Whether you want some edible glitter to decorate your cocktail glasses or just run out of glitter you always use for your crafts, you can turn ordinary grains of salt into colorful and sparkling glitter. You can quickly make a small amount using food coloring and a plastic bag; if you prefer, you can go even further by cooking the mixture in the oven to make it last a little longer. If you want to get a truly original and impactful result, mix some phosphorescent paint with the salt to make bright glitter. Glitter made with salt may not be as sparkly as real glitter, but you can make them in the kitchen anytime you want.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Making Glitter the Easy Way with Salt
Step 1. Pour some salt into a resealable plastic bag
To avoid finding yourself washing bowls or plates, you can make glitter using a resealable plastic bag. You will need a separate bag for each type of glitter you intend to make. Fill the bags with as much salt as you want, although you shouldn't fill them to the brim, or the glitter will be difficult to mix later.
- You can use almost any type of salt you want, such as regular table salt or iodine-free. However, larger grained types, including coarse table salt and kosher salt, usually give better results. You can also use Epsom salts, which tend to shimmer naturally.
- Keep in mind that the amount of salt used will correspond to the amount of glitter you will get at the end of the preparation.
Step 2. Pour a few drops of food coloring into the bag
Once you have put the salt in the plastic bag, you will need to dye it to get the glitter. Squeeze a few drops of liquid food coloring onto the salt. Choose the color you prefer.
- You can add as much dye as you like. However, if you use more salt, you will also need to add more dye.
- In general, adding more dye will result in a darker and more intense final color. If you want to make a generous amount of dark glitter, you may need to add up to 10 drops of food coloring.
- If you want to make glitter in a soft pastel shade, 1 or 2 drops of dye should be enough.
- It is usually best to start with a small amount of dye. You can always add more if you want to intensify the color of the glitter.
Step 3. Close the plastic bag, then mix the salt and food coloring
After adding the dye to the salt, close the bag. Shake it well so that the ingredients mix perfectly.
- To make sure the salt does not come out of the bag as you shake it, fold the edge of the closure and hold it tightly with one hand during the process.
- If after shaking the bag you do not get the desired shade, add more dye and mix again. Repeat this process until you reach a color that you find satisfactory.
Step 4. Open the bag and let the salt dry
Once you have the desired color, open the bag so that the glitter can be exposed to the air. Put the bag in a warm, dry place, then let them dry completely. In most cases, you will only need to let them dry for 2 to 3 hours.
- If you have prepared a large amount of glitter, it may be necessary to let it dry longer. To be on the safe side, you can let them dry overnight.
- Once the glitter has dried, you can move it to a container, like an old salt shaker.
Method 2 of 3: Prepare the Glitter with Salt and Bake them in the Oven
Step 1. Preheat the oven
To make sure the salt-based glitter dries and the color sets, baking will be of great help. Set the oven to a temperature of around 180 ° C and let it heat up well, so that it is warm enough when it is time to put the glitter to dry.
If you plan to prepare them with a child, be sure to keep an eye on them while using the oven
Step 2. Pour some salt into a bowl or plastic container
Decide how many glitter you would like to make and pour the same amount of salt into a clean plastic bowl or container. Keep in mind that you will need a separate container for each color you want to achieve.
- You can use any type of salt, but common table salt gives good results.
- Make sure the bowl or container you are using is large enough for the amount of salt you will pour into it. There should be enough space in the bowl to mix or shake the ingredients.
Step 3. Add a few drops of food coloring to the salt and mix
Once you have poured the salt into the bowl or plastic container, squeeze a few drops of food coloring onto it to achieve the desired shade. Use a spoon to carefully mix the salt and dye to get a homogeneous mixture.
- The amount of dye you need depends on the amount of salt you intend to dye and the shade you want to achieve at the end of the procedure. Larger amounts of salt require more dye and, consequently, you will have to use larger amounts of product also to get a darker color.
- Use the dye creatively. You can mix two or more shades with a single dose of salt to get other colors. For example, if you don't have a green dye, you can use equal amounts of blue and yellow dye to get this color.
- If the bowl or container has a lid, you can close it, then swirl the salt and dye to mix them.
Step 4. Spread the salt on a baking sheet
Once you have the desired color, carefully pour the glitter onto a cookie sheet or other baking sheet. Try to distribute the glitter in a single layer, so that it dries more effectively.
If you are going to make different shades of glitter, it is good to place them on separate baking sheets. If not, it can be extremely difficult to prevent them from mixing with each other when removing them from the pan
Step 5. Bake the glitter for 10-15 minutes
Once you've spread the glitter on the baking sheet, place it in the hot oven. Let them cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until the food coloring has dried completely.
Step 6. Let the glitter cool
When cooked, take the pan out of the oven. Let the glitter cool completely - this should take about 20-25 minutes. Once cool, they will be ready to use.
Once the glitter has cooled, you can put it in jars or other containers
Method 3 of 3: Create Salt-based Phosphorescent Glitter
Step 1. Pour some salt into resealable plastic bags with the help of a spoon
Open several resealable plastic bags, making sure you have one for each color you want to achieve. Carefully pour the salt into the bags with the help of a spoon. The amount of salt used will match the amount of glitter you get at the end of the process, so fill the bags accordingly.
You can use any type of salt you want, but Epsom's are especially good for glow-in-the-dark glitter
Step 2. Add the glow-in-the-dark paint to the salt
After pouring the salt into the bags, add a few drops of non-toxic phosphorescent paint of the color of your choice. Paint is more pigmented than food dyes, so you generally don't need much of it. However, larger amounts of salt will require larger amounts of paint.
- Unlike glitter made with food coloring, glow-in-the-dark glitter is not edible.
- If you can't find the glow-in-the-dark paint, you can use a neon formulation.
- While each bag of glitter allows for individual coloring, you can unleash your creativity and mix two or more shades of paint to create a custom color.
Step 3. Close the bag and shake it to mix salt and paint
Once you have added the salt paint, shake the bags well to mix the ingredients evenly. It will help to crush the salt into the bag as you shake it to make sure you get a uniform mixture.
If the glitter color isn't as bright or vibrant as you intended, add more salt paint and shake the bag again. Repeat this process until you get a color that you find satisfactory
Step 4. Pour the salt onto a baking sheet to dry
Once you have the desired color, pour the salt onto a baking sheet, tray, or other flat surface. Make a single layer and let it dry completely. This should take 4 to 6 hours. Once the glitter has dried, you can use it.
The salt may clump with the paint. Don't worry - it will easily shell when dry
Advice
- Salt-based glitters made with food coloring are edible, so you can use them to decorate the rims of glasses when making margaritas and other cocktails. Just moisten the rim of the glass and dip it in the salt glitter.
- Glitter prepared with salt and glow-in-the-dark paint are ideal for DIY projects.
- Old salt shakers and spice containers are perfect for salt-based glitter. They usually have perforated lids that facilitate the release of the glitter.
- You can use any type of glue to make glitter adhere to crafts.
- If you don't have salt in the house, you can replace it with sugar. However, avoid using the oven method to dry the glitter, as the sugar will melt and could ruin the pan.
- Do not bake the glitter for too long, otherwise it may burn out.
- Never put salt-based glitter in or in contact with water: they can melt due to liquids.
