WHAT IS THE BEST GLITTER CRAFT PAINT? Crafts Mad in Crafts

Picture this: You have THE BEST idea for a craft project. It will be clever, useful, and, above all, GLITTERY! You head to the craft store to buy some glitter paint… and you are immediately overwhelmed by all the different options. What is the best glitter craft paint for your project? Don’t fret! I performed some super scientific experiments to give you all the info you will need to help you find the perfect glitter paint for your money.

WHAT IS THE BEST GLITTER CRAFT PAINT?

STEP ONE: GATHERING ALL THE GLITTER PAINT

Gathering every single variety of glitter craft paint on the market is a huge task. To limit my search, I decided I would only use paint I could buy in town (aka I didn’t order anything online). To accomplish that, I visited several craft retailers in town to find as many varieties of glitter craft paint as I could to supplement the ones I already had in my stash. I shopped at Michaels, JOANN, Hobby Lobby, Target, and Meijer (a Midwest store). I included the non-sale prices of each of the paints as a reference, but the actual price you will pay will depend on where you shop and where you live.

Since craft manufacturers and retailers saw a HUGE increase in craft paint sales during COVID, the pickings were slimmer than usual at almost all of those stores. I did my best to find a wide range of paints, but I am sorry if your favorite wasn’t available! Please let me know which varieties I missed and should try to get my hands on.

NOTE: I will be adding Amazon affiliate links to each of the paint varieties’ descriptions so that people who do not live near major craft stores can get their hands on the glitter paint. The prices reflected in your Amazon cart WILL NOT MATCH the prices given in the description.

To keep the comparisons fair, I chose to only buy silver or iridescent glitter paint, since you can find those colors in almost any range of glitter paint. I added two fabric paints into the mix since I had them in my stash, but the rest of them are standard acrylic craft paint.

STEP TWO: CREATING A COMPARISON PROCESS

I purchased two cheap dollar store canvasses, painted one of them with black craft paint, and marked a grid of 3 rows of 5 columns on them both. I then numbered both the bottles of paint and the grid squares. We’re being super scientific here, guys.

I applied 3 coats of each of the paints to the squares of the grid on the white canvas, allowing the paint to dry between coats. I only applied two coats of the paints on the black canvas because glitter paint shows up better on dark base colors.

I also heat-treated the two fabric paints on each canvas since they do not set until they are heated.

During the process, I took notes about the following criteria:

FORMULA: What surfaces is the paint recommended for?
INDOOR/OUTDOOR: Is the paint durable enough for outdoor use?
DRY TIME: How long does one coat of the paint take to dry?
TEXTURE: How much added texture does the paint add to your project?
CLARITY: How does the base of the paint (the non-glitter part of the paint) dry?
GLITTER TYPE: What variety/varieties of glitter are incorporated into the paint?
GLITTER DENSITY: How densely packed is the glitter once it dries?

STEP THREE: COMPARING THE GLITTER CRAFT PAINT

ROW 1

1 – MARTHA STEWART CRAFTS GLITTER – SUGAR CUBE
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $3.19 at Michael’s

Multi-surface formula
Indoor/Outdoor formula
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: dense

2 – DECOART GLAMOUR DUST – SILVER BLING
Manufactured by DecoArt
Price: $1.79 at Meijer

All-purpose formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: dense

3 – FOLKART GLITTERIFIC – CLEAR HOLOGRAM
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $4.99 at Michaels

Multi-surface formula
Indoor use only
Dry time: medium
Texture: high
Dries: clear
Glitter type: mixed (fine, coarse, and flake)
Glitter density: dense

4 – MARTHA STEWART CONFETTI GLITTER – DISCO BALL
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $4.99 at Michaels

Multi-surface formula
Indoor/Outdoor formula
Dry time: medium
Texture: medium
Dries: clear
Glitter type: mixed (coarse, confetti, and tinsel)
Glitter density: sparse

5 – DECOART GALAXY GLITTER – CLEAR ICE COMET
Manufactured by DecoArt
Price: $2.99 at Hobby Lobby

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: medium
Dries: clear
Glitter type: mixed (fine and coarse)
Glitter density: medium

ROW 2

6 – FOLKART EXTREME GLITTER – HOLOGRAM
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $1.97 at Wal*Mart

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: dense

7 – DECOART HOLOGRAPHIC ILLUSIONS – CRYSTAL BALL
Manufactured by DecoArt
Price: $3.99 at Hobby Lobby

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: medium
Texture: medium
Dries: clear
Glitter type: mixed (fine and coarse)
Glitter density: dense

