What is Glitter Made of?

Glitter is one of the most popular supplies in the arts and crafts world, best known for its eye-catching sparkle and flamboyant personality. You can use it in almost any arts and crafts project: Resin Art, DIY mineral makeup, Candle Making or Polymer Clay! However, it’s crucial to choose the most suitable sparkle for your next creative adventure before jumping into action, to ensure a successful outcome. In this article, we’ll discuss: What is glitter made of? 

First, we need to consider the three main types of glitters available. Each sort is made of different materials, producing a slightly different look. In addition, those materials make each class of glitter more or less suitable for specific applications. So let’s dive into more details below. 

Traditional Glitter (Polyester Glitter) 

Traditional Glitter (also known as Polyester Glitter) is made by copolymer sheets combined with a layer of reflective material, such as aluminum foil, and then covered with another thin plastic layer. In other words, a plastic core coated with aluminum and a PET film. A flexible and relatively easy production process allows numerous shapes, sizes, and colors. But they are mostly cut in hexagon-shaped pieces.

Mineral Glitter (Mica Powders)

As the name suggests, mineral glitter is often seen as the glitter of nature - produced by Mica Powder; a naturally occurring, non-toxic mineral finely ground to powder, creating an unparalleled shimmer. The mica bits catch your eye as the light makes them shine, and with a coating of metallic oxides, they can be found in exciting colors and various-sized flakes,  producing a very bright sparkle! One of the most common uses of Mineral Glitter is resin art projects, but we will discuss its many other applications in just a bit!

Synthetic Mica Glitter 

The third type of glitter is Synthetic Mica Glitter, also known as fluorphlogopite, a synthetic variation of the previously mentioned mica powder. This synthetic glitter is made of magnesium aluminum silicate sheets, loosely held together by potassium. The colors are usually very vivid, and they can be found in many different particle sizes. This kind of glitter lends itself to several projects since it is a versatile non-PET glitter alternative that’s also cosmetic grade!

Now that you know what the three main types of glitter are made of, you might be wondering the most common applications and even how you can use them to make your DIY projects truly sparkle!

What Can You Use Glitter For? 

As we already hinted, glitter is an incredibly versatile material and can be used in many ways! From Makeup to Polymer Clay projects, it seems that there is always room for just a bit more shimmer in any DIY project! See below some fun ways to use glitter and add sparkle to your creative journey! 

Resin Art

Resin art is the hot new trend going through the arts and crafts world, so let’s talk about how to use glitter to make the most out of your resin art creations! From personalized tumblers to making stunning cutting boards, resin trays, or coasters, the resin and glitter combination is usually great to add details that make any resin art project truly shine. 

Glittery Resin Geode Detail - Made by artist @annaquartzartist using MEYSPRING Dazzling Diamond.

The good news is, all three types of glitter mentioned above can be used in resin art projects. Mica Powders are generally used to add color and a pearlescent finish to epoxy resin pieces. Polyester glitter and synthetic micas are more suitable for creating sparkling glitter lines or shimmering accent areas on resin art pieces or geode-inspired paintings. See an example below.

 

Beautiful round Resin Geode Painting made by artist @ellepours using MEYSPRING Mica powders and glitters.

Check out our blog post How to Create Cells & 3D Special Effects in Resin Art and learn how to make the most out of MEYSPRING Mica Powders when working with epoxy resin.

For more inspiration using mica powders and glitters in your resin art projects, pay a visit to our Instagram Feed! You’ll find many ideas and how-to videos to make fantastic little gifts that anyone will love or even create a new piece of epoxy resin decor for your home! 

Polymer Clay

When mixing glitter with clay - it is safe to say - the more, the merrier! Almost any type of glitter can be added to clay, depending on the desired look and use, but some of the most common types are large flake glitter and synthetic mica glitter. If baking the polymer clay, glitter should be added and folded over several times for proper mixture before baking. However, if you just want to add glitter to the surface of the clay sheet, then just brush it over and bake. Finally, we recommend sealing your pieces with a glaze to ensure the glitter stays on for as long as desired, and your clay is sure to keep its sparkle!
This blog post examines different ways of applying mica powder to polymer clay projects!

Acrylic Paint

MEYSPRING Mica powders are 100% mineral pigments free of artificial toxins, cruelty-free, vegan, and ethically sourced. What could be better than that? In addition, these powders are inert, so you can create your DIY acrylic paints by mixing them with translucent acrylic mediums. Almost any paint binder would be great as long as it is transparent and let the particles of these glittery pigments shine. You can be much more creative mixing shades to design your own palette, yielding incredible results!

We think they are a clear winner over paint, and we highly recommend that you rotate pigments and glitters into your art arsenal and give them a try!

Candle Making

From coloring the wax to making the outside sparkle, a little glitter can really transform your candle-making process! After cooling, most candle waxes take on a white or yellow tone, so the actual color of the mica powder or glitter can be affected. Using just a tiny amount of mica powder will turn your candle to a soft pastel color, which will eventually shine through vividly as soon as the candle is burning! However, consider that less is more when adding the mica powder to the candle because this pigment could clog the wick and reduce the flame! Learn more about using MEYSPRING Mica Powders to make Candles.

Another option for adding mica or glitter to a candle is decorating the outside of the candle. This process is a bit easier and still allows for a beautiful new appearance! Before pouring the candle wax into a container or mold, simply dust the inside lining of the jar with your glitter, and the hot wax will stick to the glitter, and mica powder applied. Or, for a shimmering top of the candle, sprinkle a bit of mica powder or glitter on top of the hot wax before it cools down.

Wax Melts

Can You Use Mica Powder in Wax Melts? The answer is YES! Micas are an excellent colorant for wax melts since there is no wick to clog, and you also have a lot of freedom to create different shapes and designs. Synthetic micas are also fine to color your wax creations but traditional polyester glitters are usually just sprinkled on top to add some final decoration instead of adding color to the wax.

Cosmetics 

Whether walking the runway or simply walking down the hall, glitter is one of the most eye-catching additions to any DIY makeup project or beauty look. But, how do you use it safely and effectively - protecting your skin and keeping your sparkle all day long? We recommend our synthetic mica powder, FDA approved and safe for external use on your face, skin, and surrounding your eyes and lips. You can use it on any DIY mineral makeup project with peace of mind.

Our Synthetic mica is guaranteed to add just the right amount of sparkle to any cosmetic recipe you might like to try, like lip balm, eyeshadow, or blush. Since it is gorgeous, long-lasting, and cosmetic grade, it will set you above the rest! 

Where to Buy Glitter?

Right here, you can find MEYSPRING Traditional and Synthetic Mica glitters! They weigh 50g and come in 120 ml jars, or you cna also get them as part of our Geode Art Collection Sample Set. Carefully designed to work well with almost any medium or application, you can’t go wrong with these glitters! 

Also, review our exciting mica powder/mineral glitter catalog!! And feel free to browse our online store for the rest of our Pigment Collections.

Final Thought

Now you know there are three types of glitter: traditional glitter, mineral glitter, and synthetic mica glitter. You also learned what the basic materials and most suitable applications are. So we are confident you are ready to choose the best glitter option for your creative project. 

We can’t wait to see all of the awesomeness you might create with MEYSPRING glitters! Don’t forget to tag us @meyspring on Social Media or use our hashtag: #meyspringpigments so we can see your creations. You can also visit our blog to stay up to date on the most trending topics in the arts and crafts world and find tons of inspiration for your next sparkling project! 

Here’s a Pinterest-friendly image - in case you’d like to save this article for your future glitter-using reference!