Soap Packaging Guides for UK Soap Makers

Start with the bar sizes guide. Every other choice, from box style to sleeve width, follows from your bar's length, width and height in millimetres and its weight in grams. Measure a few cured bars from the same batch, because loaf cutting and shrinkage mean they are rarely identical.

No. Let it cure first. A cold process bar keeps losing water for several weeks, and a bar that is still damp can leave marks on card. Cure on a rack with air round every side, then pack once the bar feels firm and has stopped shrinking.

A little, and that is often what you want on a shelf. A closed box holds scent in more than an open sleeve or a band does. Strong fragrance oils can mark plain card over time, so test one boxed bar for a couple of weeks before you commit to a full run.

You can, but think about why. Shrink wrap traps any moisture a bar still gives off, and it can cloud or soften the surface. It suits fully cured bars that need to stay clean in a basket. Many makers skip it and use a sleeve or a window box instead.

Keep them flat, in a dry room, away from radiators and damp walls. Do not stack heavy boxes on top of each other for months, as the lower ones can bow. Open the carton only when you need the boxes, and keep them off a garage floor.

Most bars on a UK shelf show a product name, a weight, an ingredients list and who made them, because cosmetic rules cover soap too. Rules change, so check the current UK cosmetics rules before you finalise artwork. We will leave room on the design for the text you need.

Sweating bars, often those high in glycerine or made in humid weather, can mark card. Cure them for longer, keep them somewhere dry, and consider a window patch that keeps fingers off the bar. Window film does not make a box damp-proof, so leave bars to settle first.

Choose a snug fit, pack bars so they cannot slide, and use an outer carton with a little padding. Our packing soap for posting guide walks through it step by step, including how many bars to put in one parcel.

Yes, in the main. Round shampoo bars and bath bombs, often about 65 mm across, need a different fit from a rectangular bar, but the thinking on curing, scent and posting is the same. Send us the diameter and height and we will advise.

Yes. Boxes are made to the bar, with about 2 mm of room each way, so unusual moulds and hand-cut loaves are fine. Email your measurements, a photo of the bar if you like, and we will quote within one working day.