Glitter Has Become The Internet’s Favorite Trick For Spotting Infidelity

When it comes to forming long-lasting romantic relationships, the hope is that you build from a strong foundation of mutual trust and respect. Those without that, however, might be turning to glitter.

Over the past few years, people on the internet have had an ongoing discussion as to what, when, and if you should leave belongings behind at your partner’s place, whether you’ve just started dating or are already in a long-term relationship. “Hiding stuff at my man’s house so when his side comes over she’ll ask about it,” said one viral TikTok video in 2020. Others have shared experiences of being caught deliberately “leaving hairs all around his room” to mark territory. But this year, the signal for infidelity is apparently a bit sparklier.

While makeup enthusiasts know that glitter has a wide range of uses, it’s also notoriously hard to get rid of entirely. Anyone who has spent a night wearing glitter eyeshadow or hair glitter knows you often find tiny bits of it in your bedding or clothes for days or weeks after just one wear. It’s this longevity that’s paved the way for glitter to become the tool of choice for catching infidelity. One creator even shared that she’s still finding glitter in her car two months after wearing a sparkly dress. The possibilities of what else it can stick to are endless.

On TikTok, people are collecting stories about calling out boyfriends upon spotting glitter on their faces after a night out or stashing glitter in the car’s sun visor vanity mirror in order to catch their partner with an unexpected passenger. Trails of glitter can be concrete, shimmering proof of infidelity for the incredulous.

Conversely, glitter is also used as a revenge tactic on cheaters, throwing large amounts of glitter around exes’ apartments that is impossible to clean up (and for the next girl to find). “I did this to my ex but the whole house and safe to say his Xbox looked very pretty,” one person commented on a video of someone pouring glitter into a man’s shoes, jeans pockets, and shirts.

Those with trust issues that are less infidelity-related and more chore-related are even using glitter to keep track of whether their partner cleans the toilet. “My husband said he will clean the bathroom while I’m at work today,” one creator wrote on a TikTok video of her adding glitter to the toilet seat.

As tempting (and widely available) as glitter may be, using it as a toilet seat tracker has officially taken the trend too far. It’s worth keeping the glitter for your next dramatic eye makeup look, and perhaps communicating with your partner—through words, not sparkles—instead.