A glitter artist tells us how to remove every last bit of glitter after a festival

But how did it get in between my toes


There is nothing subtle about glitter. It should be applied liberally, in a mixture of shades and textures, on every surface possible. But inevitably, it ends up everywhere. It’s a nightmare to take off, no matter how much you try your pillow will be splattered with it the next morning and throughout the week you’ll find little sparkly reminders everywhere.

But what if there was a knack to removing glitter that everyone’s missing? I spoke to makeup artist and glitter specialist Jessica Cheetham to find the best way to do it.

Apply glitter with a gel to make sure it comes off easier

Apparently application is key when it comes to remove glitter. Vaseline is more sticky, so Jess suggests using Aloe Vera or Olive Oil gel, adding “it’s better for your skin too!”

Hot water is best for removing glitter, but masking tape also works and face wipes are the worst

“Ideally the best way to remove glitter is to get in a hot shower and wash your face” says Jess. “At a festival your best bet is just to put more glitter on top, but otherwise I’d recommend using a face wash and masking tape to remove the residue.”

Another method worth is rubbing coconut oil on your face in circular motions and removing the residue with a face wipe.

Avoid face wipes alone, they only spread glitter around your skin

“Unless you’ve used face wash before, there’s not much point using face wipes”, Jess tells me, “they’ll only push the glitter around your skin and won’t make much difference.”

Use an oil to remove those annoying specks from your hair or beard

“Take the best premium grade olive oil you have on hand, lather it all over your scalp, and massage for deep conditioning,” says Yoav Tauber, general manager of the Jose Eber Salon in Millburn, N.J. “After 10 minutes, rinse. Your hair will be glitter-free and feel silky smooth.”

Stick to chunky glitters if you want them to come off easier

“They look wicked and wipe right off”, says Jess, “while fine grained glitters really get stuck on the skin for days.”

Used oil-based products to get glitter colour residue off your skin

Jess recommends massaging an oil-based make up remover onto your skin to remove those dots that coloured glitter can leave.

Use hairspray to get glitter off clothing

While many suggest using lint rollers or masking tape, Kidspot told InStyle the best way of removing glitter was a simple as an aerosol hairspray. They said: “Simply spray sparkle-covered clothing with aerosol hairspray, let dry, and then wash (by itself, or the glitter will just reappear on the other items in the load).”