GIMME THE SHINIEST THINGS

November 21, 2019 8:00 AM

I have been to a number of concerts lately where the performers are decked out in stage costumes that are just blindingly sparkly. Like, so sparkly that I am convinced I saw god. LIFT THE VEIL. TELL ME THE SECRETS.

There were bedazzled clothes (fabric that moves!), shoes, all of it. I understand that it is a combination of materials and lighting, but I am dazzled and I want to know the secrets.

I have many questions.

1) WHAT ARE THESE PROFESSIONALS USING??

is it sequins? is it rhinestones? is it actual freaking diamonds? space age glitter fabric??
does todrick just exude glamour through his pores?

2) WHAT SPARKLES THE BEST IN WHAT CONDITIONS???

is there a trick to looking sparkly in photos vs in real life?

3) WHAT ARE THE BEST DIY OPTIONS???

i just want to bedazzle a few items. a shoe here and there. a shirt. my whole dog.


THANKS

posted by skrozidile to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (13 answers total)

A little different than clothes but for your face—I’ve never seen anything glitter and shimmer like CoverFX glitter drops. Start with one tiny drop and work up. They are expensive but the bottle lasts forever because you only need a minuscule amount.
posted by sallybrown at 8:29 AM on November 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

I like gluing rhinestones to nails, phone cases, weird animal parts, etc. For DIY bedazzling, I can tell you that Swarovski crystals are the real deal. They're expensive, and you might be tempted to get other, cheaper glass rhinestones, but bite the bullet and buy Swarovski. I have tried numerous other rhinestones from other vendors and they are just not as sparkly.

My other tip when using them is to be VERY CAREFUL not to get glue anywhere on the surface of the rhinestone. Nothing kills the shine quicker. Superglue is great but use tiny dots from a toothpick or dotting tool.
posted by fiercecupcake at 8:34 AM on November 21, 2019

Swarovski crystals and / or little mirrors (all hand set individually on a garment) are often used for stage performances. Other options are highly reflective lamé fabric, high quality sequins, and polished metal mesh fabric.

All these work in real life too, it's just that for best effect you need good direct lighting which can be hard to arrange unless you traipse around town with a portable spotlight (maybe you do, no judgement). The other issue is that many of these things are not meant to stand up to daily wear. If you choose to sparkle up, be ready to repair often. Buy extra of whatever you use.
posted by ananci at 8:36 AM on November 21, 2019 [12 favorites]

Oh also, if you are setting crystals on stretchy fabric, prong attachments will far outlast even the best glue.
posted by ananci at 8:38 AM on November 21, 2019 [7 favorites]

Having been on stage with people wearing sparkly outfits, it cannot be emphasized enough how much of the effect you observed is due to lighting. A lot of the time even highly reflective fabrics and sequins are not that sparkly up close in regular lighting (sequins can even look a little dingy if the outfit has some age and use on it, as they are difficult to keep clean of dust, etc.).
posted by slkinsey at 9:27 AM on November 21, 2019 [11 favorites]

Lurex metallic (stretch!) fabric. If you are near NYC, the fashion district has several stores selling sparkly fabric.

Not exactly transportable, but those small lightbulbs you see in diamond jewelry display cases really amp up the sparkle.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 9:29 AM on November 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

This may or may not be what you want, but I would look into retroreflectors. They are what make things particularly light catching at night for road safety and can be used for dazzling effect elsewhere. You might have to experiment a bit, but I bet you could find a way to attach them to clothing with the right glue or paint. Side benefit of them screwing up flash photography something fierce.
posted by forbiddencabinet at 9:46 AM on November 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

Yes to Swarovski crystals. Custom costumers serving the needs of professional dancers & figure skaters sometimes offer DIY resources. An example from The Lineup:
How to Rhinestone a Costume, Hotfix Method
How to Rhinestone a Dance Costume: Flat Back Method

RhinestonesUnlimited's YouTube tutorial

See also spangles and treated tricot fabric ("hologram," under novelty tab & also sold at fabric.com), metallic trim and applique, beaded trim, buttons, headbands, hair combs, pony tail holders, other hair accessories, belts, buckles, and more, for DIY supplies.
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:30 PM on November 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

If nail polish is of any interest to you, these essie polishes are the sparkliest I've ever seen, and I am a connoisseur of glitter nail polishes. "Holo" is always a good sign for sparkly nail polish, but these somehow outdo all the other holos I own. The pictures here don't even begin to do them justice.
posted by dizziest at 3:12 PM on November 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

British artist Stuart Semple makes Diamond Dust, which he calls "the world's glitteriest glitter". You cannot use it on your skin, because it is made of glass. But for art projects it's great. About £9 a pot.
posted by Pallas Athena at 6:17 PM on November 21, 2019

Could you be seeing fiber optics? This link has a little video of a fiber optic dress.
posted by BoscosMom at 6:55 PM on November 21, 2019

I wear a lot of sparkly stuff for shows as do a lot of my peers (pretty common in the queer arts world). Sequins, glitter, rhinestones, Swarovski crystals, metallics.

Some of my friends go out of their way to hand-glue gallons upon gallons of sequins and crystals on their outfits, while others work with readymade stuff. A lot of my clothing and accessories come from thrift stores and eBay - they still sparkle a lot on stage. (I'm not alone in this) We also wear a ton of glitter makeup, which helps the effect.

The point being, most of the time it's not a specialist sort of sequin or glitter. As people have said, it's often due to lighting. The only time I can think of where people are particular about brands are Swarovski, but I don't know if that's some engineering thing - probably they're just popular and decent enough quality. But otherwise, anything will do.

You can get sequin or similar shiny fabric at most craft stores. They can be a bit pricey compared to regular fabric but they'll do you fine especially for DIY projects.
posted by divabat at 3:08 PM on November 22, 2019

Here's an example. My dress is from the Red Cross thrift store and cost me like $10. I don't know the brand, though I did find out yesterday that another performer got gifted the same dress but they didn't know the brand either. You can't see it in the photos but I'm also wearing the leggings version of this Black Milk dress from the same company - they're discontinued but I've had mine for over a decade and they still work great.

There's also a lot of face glitter - I used Espionage Cosmetics for a while but I've run out so I've been using a pot of face glitter from a drugstore and it works fine. I sometimes use the Lush Shimmy Shimmy bar for body glitter.
posted by divabat at 3:19 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]