden? Apparently you can hang slivers of soap inside some old tights, and then hang them from trees to act as a natural deer repellent.
8. Efficient Screwing
Are you a keen woodworker? Try rubbing your nail or screw with a little soap before hammering or screwing for more efficiency.
9. Natural Lubricant
Ditch the fossil fuel-heavy WD40. Instead, you can use soap to naturally unstick zips, lubricate squeaky door hinges and unstick drawers. Clever!
10. Use Soap To Tackle Squeaky Floorboards
Do your floorboards make embarrassing noises when you step on them? There’s only so long you can blame your squeaky floorboards before family members think you have a gaseous problem! To get rid of floorboard squeaks, similar to the above, you can put a little soapy water in between floorboards to get rid of those embarrassing noises.
11. Shaving Cream Substitute
Travelling and forgot your shaving cream? Or realised that you’ve run out of shampoo after you’ve stepped in the shower? You can use soap as a shaving cream or shampoo substitute in a pinch.
While it’s fine to occasionally use soap to wash your hair, I wouldn’t recommend using a soap bar as shampoo over the long term. This is because standard soap can make your hair feel waxy and greasy. Instead, try these solid shampoo bars as recommended by Moral Fibres readers.
What wild uses for soap! Did you learn anything new? And do check out my guide to eco-friendly soap for top sustainable soap recommendations.
If you enjoyed this post, then I’ve also shared some of Yumi’s great illustrations before. Here are 21 amazing uses for coconut oil and 13 unexpected uses for vinegar.
For more soap-based content, do check out my guide to all the amazing household uses for Marseille soap. This soap is even more versatile than standard soap!
Pin For Later:
Found this post useful? Please consider buying me a virtual coffee to help support the site’s running costs.
