Wednesday, March 14, 2012

A Very casual experiment

"How long will a bar of your soap last?" a new customer (thank you Carol) asked me a few weeks ago.  The thing is, being a soap maker, I always have a few different soaps in my shower at one time.  Usually, these are the odd pieces and scraps I don't sell.  So I couldn't answer her question. However, I believe "I don't know" is not an acceptable answer unless it is followed by "but I will find out for you."  So I did.

When I got home I unwrapped a bar of my Lavender Lemongrass soap (because it's my favorite) and I weighed it before using.  I weighed it randomly during the next few weeks.  Below are my results.

 Day 1       4.2 ounces
 Day 8       3.2 ounces
 Day 15     2.5 ounces
 Day 24      1.1 ounces
 Day 28      0.3 ounces                
 Day 30      Last shower

Since I shower once a day, a bar of my soap lasts me 30 days. To be honest, I felt I needed more data and I enlisted in help.  I asked twenty people I knew to keep track of how many showers they got with a bar of my soap.  The only two requirements were to keep the soap out of water when they weren't showering and not to let anyone else in their family use the soap.  The second stipulation proved to be the difficult part, eleven people told me they were unable to stop family members from using the soap.  These people were eliminated from "the Very casual experiment".  Now we are down to nine people and here are their results.

Jess         17 showers
John        17 showers
Joe          19 showers
Sophie     21 showers
Linda       22 showers
Tony        23 showers
Liz           26 showers
Mary        28 showers
Patty        30 showers

If you do the math you can see the average number is showers from a bar of my soap is 23. 
Carol, I have an answer for you.

Yours in gratitude,
Angela
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6 comments:

  1. backporchsoapMarch 14, 2012 at 3:57 PM

    Very interesting! Great post, Angela.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. angelaMarch 14, 2012 at 6:52 PM

      Thanks Marla. I've also learned that I like showering with a whole bar of soap!

      Delete
  2. Daisy Soap GirlMarch 15, 2012 at 5:50 AM

    That is interesting and useful information for a soapmaker to know! I do like using a different soap according to my mood so I've never tested how long my bars last either. All I know is that I have lots of soap on my shower rack. We soapers are so spoiled!! Oh, and congrats on your newsletter Angela!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. angelaMarch 15, 2012 at 5:14 PM

      We soapers are a lucky spoiled bunch, aren't we! And we have such great friends in other soapers too! Thanks Delores!

      Delete
  3. Francesca Biaggi ;Handmade Bath ;BodyMarch 29, 2012 at 6:58 AM

    Angela, that is great information. No one uses my soap, but I forget it in the shower. I must remember to take it out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. angelaMarch 31, 2012 at 7:30 AM

      Thanks Fran! Get that soap in the shower! Right now I have the ends of 7 different soaps in my shower.

      Delete

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