I think a lot of people are a bit misinformed as to which dusts are water soluble and which must be mixed with alcohol to maintain their lustre or sheen. So I thought I would copy a post I made a long time ago on the Wilton site.
LUSTER (LUSTRE) DUSTS
Give a metallic sheen. Available in a huge range of colors. Not water soluble.
If they contain Iron Blue or Chromium Oxide, they must be labeled for Decorative use only. In some countries they are considered edible, others not. Mix with clear alcohol or oil based flavorings or use dry.
SPARKLE DUSTS
Just like lustre dusts, but larger grain size. Same rule, mix with clear alcohol or oil based flavorings or use dry. Used more in the dry form for sprinkling on cakes. Can be crushed into a smaller grain size.
PEARL DUSTS
Pearl finish with a hint of color. These are water soluble and can be mixed with water, alcohol, or oil based flavorings or used dry. Can be used in addition to other finishes.
PETAL DUSTS
Various colors to give the most realistic finish to your flowers, these have a matte finish. Can be used in combination with other finishes. For instance, brushed or painted on and then lustre or pearl dusts applied. Petal dusts are water soluble and can be mixed with water; alcohol or oil based flavorings or used dry.
Edited to add, that this information came from the following site:
www.cakesbysam.com/store/Dust_Powders/
Very useful information!
You can also grate artist chalks yourself (I believe the ones I bought where called artist pastels) and grate your own colors. Heres a few more ideas...
You can also add the chalk/petal dust to the luster dust to get even more variations on the colors.
You can create your own custom luster dust colors by adding super pearl to the chalk/petal dust.
You can add plain cornstarch to lighten a color if its to bright or to dark.
Michaels sells little containers identical to the ones thes the dust come in that you can store any of your custom color creations in. (the ones I bought where in the paints area, maybe called paint pots?)
thank you so much for posting this! It's such a help!!
As usual, you keep us well informed...thanks so much and keep them coming 
Heehee, well not really so handy, because I had to go and look for my post on the Wilton site, haha!
I had noted that a lot of people think you have to mix the pearl dusts the same way you do the metallic lustre dusts and that they didn't realize that these can be mixed with water, which is why I figured posting this was timely.
Hugs Squirrelly
i was just getting ready to post a help about painting fondant... and then i saw this.. is there anything else i can use to paint fondant to where it doesnt make it shiney???
What effect and colour are you trying to get?
Hugs Squirrelly
well i've seen some cakes on here where someone just painted a scenery... i have been working on some flowers and leaves.. i didnt want them so shiney.. i wanted them more realistic... i did a few Christmas lights and the shiney effect was perfect..
i'm so new to painting fondant.. i ordered some luster dust from a website that was suggested... i painted some chocolate leaves and the metalic looks great.. i painted regular fondant and it wouldnt stick to it well and i used vodka.. am i deluting the dust too much?? it left it shiney..
katiebug wrote
You can also grate artist chalks yourself (I believe the ones I bought where called artist pastels) and grate your own colors. Heres a few more ideas...
You can also add the chalk/petal dust to the luster dust to get even more variations on the colors
I guess if you used artists chalks that it would not be edible? I have lots of artists pastels but never thought to use them on a cake..
Liz
I've been to a DOS where a lady demonstrated what she did with chalks, great work. She was a talented artist. She mentioned to just make sure the chalks are labeled "non-toxic". But yes, I believe they are still inedible.
Great info to know about the difference between the dusts, thanks.
I am so confused on this subject can someone please clear this up for me once and for all? Is luster dust and the other dusts edible or not? I love the way the look on fondant and on chocolate and I really want to buy them but every time I look for them online I read the fine print and it scares the heck out of me because I don't want to sell some thing that is pretty but not edible. Please help me and let me know should I buy this stuff or not and what pieces do I out it on? can I put this on the entire cake or on the chocloate pieces, do I label them not edible? You see I am really confused please help me.
Thanks
Jackie
well i've seen some cakes on here where someone just painted a scenery... i have been working on some flowers and leaves.. i didnt want them so shiney.. i wanted them more realistic... i did a few Christmas lights and the shiney effect was perfect..
i'm so new to painting fondant.. i ordered some luster dust from a website that was suggested... i painted some chocolate leaves and the metalic looks great.. i painted regular fondant and it wouldnt stick to it well and i used vodka.. am i deluting the dust too much?? it left it shiney..
You can paint using your food colours with a bit of alcohol or lemon extract, the oil based one, added. Many find that the lemon extract mixed with the food colourings gives the best painted effect. If you use the colours on their own, they will not dry and will get messy if touched. But when you do not want a metallic sheen, this is the way to go or use the petal dusts. I find that it is harder to get a good finish for painting when using alcohol then it is with the lemon extract when you are trying to get an actual painted effect for scenery and such. It is more difficult to get a good consistency that isn't just very drippy.
For leaves and such, I tend to paint with the lusdtre dusts mixed with either liquid but when dry I drybrush over them, just my preference. The drier your fondant is, sometimes the harder it is to get the lustres to adhere to it to get as good an effect, this is something you need to experiment with to find the best amount of time to allow fondant to airdry before applying a painted finish. And sometimes you need to apply a few coats to get the sheen or finish you want.
Hugs Squirrelly
Heehee, I like being called a doll, would that be "Chatty Cathy', haha!
The chalk thing is confusing. You must use non toxic chalks which means if a child should swallow some, they wouldn't get ill. However they are not considered to be edible, which means you really shouldn't eat them. Make sense, haha?
Well the thing is, the U.S. has different rules than other countries regarding the lustre dusts and such and if you are a licensed baker in some states you are not allowed to use them in cakes for sale to the public. In other areas you can but you should tell them that they are not approved to be eaten as per the FDA. So follow the regulations where you live, but many of us have eaten these dusts and silver and gold dragees for years with no ill effects. Pure 24K gold and pure silver are considered edible in many countries. It is up to you and where you live.
Hugs Squirrelly
We consider them edible. Now there may be new restrictions for selling as a licensed business, but I haven't hear anything and we have been using them for a few years.
Hugs Squirrelly
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