Crafting is a great way to unwind, de-stress, and put your creativity to the test. This is useful for people who love creating something new and beautiful out of ordinary materials. Even business owners use their creativity by using crafting projects to personalize their brand and boost brand recall. But sometimes, the materials we use could use a bit more zest. When you are not a fan of glitter and its impact on the environment, know that other materials can add life to your projects.
Here are four materials that can help add more sparkle and shine to your projects.
Metallic Foil Sheets
Whether you are into red, green, blue, gold, or silver foil sheets, know that there are foil accents in assorted colors. The great thing about foil sheets is that you can use this to add life to your projects with or without a machine. If you still have a machine you use to add foil to your crafts, you can always go back to using dry adhesives.
All you need to do is apply your foil with the color side up into your dry adhesive. You can use sticky dots, double-sided adhesive tape, and tape runner, to name a few. Finish it up by using a bone folder to burnish it.
You can also use a glue pen if you want. This enables you to write your design on a piece of paper or cardboard, wait for the glue to dry clear, and rub your foils. This is a great way to add a personal touch to your crafts by labeling them or outlining a stamped image.
There are also printable foil sheets you can experiment with. This is perfect if you want to add metallic shine to your stickers. Whether you plan on using this for paper crafts or on something else like to label your mason jars or design a package, you can always count on foil sheets to brighten up any project.
Paper Confetti
If you want a fun way to add shine to your projects without using glitters, you can use paper confetti instead. There are lots of varieties of confetti that you can choose from. There are even metallic tissue paper confetti’s available if you really want the shiny variant.
We often associate confetti with parties. We use these to add that fun element to balloons, fill up a piñata, or even decorate a gift box. But there are other projects where you can use paper confetti.
You can use this to decorate a clear vase where you put your plastic flowers on. During Easter, you can add confetti to Easter eggs and wow the kids for their confetti eggs surprise. You can also create a DIY confetti wall art by writing a message in a picture frame and adding tons of confetti inside.
If buying confetti is not your thing, you can always create your own paper confetti using materials readily available at home. Think of card stocks, tissue papers, ribbons, wrapping paper, and metallic paper. Cut them tiny or into strips, punch them with a puncher, or rip them with your hands, and you can start decorating with your homemade confetti.
Micro-beads
There was a time when beads were a big hit to everyone, young or old. We use this to create fancy jewelry, personalize clothes, and add character to art projects. We can choose to do the same instead of using glitters that often make a mess everywhere.
We only need to use a strong enough adhesive to stick micro-beads on your project of choice. We can add this to resin art and decorate earrings, necklaces, rings, and bracelets. Add this to your resin coasters, doorknobs, paperweight, and key chains.
The best thing about micro-beads is that this is tinier than seed beads. This could mean these are a bit harder to work around. They are actually an eco-friendly option considering these are made of glass. This means it gives art projects a more matte finish.
Colored Sand
Last but definitely not least is colored sand. There are tons of colored sand art projects we can make, especially with the kids. Children will love that these sand are more colorful than the regular sand they play with in the backyard.
We can create wall arts using colored sand, tacky glue, and plastic wrap. Some use this to create an ombre-colored candle holder. Others create a mini zen garden using colored sand, tiny succulents, and a clear glass dish.
Some people use colored sand to fill ornaments. Use this to decorate your Christmas tree, hanging mobiles, or even vases for fake plants. Just make sure you wrap your working table with plastic to make cleanup easy.
Glitter may look good. But one thing many people hate about it is that glitter is bad for the oceans. These often end up in bodies of water and are ingested by animals. Using alternatives, we can add shine and sparkle to art projects without using materials that are bad for the environment.