How to Use Handmade Soaps in a Tropical Humid Climate?? And Love Every Last Bit!

Cold-processed, handmade Soap is a treat for your skin; it is gentle, nourishing, and loaded with natural goodness. But ever wondered why your soap gets mushy and soft, especially if you live in a tropical place like Mumbai, Kerala, and Pondicherry, etc.

If you are a handmade soap user, you will have your own ways to use it. E.g. I use it like a gel/paste form. I live in Mumbai, and it is very humid here. Even with proper ventilation, my bar gets mushy because there is water in the air. So in monsoon, it gets mushy faster than the rest of the seasons. I don’t let the bar come in contact with water. I scoop the paste/gel onto my palms and use it like a whipped soap.

Don’t Toss, Boss It!

Look at this blog as a user manual instruction on ‘How to Use Handmade Soaps even in India’s sticky monsoon or humid months?

First, let’s understand why Handmade Soap Sweat or Get Mushy?

Unlike mass-produced soaps, Handmade soaps have natural glycerin produced during saponification. If you want to learn more about the Difference between Handmade Soap & Manufactured Soaps? Then you can click the link.

But just to give a gist for this blog and to connect to the topic, Glycerin is a natural humectant, which means it draws moisture to your skin, which is great! But in humid air, the glycerin also pulls in water from the atmosphere. This is what makes the soap feel wet, soft and mushy on the surface.

So imagine with all this chemistry happening in nature and climate in especially Mumbai’s year-round humidity, you may never feel fully dry unless it is stored carefully in a non-direct contact with air. So, for e.g. cupboards, Drawers and not on the shelves that are open.

Presenting our mini-manual on how to use a Handmade Soap in Tropical Countries?

• Embrace the paste-life of the soap bar: Congratulations! You are using a premium soap paste. No need to toss a Handmade Soap Bar away just

  because it's soft. It feels extra creamy and works beautifully.

• Play Hard-to-get with Water: A little goes a long way. Like I mentioned above that I like to scoop the paste and not get the whole bar in contact with water. Use your palm or a loofah and work your way to get the rich frothy foam.

• Invest in real estate, for your handmade soap: Give your soap bar a properly ventilated soap dish. New soaps with sustainable packaging like eco-friendly paper, kraft paper, or kraft boxes can be kept inside the cupboard or a drawer, but not open with direct air contact on the shelves, etc. 

Surprise Soap Saver Pack is a game-changer!

Seriously! Can we talk about this well-thought-out invention called Soap Saver Sack? It lets you use soap until the last dot. This meshy pouch lets your soap dry nicely because you can hang the soap anywhere.  

You pop the handmade soap like ours from The Elemental Collection, and the soap saver sack becomes:

1. Your handmade soap gets a gentle exfoliation power pouch. (Hello, baby soft skin!)

2. You can use every last spec of the soap that is inside. (because wasting is not allowed in this house.)

3. The soap’s lather is rich and creamy. (Luxe all the way)

4. You don’t have to play slippery acrobatics with your soap bar.

It is like a tropical/India/Mumbai survival kit for saving your handmade soap.

(Hot Tip: If you purchase the full Elemental Collection, then you get 1 Soap Saver Pack. Free! Free! Free!) Click here.

Figure out Bathroom Feng shui for Handmade Soaps!

We can’t leave the windows open and have a bath, but after we're done, we can crack that window up or put the exhaust fan on or leave the bathroom door open for a while to let the hot air of the bathroom go out. Mostly handmade soap gets mushy because the bathroom is not ventilated. It doesn’t make a difference to the mass-manufactured soaps, but remember you have luxe stuff in your hand, loaded with natural oils and butters, etc.

Ok, here’s a surprise pro tip: store your new handmade soaps anywhere but in the bathroom cabinets. On our soap labels, we have also mentioned that you can cut the soap bar into two halves and use it so it lasts longer.

Being sustainable can be too hectic at times, so why do we do it?

You might wonder, isn’t bath just a 20-minute ritual? Why can’t we just use the rock-hard store-bought soap bar that will last even in a nuclear apocalypse? That is because the store-bought soap is pumped with detergent and other harmful chemicals.

Soft, handmade soaps are good for your skin. A soap bar is your skin’s friend, like the friend that gets a homemade soup when you are sick, kind, gentle and helpful. They can get a bit of attention-seeking as they also want to be cared for and be loved the way they love your skin.

The bottom line is 

The topical humidity and Mumbai’s climate don’t have to be a villain between you and Handmade soaps. With a few tips & tricks, like good ventilation and/or a soap saver sack, you can use your handmade soap properly.

Are you ready to show your soap bar some love?

Get a soap saver sack with your next order of the Elemental Collection, and welcome to the Handmade Soap user clan and your future-self will send you Thank You! Notes.

P.S.: If anyone asks you why you are a soap enthusiast, you can tell them that you like to be part of the sustainable group and have a gentle, sudsy bath.