8 – DECOART CRAFT TWINKLES – SILVER
Manufactured by DecoArt
Price: $2.49 at JOANN

All-Purpose formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: dense

9 – FOLKART GLITTERIFIC POLKA DOT – SILVER
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $4.99 at JOANN

Multi-surface formula
Indoor use only
Dry time: slow
Texture: high
Dries: slight yellowing on white canvas
Glitter type: mixed (fine and dot)
Glitter density: medium

10 – TOP NOTCH GLITTER– SILVER
Manufactured by DecoArt
Price: $1.49 at JOANN

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: dense

ROW 3

11 – DELTA CREATIVE CERAMCOAT GLITTER – CLEAR HOLOGRAM
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $3.99 at Target

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: medium
Texture: medium
Dries: clear
Glitter type: mixed (fine, coarse, and flake)
Glitter density: dense

12 – LAURDIY GALAXY FABRIC – MILKY WAY
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $4.99 on Amazon (I was not able to find a brick and mortar carrying this brand)

Fabric paint
Must be heat set to dry
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: medium

13 – FABRIC CREATIONS FANTASY GLITTER – UNICORN
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $2.79 at Meijer

Fabric paint
Must be heat set to dry
Texture: low
Dries: clear
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: sparse

14 – HANDMADE MODERN GLITTER – NO NAME GIVEN
Manufactured by Handmade Modern
Price: $2.49 at Target

Multi-surface formula
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: fast
Texture: low
Dries: metallic
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: sparse

15 – PLAID FX HIGH VOLTAGE GLITTER – IRIDESCENT GLITTER
Manufactured by Plaid
Price: $6.99 from PlaidOnline.com (I could not find a brick and mortar carrying this variety)

Multi-surface formula (but specifically design for EVA foam, thermoplastics, and other cosplay materials)
No information about outdoor use
Dry time: medium
Texture: medium
Dries: slight yellowing on white canvas
Glitter type: fine
Glitter density: medium

STEP FOUR: GLITTER PAINT COMPARISON RESULTS

Overall, I got pretty good results with every paint that I tried! I would say that the only varieties I was disappointed with were the Martha Stewart Confetti and the Handmade Modern. I can still see where would use those paints, but they won’t be the first bottles I will reach for.

BEST OVERALL GLITTER PAINT – FOLKART GLITTERIFIC
This has been my go-to glitter paint for a few years now, and all this research hasn’t soured me on it. The clear based is absolutely PACKED with glitter, and the different shapes of glitter create such beautiful sparkle.

Pros: Spectacular glitter payoff from 3 sizes/shapes of glitter
Cons: Very thick formula that does not spread well and will add thickness to your finished project

BEST VALUE GLITTER PAINT – TOP NOTCH GLITTER
This is apparently a DecoArt value brand you can only buy at JOANN. I was SO pleasantly surprised with the results of this paint because it was also the cheapest paint on this list.

Pros: Low price and glitter payoff
Cons: Only one type of glitter so the sparkle is kind of one-note

BEST SPECIALTY GLITTER PAINT – PLAID FX
This is specialty paint comes with a specialty price point, coming in as the most expensive paint on the list. It has a very cool flexible formula that lets you apply it to materials that will bend and move without the paint cracking or flaking.

Pros: Flexible, durable finish
Cons: Expensive

A NOTE ABOUT PAINT MANUFACTURERS

While I tested 15 different varieties of glitter craft paint, you may have noticed that there were only 3 different craft companies manufacturing those 15 varieties. Plaid and DecoArt are the two big names in craft paint, and they produce paint under smaller brands and varieties under those larger umbrellas.

You can see the similarities between the glitter paints made by the same mother company. Look at the similarities between paints #3, #11, and #15. Do the iridescent glitters look similar? The large print on the labels read FolkArt, Ceramcoat, and PlaidFX respectively, but they are all made by Plaid. Do #8 and #10 look similar? Both made by DecoArt.

This is just another reminder to really look at the labels and the prices when you buy your craft supplies. You will save yourself a dollar a bottle by buying the Top Notch paint instead of the Craft Twinkles and still get really similar results!

CONCLUSION

What glitter paint you choose depends on your project. Are you looking for a super flashy sparkle? Try the Glitterific or the Holographic Illusions. Want a subtle iridescent shimmer? Buy Martha Stewart Crafts Glitter or FolkArt Extreme Glitter.

Hopefully, this post will be a good resource for you before you head to the craft store! Are there any other craft supplies you would like me to test and compare? Leave me a comment here or on social media. I’m @madincrafts everywhere!