Help my daughter get her sparkle back!
August 22, 2011 10:41 AM   Subscribe

My four-year-old daughter got a haircut the other day, and as part of the haircut, the stylist sprinkled what looked like glittery talcum powder on her face and hair. She loved having "sparkles" on her face and hair all day and was sad when she had to wash them off in the bath. I'm not sure how this stuff works, but is there anything affordable and low-maintenance that I can get for her to help get her sparkle back?
posted by AngerBoy to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (15 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
If you've got a big-box craft store nearby, you should be able to get a year's supply of cosmetic grade glitter for less than three dollars. Check the soap/candlemaking section. (I don't know about low-maintenance, though...)
posted by trunk muffins at 10:47 AM on August 22, 2011


Talcum with mica or other cosmetic glitter is pretty easy to find in the drugstore. I use Revlon skinlights illuminator. A friend uses Cake. My sister uses something she bought at Sephora, but I don't recall the brand.

Are you looking for something other than cosmetics?
posted by crush-onastick at 10:48 AM on August 22, 2011


How about this? Why not just call up the stylist and ask? There also may be a beauty supply store in your town that you could call and describe what you saw. They would love to help you make a sale.
posted by amanda at 10:48 AM on August 22, 2011 [4 favorites]


Not sure where you can get this stuff for your daughter, but PLEASE note that, as trunk muffins mentions, you want cosmetic-grade giltter, not any glitter made for crafting and the like. Craft glitter is tiny shards of metal, which can scratch her eyeballs and skin.
posted by Rykey at 10:50 AM on August 22, 2011 [5 favorites]


Try a salon supply store like Sally Beauty Supply. Also, I love the juxtaposition of your username and this question.
posted by Knowyournuts at 10:52 AM on August 22, 2011 [9 favorites]


Wet'n'Wild makes something called "shimmer dust" which sounds like exactly what you want, and will run you all of $3. I'll bet most cheap drugstore cosmetics brands have similar products.
posted by enlarged to show texture at 10:53 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]


There are a ton of different sparkle products for little girls--check the girl's section of the makeup isle at the pharmacy, and you might also find stuff in the dress-up/princess/fairy costume section of Target/KMart/etc. Some is powder form in little pots or tubes, and there are also gels. Really, it should not be hard to find or cost much money.

The thing you need to know is this. Somehow, somewhere, your little pot of fairy dust sparkle powder will spill. And that stuff is hell to vacuum up, and stray bits of glitter will affix themselves to you when you least expect it, for years.
posted by drlith at 10:56 AM on August 22, 2011 [7 favorites]


Best answer: Yep, my nieces (3 and 6) love Fairy Dust products.
posted by Specklet at 10:57 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]


here's a specific product to look for if you need one. Or you could really go all-out with something at Toys R Us.

(There is a small part of me that wants to make a joke about your daughter being committed to Sparke Motion.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:14 AM on August 22, 2011 [2 favorites]


Best answer: There are lots of shimmer powders that you can use that are safe. Maybelline makes a shimmer powder that's about $2. Victoria's Secret makes a lot of different shimmer powders. There are also spray on moisturizers that are shimmery from Bath and Body Works. Mary Kay makes a mineral shimmer powder in canary diamond.

They are much better than glitter, if they get in her eyes, it won't hurt like glitter powder does. Plus, cosmetics companies are more apt to put better quality ingredients in their products.

My daughter likes lip gloss (I give her lip balm instead!) I am sure shimmer powder is to come next!

Have fun!
posted by Yellow at 11:30 AM on August 22, 2011


You may want to use the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep database to narrow it down to a safer option, as some of the shimmer powders have solid moderate hazard ratings for adults and you're putting this on a child. It looks like there are a few good low risk options, though.
posted by Chaussette and the Pussy Cats at 12:28 PM on August 22, 2011


Best answer: Disclaimer: I occasionally work for Lush. I use way, way too many of their products, including the one I'm recommending.

Here's a glitter product that is ridiculously popular with young girls, tweens, teens, twentysomethings, and the occasional grandmother: Shimmy Shimmy. It's a solid lotion bar with an allover shimmer AND bigger iridescent glitter, too. Bonus: it's made with very safe ingredients and smells amazing. You can use a few swipes in the hair if you like, too; it's made with shea and cocoa butter, so it'll be conditioning. They had a shimmery powder (Candy Fluff), but it's been discontinued.

There are four Lush stores in your area. Lucky you!
posted by fiercecupcake at 1:32 PM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]


...I am astonished that this stuff washed out. My daughter got sparkles in her hair for a black-tie event and had bits of glitter in her part for months after, no matter how much we scrubbed in the shower.

This just to say: Look at product reviews before you buy to make sure you find a product that does, in fact, wash out when you don't want it anymore. Glitter is the herpes of the crafting world and all that.
posted by Andrhia at 7:14 PM on August 22, 2011


Response by poster: Right, and as some of the helpful links above clarified, I guess it's not technically glitter I'm looking for but some kind of shimmery talcum powder (not really makeup, I don't think, since there was no noticeable color to the powder).

I'll take a look at the products recommended above - I'm really grateful for the help.

I just hope no one looks too closely at my internet browsing history now. I'd be mortified.
posted by AngerBoy at 10:51 PM on August 23, 2011


I second the lush suggestion.. now I also used to work for them but that was way back then 5 yrs ago, so not sure it counts as much. It is exactly that.. talk/baby powder like mixed in with some glitter and it feels softer than actual talk.
Should do the trick. Plus that brand is usually pretty natural so that would be good for a 4 yr old too
posted by kirikara at 4:59 PM on August 26, 2011


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