If you’ve ever held a sheet of glitter fabric up to the light and watched it catch and sparkle, you’ll know exactly why so many bow makers are completely obsessed with it. Glitter fabric is one of those materials that just makes everything look a little bit more magical - and here at Eliza Henri Crafts, it’s one of our absolute favourites.
Whether you’re completely new to glitter fabric or you’ve been using it for years and just want to level up your knowledge, this guide covers everything you need to know - from the different types available to how to cut it, use it, and get the very best results for your makes.
What Is Glitter Fabric?
Glitter fabric is a type of craft fabric made up of a flexible base material and usually a soft twill, canvas or velvet backing - with glitter particles bonded to the surface. The result is a fabric that’s sparkling, tactile, and incredibly versatile.
Unlike loose glitter (which gets absolutely everywhere - we’ve all been there!), glitter fabric gives you all that gorgeous sparkle without the mess. It holds its shape beautifully, cuts cleanly, and produces a professional-looking finish that’s perfect for selling.
Types of Glitter Fabric
Not all glitter fabric is the same, and knowing the difference makes a big difference to your finished makes.
Chunky Glitter Fabric
Chunky glitter fabric has much larger glitter particles that catch the light dramatically. It’s bold, eye-catching and perfect for statement hair bows. This is the most popular type in the bow making community and for good reason. The chunky finish photographs beautifully, which is a huge bonus if you’re selling your bows online or on social media.
Fine Glitter Fabric
Fine glitter fabric has smaller, more densely packed glitter particles, giving it a smoother, more uniform shimmer. It has an almost satin-like quality to it and works brilliantly for more delicate or detailed designs.
Printed Glitter Fabric
Printed glitter fabric combines a glitter base with a printed design on top- think seasonal prints, patterns and themed designs. These are brilliant for making bows that stand out even more, especially around holidays and key selling seasons like Christmas, Halloween, Easter and back to school. We print our own glitters in our craft warehouse in our top of the range industrial printers. We can print whatever you like just ask away if you have a request
What can you make with Glitter Fabric?
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Hair bows - the most popular use by far, and for good reason! You can use them for Bow loops and tails - add a glitter accent to a faux leather bow or even glitter pinch bows.
- Keyrings and bag charms - small pieces of glitter fabric make gorgeous accessories.
- Wristlets - glitter fabric wristlets are a customer favourite.
- Badges - badges for every occasion- birthdays the most popular.
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Seasonal makes - Christmas, Halloween and back to school bows look incredible in glitter fabric.
- Purses and Bags- lots of our Christmas use our Glitter Fabric to create many purses and bags. We’ve even seen our own designed Glitter Fabric made into shoes. How amazing is that.
How to cut Glitter Fabric?
Cutting glitter fabric is slightly different to cutting faux leather or canvas, so here are a few tips to get a clean finish every time:
Use sharp scissors or a die cutter. Blunt scissors will drag the glitter particles and leave a ragged edge. A sharp pair of fabric scissors or craft scissors makes a huge difference.
Cut glitter-side down where possible. This helps protect the glitter surface and gives you a cleaner edge on the side that matters most.
Use a template or die cutters. For hair bows especially, using a bow template or die cutter gives you a consistent shape every single time and saves so much time when you’re making in batches.
Don’t fold - roll or stack. If you’re storing cut pieces, avoid folding them as this can crack the glitter surface over time. Stack them flat or roll loosely.
Can you cut Glitter Fabric on a cricut ?
So… there are quite a few mixed reviews on this but based on our own experience and a few of our other customers who do this regularly.. our answer is yes. There are a few different techniques that you can use and try, but we’ll just give you What we’ve tried and what’s worked for us.I know this is a question that’s asked a lot under debated in our group so if you’d like to learn more find some more answers to it please feel free to join our group too where you’ll find lots of information about this just type in the search bar up Glitter Fabric and you’ll find lots of conversations on this.
We have a cricut maker 3, I tape my chunky glitter fabric sheet to my mat with masking tape to show sure it doesn’t move (this is just my preference, if your mat is sticky enough you may be able to skip this part). I use the setting- Denim bonded with a deep cut blade and extra pressure. I’ve never had a problem cutting chunky letter this way, but just be aware that obviously chunky glitter is very thick and it will blunt your blade much quicker than vinyl.
As I have said though, there are lots of people who have different ways of cutting this and some who have also done this with a fine point blade on a different setting so please check back through our group and it is really just trial and error as to what works on your type of machine.
How to finish Glitter Fabric Bows?
One of the most common questions we get is whether you need to seal the edges of glitter fabric. The honest answer is - it depends on the fabric and the use.
For most of our glitter fabric range, the edges are stable enough to leave unsealed for hair bows. However, if you want extra durability (especially for wristlets or keyrings that get more wear and tear), a small amount of clear fabric glue along the edge works perfectly or Fray stop (especially on twill backed glitters).
Choosing the right Glitter Fabric for your makes
With so many options available, it can feel overwhelming at first! Here’s a simple way to think about it:
• For classic, everyday bows - go for our range of core colour chunky glitter fabrics. Think navy, black, red, gold, silver, rose gold and beautiful pastels.
• For seasonal collections - look at our printed and themed glitter fabrics. Our Christmas and Halloween glitter fabrics are always hugely popular and the seasonal bundles.
• For a premium, luxury feel - fine glitter fabric gives a more refined finish that works brilliantly for special occasion bows and layers beautifully on bows.
• For bundles and sets - our glitter fabric trios and duo sets are brilliant value and give you a coordinated range to get to work with straight away.
Why choose Eliza Henri for your Glitter Fabric?
We’ve been supplying the UK bow making community for nearly 10 years and glitter fabric has always been at the heart of what we do. We were the first in the UK to start to design our own glitter fabrics which we now see featured in some of the most popular high street chains. The pastel rainbow glitter was designed by us and very quickly flooded the market. Every glitter fabric in our range is chosen with bow makers in mind - for quality, vibrancy and that all-important sparkle that makes your creations stand out.
We add new designs regularly, so there’s always something new to discover. Plus with free UK delivery on orders over £35, it’s so easy to stock up and keep your supplies topped up.
👉 Shop our full glitter fabric range here
Final thoughts
Glitter fabric is one of those supplies that genuinely transforms your makes. We absolutely love it with a passion. Whether you’re just getting started with bow making or you’ve been crafting for years, having a great selection of glitter fabric in your stash opens up so many creative possibilities.
If you’ve got any questions about our glitter fabric range - or you want help choosing the right type for your project - don’t hesitate to get in touch.
We’re always happy to help. 🎀✨
Shop glitter fabric, bow making supplies and more at elizahenri.com
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