Glitter's Top Secret Project

In 2018, a New York Times article set off an internet firestorm when a spokesperson from a major glitter manufacturer refused to say who their biggest client was. The hints are tantalizing, and the theories about who is buying all the glitter and what is being done with it have run rampant. Let’s look at the various theories and see if we can learn something about glitter along the way.

Here’s the New York Times article that started it all (there is a paywall).

And here’s the Endless Thread podcast that suspects it’s boat paint:

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The motherload:

TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - What Is Glitter?
3:39 - The Glitter Mystery
5:11 - Sponsor - Factor
6:52 - Glitter Theories
14:51 - Future Joe Theory
16:48 - Mystery Solved?

[likebutton]

I can't imagine a hell worse then working in a glitter factory. You know that stuff has to be so deeply ingrained in everything you own there is no escaping it.

[johnransom]

I taught at a children’s museum. We called glitter “craft herpes “. Because you can’t get rid of all of it. Later in life I repaired paint jobs at a GM plant. Metallic flake paints were the hardest to repair. Glitter minus the plastic was the flake. I’m retired now and living in Nova Scotia. Mica is everywhere here. The beach, in gravel. Environmental artists use mica flakes instead of glitter. I know some potters that do. Get rid of the stuff. It’s just bad news.

[timseguine]

Even if it isn't anything nefarious I can pretty much guarantee that if they "don't want people to know it's glitter", then it is either bad for consumers, the environment, or both.

[penultimatosis]

I once convinced a girl in high school that glitter was an asexually reproducing organism and that’s why we couldn’t get it out of the theater stage wings.

[patrickpullman]

During the sponsorship, I was thinking "Oh goodness, they use glitter in microwave meals." and then I was "oh, it's just the sponsorship."

[tewtravelers]

Back in the 80s, I knew an old man who was a great fisherman. I was always asking him to tell me his secrets. He finally did. Glitter. He dipped all his baits and tackle in it. The water would be full of sparkling toxic plastic, and the fish thought it was a feeding frenzy. I never used his secret.

[budove]

So, I was in the flooring industry for 20 years and I have been involved in filing claims against product manufacturers for failures several times. I can tell you with 100% certainty that all adhesive manufacturers add glitter to their products so they can positively identify which product was used. Each product has a different glitter composition so that under a microscope it would be easy to identify who was the manufacturer and to ensure the recommended adhesive was used for the application. If you think about the amount of adhesives used I could easily see 500 tons of glitter being used for this purpose.

[vexusvexed]

If you want Earth friendly alternatives to Glitter:

1. Mica Powder, as mentioned in the video. Mica is naturally occurring, and they add pigments to give them bold, beautiful colors. Mica is most commonly used in Makeup, so it's body safe as well. There are plenty of sustainably and ethically sourced mica products.
2. Eucalyptus Pulp Fibers. BioGlitz, one of the upcomming biodegradable glitter manufacturers, uses exclusively Eucalyptus Pulp Fibers to create their shine. Like Mica, they add pigments for color. BioGlitz is also ethically AND sustainably sourced, + they're accredited by the Forest Stewardship Council. FDA approved and GMO absent. BioGlitz is not the only biodegradable eucalyptus manufacturer though, check out your options!!

Keep in mind though: Make sure the product is ethically and sustainably sourced before you can confidently call it Eco-Friendly. While these are better alternatives to plastic and aluminum glitter, Mica is not naturally renewable and Eucalyptus takes 6 to 8 years to fully grow into a viable tree for pulp fiber extraction. Use your biodegradable glitter with pride, but still be wise with it like you would regular glitter. Do your research and find out what works for you lovelies.

[Erin-Thor]

All I know is that many years I let a neighbor use my house for a baby shower. Now… over a decade later I am STILL finding glitter in plants, shoe bottoms, everywhere. You can’t get it out, ever, I swear the little glitter things are alive and breed. 😊

[StPeterICC]

In Brazil, in the week after the carnival, when everyone is back to their boring lives, and at work, in a multinational company, for that stressful budget meeting, the president of the company is raging complaints all around, but then in that moment, that sweet moment, you see some glitter shining somewhere around his face and you remember: he is also just a human being.

