Pearlescent vs Metallic Cake Finish: Which Jar to Buy

Podcast: The Monégasque Table · MONÉGASQUE

Opublikowano: 2026-10-04

What separates a pearlescent cake finish from a metallic one? One number, and it is not printed on the jar: particle size. Fine powder at 5 to 25 microns lies flat on a surface and reads as a continuous sheen — that is what people mean by pearlescent or metallic. Flake at 50 to 500 microns sits proud and throws individual points of light, which is sparkle: a different finish, not a stronger version of the first. Everything else on a label is describing colour. The glow itself is optical rather than pigmentary — the colour-additive listing describes the material as titanium salts deposited onto mica and...