When we think of glitter, arts and crafts probably come to mind. But what if I told you that it can be a repellant of unwanted attention from men and even help during criminal investigations? Lately, women online have been discovering the surprising power of glitter.
After one gal shared a video of how she sprays herself with body glitter before going on first dates, others hopped into the discussion and shared their experiences with using body glitter to repel handsy men. Some even pointed out how it can help find assailants in m****r cases. Who said women's safety measures can't be fabulous?
Women have found a way to protect themselves against married men and creeps during first dates
Image credits: monicasopenhouse
One woman just found out how others douse themselves in glitter to leave evidence if sleazy guys touch them
Image credits: Darya Sannikova (not the actual image)
Image credits: monicasopenhouse
Image credits: monicasopenhouse
The woman's video went viral, with over 2M people having watched it
The original video she was referencing is from Dalia Grande which went viral earlier in March with over 23M views
Using body glitter as 'bad guy repellant' has been a well-kept secret for many women
A problem some single women today face is not knowing whether the man you're on a date with is married or not. In a study by Stanford Medicine, 65.3% of Tinder users claimed to be in a relationship or even married. This sent an alarming signal to those who are on there looking for single people to date.
And some women found a way to test if the guy they're on a date with is actually single or not. In February, TikToker Dalia Grande shared a video of how she douses herself in glitter before a date. "Married men HATE glitter," she wrote in a caption.
This is the science behind it: the glitter is so hard to get off clothes and skin that it's good evidence that a man has been cheating. Hence the term "Divorce dust." Like @monicasopenhouse says in the video, "Nobody can touch me. There will be remnants of me everywhere." It's basically the herpes of the crafts world.
Besides these two ladies, other women shared the times they've used body glitter to repel unwanted touching. Cass Holland, also known as "That golf cart girl" on TikTok, also put body glitter on in a video, calling it "a hug repellant." Another commenter pointed out how exotic dancers are not allowed to do this precisely because they would leave "evidence" on their customers.
Image credits: Amjay Studio (not the actual image)
There have been several cases where cosmetic, arts and crafts glitter or glitter-like material on clothes helped investigators find criminals
Physical harassment is something most ladies are familiar with. In a 2018 survey, 51% of American women said they've experienced unwanted touching. Even when a guy thinks he's just going in for an innocent touch, the woman might interpret it in different way.
However, glitter can be useful for women's safety. Just like @monicasopenhouse mentions in her video, forensic scientists have found traces of body glitter in crime scenes or on suspects, which, in turn, helped them solve cases of kidnapping, m****r, and so on.
Forensic scientist Susan Gross writes that glitter is a less popular trace evidence compared to fibers, glass, hairs, and paint. Nonetheless, it can be just as useful in various types of cases. "Although glitter cannot be individualized, it can associate a suspect with a victim, associate a suspect with a scene or indicate the seating position in a vehicle crash," Gross writes.
In 2001, investigators did just that. They used the glitter found on the victim's jeans and bedspread to tie the suspect to the crime scene. In a similar case in Illinois, an assailant was caught after the police found traces of the glitter from a girl's shirt on his knife.
Cosmetic glitter is also how the police found the culprit of a Florida car crash. The woman found near the crime scene where a mother and a daughter passed away denied being the driver of the pickup truck that rammed into the victims' car. However, forensics found traces of her cosmetic glitter on the airbag of the truck, proving that she was indeed the driver.
Image credits: Photo By: Kaboompics.com (not the actual image)
Women in the comments confirmed its effectiveness: "works 100%"!"
