So extra, but so good
It’s an oldie but a goodie: Kirakira+ has been around for quite some time but has yet to be dethroned as the best shimmer-inducing camera app. Developed by Kentaro Yama, Kirakira+ creates insanely dreamy photos and videos using built-in sparkle filters (some of which go by super cute names, too). Many others have tried, but nothing else lets you get your glow on a la Petra Collins and Pat McGrath like this app does. It’s the stuff of glitter fantasies and unicorn dreams, we tell you.
What is it about glossy and shiny things that make us go “wow, prettyyyy” anyway?
Apparently people’s affinity for things that sparkle is linked to an innate need for water. That’s right: there’s a lot more to this stuff than visual aesthetics. Research by Vanessa M. Patrick, a marketing professor and director of doctoral programs at the University of Houston, found that: “our preference for glossy might be deep-rooted and very human. It is humbling to acknowledge that despite our sophistication and progress as a species, we are still drawn to things that serve our innate needs—in this case, the need for water.”
“We tested that by showing children, who have not been socialized, glossy pictures. And we find there’s a preference for glossy even amongst children,” says Patrick in the study published in the second issue of the Journal of Consumer Psychology. “The paper really came from the idea of an observation of children: When children, infants, are shown glossy objects, they tend to lick them.”
Ah, finally an explanation.
Back to the visually satisfying iPhone and iPad app: Though it launched back in 2015, Kirakira+ videos only began making rounds on social media late last year thanks to industry insiders like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Pat McGrath, who the app to capture behind-the-scenes moments at shoots and runway shows. So who else is in love with Kirakira+?
Eva Chen is; her Instagram feed is jam-packed with kirakira+ videos.
The former Condé Nast editor and Instagram’s current head of fashion partnerships uses the app for her fashion week front row coverage among other things.
Lucy Yeomans, Editor-in-Chief of Porter and Net-a-Porter, does the same.
If that isn’t a statement dress, we don’t know what is.
We knew Victoria’s Secret angel Elsa Hosk was a real-life fairy princess, but come on now…
As for editorial and runway makeup artist Pat McGrath, it’s all about elevating the look of her Pat McGrath Labs creations…
As well as snippets of backstage beauty like this one from Maison Margiela Fall 2017:
And this one from Prada Fall 2018:
Another celebrity makeup artist who loves the app? Patrick Ta.
His clientele includes Ariana Grande, Gigi Hadid, Emily Ratajkowski, Adriana Lim and Priyanka Chopra.
Supermodel Cindy Crawford loves some sparkle herself.
Like mother like daughter, Cindy Crawford’s mini-me does, too.
With the latest update, Kirakira+ users are now able take sparkly still images in addition to the video clip feature. That’s a lot of sparkle at your fingertips for just $0.99 or P49. It won’t be long until we all need a sparkle app intervention.
Android users will have to make do with similar photo and video apps since this isn’t available on
Google Play. Those using iOS devices, meanwhile, can get this app on the App Store.
Art Alexandra Lara
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