Is Glitter Having a Moment? The Truth Behind Glitter’s Sparkly Comeback
Keeping up with the latest trends can be exhausting. It’s just as true for marketing as it is for fashion. Are we tossing our skinny jeans or not? Is TikTok a gold mine or a data mine?
Who can say? While we love a good trend as much as anyone, the best ideas have a way of outliving their 15 minutes. Take glitter, for example.
While so-called post-Recession aesthetic minimalism was supposed to have extinguished the sparkle, it wasn’t long before a maximalist vibe was reemerging from the bleak, unstimulating churn of the pandemic.
We popped out of our quarantine cocoons, the theory goes, to a collective consensus that our lives, as defined by the stuff we bought, wore and staged in our homes – needed a little shine.
In other words, maximalism is back.
Multisensory Special Effects Never Go Out of Style
Look. We would love to climb aboard the latest buzz train. Technicolor advertisements, boldly patterned packaging and lush, busy book covers are de rigueur, you say? H&H Customers are way ahead of you. As an attention-stealing multisensory special effect, glitter never went away.
Available in a rainbow of kaleidoscopic and customized colors and evocative of shimmering stars and sparkling seas, glitter is the pinnacle of maximalist fun. It’s bewitching, glamorous, dramatic and chock full of nostalgia. Incorporate a little glamour into your promotions, product design or packaging and watch as it captures attention like a siren’s call. That’s just as true when the minimalists have the floor as it was when Louis XIV began construction on a little place outside of Paris.
All that Glitters is… Human Catnip?
It’s true, glitter can be polarizing.
For some, it brings back memories of the shiny, shedding children’s art that attached itself to every surface of your house and car. For others, who love their children, it evokes happiness, the ethereal magic of Tinkerbell’s fairy dust, or dizzying nights spent under glittering disco balls.
Okay, maybe that’s not fair. But it is science.
According to a scientific theory, even those who spurn glitter are inherently attracted to it. In a 2010 study, researchers found that infants favored licking shiny, glossy plates over dull ones. From this, they inferred that babies have the “ability to recognize optical cues for water as characterized by the gleaming highlights and clear reflections of polished metal.”
In simple terms, the study says, humans are attracted to shiny, sparkly things because they remind us of our primal need for water. Or champagne.
The point is, there are a lot of myths out there about glitter and we’re here to set the record straight and shiny.
Myth 1: It’s Messy
Glitter has gained some notoriety for its habit of sticking around past its welcome. Chances are good that you’ve decorated a Christmas tree or completed a craft only to find stray specks of glitter clinging to your hair or ear or carpet a week, or perhaps years, later.
While it’s true that that loose glitter and traditional flocked glitter paper tend to indiscriminately scatter mementos of your dance party scrapbook, technological advances have made mess-less glitter a reality.
Not to brag, but our proprietary glitter printing encapsulates glitter particles in the ink vehicle. Glitter printed with encapsulation does not flake, fall or transfer, even when rubbed.
Myth 2: All Glitter is Bad for the Planet
The benefits of encapsulation don’t stop with mess. The process also helps bust the second – and perhaps most widely shared rap against glitter – it’s a source of ocean-clogging environmental harm.
But when glitter is encapsulated, the threat of releasing microplastics into the environment is minimized. Encapsulated glitter doesn’t flake or shed. It’s all of the fun and none of the dread of planetary harm.
Myth 3: It’s Dated
For some, glitter may call to mind Ziggy Stardust-esque face gems and glitter eyeshadow from the ‘70s, frosted lipstick and scented, roll-on body glitter from the ‘90s and ‘00s.
But glitter is anything but passe. It is, in fact, experiencing a renaissance, especially among Gen Z and Millennial consumers — just look at how glittery makeup from HBO’s Euphoria catapulted into the mainstream. Beyond cosmetics, glitter can be found in everything from cars to toothpaste. A 2018 New York Times article sparked a much-publicized conspiracy theory regarding the glitter industry’s anonymous largest client.
The fact is, while glitter has never failed to fascinate us, it is having a bit of a shining moment.
Myth 4: It’s Gaudy
Another accusation commonly hurled at glitter is that it is inelegant and showy. To which we can only say… there are three-letter French luxury brands who would disagree. Along with a long list of other well-known brands whose products and promotions have included high-end H&H special effects like glitter.
Myth 5: It’s All the Same
While some printers may have insubstantial glitter printing capabilities, we have ways to make glitter printing as versatile as it is fun. We modify colors in-house and mix our own glitter particles into the base. We can replicate the exact shade of your logo or company colors or help you design new custom shades. We can flood large areas with glitter or selectively spot coat the smallest letters, shapes and images with sparkle. We can even manipulate color density to achieve the desired impact – what we like to call the “wow.”
Let H&H Help you Shine✨
At H&H, the world of glitter printing is your opalescent oyster. From greeting cards to specialty packaging, H&H has helped a glittering array of clients attract customers with special effects printing impossible to ignore.
In addition to flake-free, high-quality glitter, we specialize in a range of multisensory printing techniques including scented printing and printing with heat, light and water-activated reveals. Looking for something that’s never been done before? Our research and development department wants to meet you.
Give us a call to learn how we can add a little more glam into your next printed promotion, product or packaging.
