I’ll admit it. For certain spots around the house, I like using bar soap. I know, liquid hand soaps and body washes are more popular: They’re easier and less messy to use and I often recommend them in my Good Housekeeping columns as a quick way to keep kitchen and bathroom areas clean. But at our kitchen sink and in the shower, it’s bar soap for me and my hubby. We just prefer it. 

Because Yours Truly seems to be the only one in the family emptying and cleaning the soap dishes, when I first saw the SoapStandle (soap stand + handle), I was super intrigued. Could this little plastic soap holder actually mean one less cleaning chore for me?

SoapStandle is an oval ring with mini spikes on one side and four little curvy feet on the other. Simply press the side with the spikes into your soap and the bar will "stand" in the dish — or on the counter or tub — on the little feet. Then, just wash with your soap as you usually do.

You’ll feel the SoapStandle as you rub, even finding that it actually helps make a slippery bar a bit easier to hold onto. And, it’ll stay in place even as the soap wears down. Just be sure not to rub so hard that you dislodge it. Once the soap becomes a sliver and too small to grip the SoapStandle, simply transfer it to a new bar.

Well, seeing is believing. From the very first use, I noticed it working. Because the soap bar is elevated above the dish or counter, air circulates around it, helping it dry faster and drip less. That “slime” never has a chance to form. After a week, I noticed my soap dish tray was clean and sludge-free. Hmm, I thought. There’s something to this. After several weeks with still no goo, I was sold. 

I’m all about clever inventions that make cleaning easier or, better yet, eliminate it altogether and the SoapStandle fits the bill. This genius little gadget comes two in a package and in clear, red or blue and might just be the thing that switches you back to bar soap.