It’s almost time for the most magical time in the Sydney queer calendar, Mardi Gras. For those in the community, it really is LGBTQIA+ Christmas. But every year, without fail, I will have glitter stuck to my skin and clothes for weeks after the festivities are over. This year, however, get ready to shake all that sparkle off and finally learn how to properly remove glitter from everything you own.
The funny thing about glitter is you’ll be constantly reminded of the fact you made the decision to wear it because you’ll still be finding miscellaneous pieces everywhere.
You’ll be left thinking, “How the heck did glitter even get on clothes I wasn’t wearing?”
It is kind of like Pride is always around you. What a beautiful metaphor.
But, if you no longer want to be a human disco ball, then here are a few ways to get glitter off of your clothes, skin and out of your hair.
This week’s Ask Lifehacker is going to help take off all that glitter, just in time for the 2022 Mardi Gras Parade.
Get yourself some environmentally friendly glitter
Before we get into how to remove that pesky glitter from everything you own, I wanted to stress the importance of using environmentally friendly, biodegradable glitter.
With the rapid decline of our environment, harmful pollutants like plastic glitter have mostly been phased out.
Back in 2019, the Sydney Mardi Gras festival started to phase out single-use plastics from its parades which included the sparkly plastic glitter that became a staple at every event.
The effects of plastic glitter on the environment are detrimental so we all need to do our part this Mardi Gras to not only look fabulous but also make sure the land stays looking fabulous, too.
Australian companies like The Glitter Tribe are creating biodegradable, vegan, cruelty-free and compostable glitter so you can shine on worry-free.
While you can still get plastic glitter, why would you want to? Not only is biodegradable glitter more environmentally friendly, but it’s also probably much better for your skin than plastic.
How do you get glitter off your skin?
While you might be tempted to just furiously rub it off your arms and face, there are ways to get glitter off your skin that are less painful and more effective.
Use tape
According to MamaMia, the best way to get glitter off your skin is to use tape.
All you have to do is use a large roll of duct tape, contact paper or packing tape and dab it on the glittery area.
Obviously, don’t use tape that is going to be harsh on your skin if you know it’s more sensitive.
The stickiness of the tape will lift those fallen sparkles right off your skin. The best part about this method is that it will also prevent all the glitter from falling to the floor or over your clothes
Oil up your face
After coming home from the Mardi Gras parade, it’s probably second nature to reach for the wipes and makeup remover to get the glitter off of your face.
You should probably avoid doing this though because these wipes and removers can actually bind the glitter to your skin, MamaMia says. This doesn’t help, at all.
What you should reach for instead, is some good old oil (baby, olive, anything you have and want to splash on your face).
InStyle gave the handy tip to dip your fingers in some oil of your choice and just lightly rub it over the glitter. Do so in small circular motions.
This will remove the glitter from your skin and will prevent it from scratching your delicate face.
All you have to do is then wipe your face with a water-soaked cotton pad to remove the oil and excess glitter.
How do you get glitter off your clothes?
We all know that glitter doesn’t like to stay in one place, so when once it’s on your face, accept that it’s going to be all over your clothes too.
The tape method can also be pretty effective in getting glitter off your clothes too but is probably better in small areas. It would take far too much time to tape every inch of your clothes.
Using a lint roller is also a great way to pick up some of that excess sparkle off your clothes.
However, InStyle has a pretty genius tip for getting the sparkly stuff out of your clothes.
All you have to do is spray some hairspray directly onto the glittered piece of clothing and wait for it to dry. Once dry, chuck it into the washing machine and bam, all gone.
Make sure you’re washing the piece of clothing by itself, otherwise you’re going to get glitter on your other clothes and end up in a worse mess than you started.
How do you get it out of your hair?
Probably one of the most difficult places to get rid of glitter is your hair. Whether that be the hair on your head, face or body, glitter will try to find its permanent home there.
Unfortunately, the trusty tape technique will not work for this one. Unless you want to feel the pain of a DIY wax using tape.
The handy oil technique we used for our face, however, can also work for our hair.
Just rub some coconut or olive oil in your hair or beard (or whichever area of hair is impacted) and shampoo it all off. The glitter should wash away using this technique.
If you’ve got really oily hair and the thought of adding more oil distresses you, have no fear.
Hairstylist Matt Fugate spoke to Allure and said that spraying a paper towel with hairspray until it’s damp and blotting that through your hair should also do the trick.
He said that the tackiness from the hairspray should pick up the glitter without actually sticking to your hair like tape.
Hopefully, some of these tips will help relieve some of the dread of thinking about how to clean all that damn glitter off your body.
If you’re wondering what events are running for this year’s Mardi Gras, check out our guide to all the festivities.
No matter how you celebrate, happy Mardi Gras and may the queer pride always be with you.
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