And no matter how many showers you take after the carnival. The glitter is now part of you, in a symbiotic relationship, to remind you, during many days to come, about those mistakes you want to forget

[hectorsmommy]

About 20 years ago I saw a segment on some show about Nielsen-Massey (the vanilla extract company). They were showing the process and when asked were very cagey about what happens to the seeds after all the flavor is extracted. Someone researched and it turns out their biggest customer for that was Breyers. Their Vanilla Bean ice cream is made with extract for flavor and the flavorless seeds we all see are thrown in for looks and to make people believe they are getting something special.

[danielgillespie]

I think the countertops idea is probably spot on. I recall watching a video a couple of years ago about the construction of an underground train station in London. Because the station was so far underground no natural light entered it and they were concerned about it looking drab and depressing. So they mixed glitter into the concrete they used to construct the internal walls. Not so it would be sparkly but just enough so that it reflected a small amount of light and therefore didn't appear matte and drab. So I imagine that glitter is used fairly often in construction. And because of the "natural" appearance of stone countertops they probably wouldn't want people knowing there is something incredibly unnatural in them.

[poursperfectpints]

The military rumor has been flying around the tabletop gaming world for ages. Metallic model paints, which use glitter, end up with a shortage every time there's a new conflict. Even the lack of components for making white metal causing gaming companies to switch to resin and plastic right after the invasion of Iraq. I'd always heard the story that every X number of years, our stealth fighters needed to be repainted using paint with glitter, but chaff makes just as much sense. Side note, the invasion of Ukraine caused an immediate glitter shortage for model paints. Large companies like Games Workshop were out for months.

[rytheguy]

I work for a quartz manufacturer, and I can tell you for sure we do not use glitter. When we want quartz to sparkle we use specially treated chunks of glass. That being said, we manufactured in the US. The majority of quartz is made over seas, so it's possible those practices are different.

[BoreasCastel]

What's bizarre to me is that plastic straws and grocery bags that nearly always end up in the landfill were banned in Canada before something that nearly always ends up as litter and that practically cannot be removed from the environment.

[jodirauth]

Several years ago I was making my new granddaughter a fuzzy blanket. Hello Kitty with pink and white snuggly soft micro fleece. If you have ever cut this super sparkling microfleece you know a super fine dust is created as your cutting it into the size you need. I was recovering from my 5th surgery that year and I was convalescening in bed while I cut my fabric pieces, happy as I could be and it was really cold outside so i was snuggled with my dogs and my project. Where it gets very funny is that my husband is a detective Sargent in a law enforcement agency. He worked night that year. He leaned in to kiss me goodbye and glittery sparkly dust stuck to him like mosquitoes drawing blood. Well he got to work and it was very clearly seen all over his clothing under UV light. He lit up like Christmas tree. The laughter I heard over the phone as he told me over the phone what happened, i could hardly hear him speaking because his brothers in blue were laughing so hard.

[timramich]

I have another theory. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing. For the glittery anti-counterfeit marks and holograms (iridescence) they put on money. I'd imagine that if those things are made slightly wrong, it could be easily spotted by the Secret Service. They could be the biggest customer not in terms of weight, but perhaps in terms of cost, because of difficulty to manufacture and strict tolerances.

[miguelsuarez-solis]

I used to work for this a makeup company. They had this ugly Grey powder that was literal diamond powder worth about 5k per kilo. It was used so a company could legally say they use diamonds in their products. What did they use to make it LOOK like shimmery diamonds? Glitter

So I totally believe the quartz theory

[toddjohnson]

The most plausible explanation I can think of for the spokesperson not wanting to reveal their biggest customer is they don't want to give that away to their competitors.

[coalcreekdefense]

I asked an AI chatbot about this on a lark, and its answer was the cosmetics industry. It made absolute sense to me. Small enough glitter would give a luster without being discernable as glitter, and it would definitely benefit companies to keep it a secret. It has the same problem as toothpaste, being that it would be illegal, so it's pretty shaky.