Hi, is there a glitter card that can be cut on a laser machine without the card smelling? I bought some cheap glitter card but after I had cut it, it smells and the smell doesn’t go away even after a few days. I have read that the cheap glitter card contains plastic, but don’t know how true this is. Also is it better to cut with the glitter facing up or down? Thanks for your time.
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I must admit that’s a new question I’ve never had before. I will ask around for some recommendations.
The glitter material or the adhesive are likely to be odorous. Ideally you need to find a supplier who can provide a material data sheet and be fairly confident what a material is made from before you cut it.
Let us know if you find a good alternative!
Hello @Bluestorm
I’ve been doing some research on glitter paper. I was surprised to find one of the main wholesale suppliers of glitter paper was on Glaisdale Drive in Nottingham (my city) right up the road from my key supplier for materials, kitronik.co.uk.
They seem to be supplying The Range, The Works and Wilko amongst other UK based craft/gift shops. I was not able to find any MSDS (date sheets) for glitter card at all, I did find a few for glitter glue. This all very much depends on what materials your glitter card is made from. In addition to the card and any dies used to colour it and anything used to bond it, you’ll have an adhesive that holds the glitter flakes to the card. Glitter flakes seem to be made from a myriad selection of both metal and plastic films ground up into tiny bits. Its worth bearing in mind that the laser beam vaporises the materials, literally turning them into a gas, so knowing what your laser is cutting into is essential.
Avoid Chlorides (found in vinyls) and Formaldehydes as these are particularly corrosive and will cause the metals in the circuitry in your cutter to deteriorate, not to mention what it might do to your lungs.
I’m sorry I wasn’t able to recommend anything specific.
Hi Smokey, thanks for the reply and looking into this for me, I wanted to cut the glitter card to make cake toppers, I know people use their Cricut machines to do them, but I thought a laser cutter would be easier and quicker. I have seen somewhere that they make some sort of material with glitter inside, but cant remember who supplied this. Even if I cut card say 220gsm it still smells of burning. I will keep trying and thanks again.
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Paper and card can be tricky. There are various acrylics with glitter finishes. I have lots of customers who do cake toppers in glittery acrylics.
Yeah… I can see it might be interesting to do them in a paper based medium. Paper and card are very tricky on a laser cutter because you have to experiment so much with different materials due to the burn back. I myself have a Studio Silhouette (like an older less trendy version of the Cricut) so would probably use that for papers and cards, though I have had lots of success with paper and card on the cutter and they can be done for sure. I assume you’ve tried various power settings? What sort of cutter do you have?
P.S. You can almost certainly find other suppliers of glittery acrylics this one is 3mm which is a little thick for a cake topper in my opinion.
I have seen the glitter acrylic, what about changing the lens for a smaller one will that work? I read that the frequancy can make a difference, dont know how true that is? Yes I tried different power settings, I have a HPC 3060 laser and you cant go below 15% power as it wont cut.
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I would think that as long as the machine is well aligned mirrors and lens are properly clean and correctly being used, and you have adjusted the focal height below your lens, then a LS3060 should be fine at cutting card and paper at a low power like 15%. I suspect that you need to try some different types of papers and card how is it at cutting card off, say a cereal box? My first laser was very similar to a 3060 machine and I used to cut box card all the time. Obviously a layer of glue and glitter will make a difference, especially if the adhesives and glitter used isn’t suited to being vaporised.
I don’t know what would be meant by changing the frequency, changing the frequency of what?