If you like glitter as much as we do, you’ll love this post! We’ve put together a comprehensive guide that takes you through all the current glitters on the market and recommends the best manicures to utilize them. Plus, with the festive season in full swing, you’ll find this glitter guide essential for creating quick party manicures. Enjoy!
The Ultimate Glitter Guide:
- Fine Glitter. A classic glitter nail polish. If you’re looking for the perfect gold glitter nail polish, check out the new Dance Legend Gold. For something different try the copper Deborah Lippmann Superstar or Nails Inc Connaught Square in royal blue. Great for: any kind of glitter nail art as a base or just for details.
- Metallics & Shimmer. When it comes to subtle metallic foil finishes, Essie No Place Like Chrome (pictured), or shimmering like Butter London Knees Up and Chanel Graphite are some of the best. Great for: those who aren’t into glitter but still want to wear something with a bit of sparkle. Also, metallics are great for stamping and striping tape manicures, like Great Gatsby Nails.
- Hex Glitter. ‘Hex’ stands for hexagonal glitter particles, sometimes with fine glitter base like Ciate Antique Brooch. Hex glitters often have a clear base like Essie A Cut Above and Deborah Lippmann Boom Boom Pow. Great for: glitter gradients (pictured is Ciate Antique Brooch) and glitter accent nails.
- Textured Glitter. Now textured glitter comes in all shades and in glitter too. Try bright textured glitters like purple Face of Australia Masquerade, OPI Kiss Me At Midnight (pictured) or ORLY Aqua Pixel. Great for: ombre nails, gradient and accent nails.
- Multi Glitter. Various sizes and colours of particles are suspended in a clear base. Try emerald-blue Deborah Lippmann Across the Universe, purple-pink-blue OPI Polka Dot Com or rainbow Bloom Emily Green. Great for: glitter tips and accent nails.
- Loose Glitter. Great for one night only. Loose glitter won’t last but it does look amazing! Fine Fold Glitter, Octogonal Large Silver Glitter, glequins – BYS Deep Blue (pictured). Great for: layering over opaque nail polish, glitter moon details, accent nails and glitter placement manicures.
- Jelly Glitter*. Various size and colours of glitter particles are suspended in a jelly base (25% creme and 75% clear). Our favorites are white jelly glitter – Deborah Lippman Glitter in The Air and high drama Dance Legend Rich Black with silver and gold holo glitter. Great for: wear on its own, chevron nails and as a base for more elaborate nail art. *You can also easily ‘fake’ jelly glitter nails.
- Opaque Glitter. Opaque/matte glitter particles are suspended in a clear base. These polishes are perfect toppers and can be used almost over any creme polish you currently own. Our favorites black and white Platinum Artiste, KB Shimmer Grayscale and funky Dance Legend Flossy 153 with pink, blue and white opaque glitter. Great for: layering over opaque nail polish and accent nails.
- Extra Large Glitter. Or, so-called ‘glitter bomb’. Clear base glitter with extra large glitter particles, sometimes can include small glitter. Favorites – gunmetal Emily De Molly’s Rhodium, gold OPI When Monkeys Fly and Christmas-like KBShimmer Kringle All The Way. To get the best out of these glitters, shake the bottle gently before use for even glitter distribution and pick up the large particles individually from the bottle as they have tendency to sink. Great for: layering over opaque nail polish, accent nails or glitter placement nail art.
Do you like glitter nails? Which type of glitter is your favorite?
– Maria, xx
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Kelsey says
Great post! I love glitter polishes but i can never actually get them to work. I just bought OPIs Lights of Emerald City and none of the larger glitter pieces actually came out of the bottle. For polishes like that and When Monkeys Fly do you just have to commit to doing individual glitter placement?
Maria V says
Thank you Kelsey! Yes, to get the larger glitter pieces you need to shake the bottle before use. Sometimes the larger particles come out fine with the brush but yes, often you just have to do some glitter placement. Make sure you finish your mani with 2-3 layers of top coat to get that smooth finish look. X
Joni says
I too have problems with glitter polishes. I cannot get the glitter spced evenly, I end up with a clump on one side and no glitter elsewhere. Is it better to dab on rather than paint on? But then it ends up too thick. Any tips?
Maria V says
I find some glitters are easier to apply than others. All glitters with large particles are a bit tricky. And yes, you can definitely dab glitter on rather than paint it on, just before that wipe nail polish brush on the polish bottle neck or use a piece of paper to remove some of the clear base. Essie, Sally Hansen and OPI glitters are all quite good though and super easy to apply. Hope this helps! x