Metalic Paint. Metallic paint is traditional paint with the addition of tiny metal flakes. The flakes reflect light, giving the paint a shimmering, metallic appearance. It's most common use is for automobiles, for which it adds a luxurious and eye-catching finish. In art, it is used to create visually striking effects and add depth, often highlighting specific areas to draw attention or enhancing texture for a more dynamic appearance. Artists layer metallic paints over other colors to produce unique interactions, and they frequently incorporate them in mixed media works, combining them with materials like collage or pastels. Close-up, the small metal flakes included in the paint create a sparkling effect mimicking a metal surface. Metallic paints, or just metallics, generally consist of a base coat with a clear lacquer, usually a transparent acrylic polyurethane top coat, for protection and extra gloss. Flop, or flip-flop, refers to the difference between the amount or hue of light reflected at different angles from a metallic paint surface. The differences are caused by the size and reflectivity of the flakes in the paint, and also by their orientation and the degree to which they are all oriented in the same direction. Historically, it was difficult to achieve an invisible repair if the paint was damaged because it is critical to reproduce the flop of the original surface as well as its pigment. Modern techniques have more or less eliminated this problem. 1968 Camaro Custom with Metal Flake paint. Size and reflectivity of flakes is higher than conventional metallic paint as seen on this custom paint job. Metallic paints may be generically referred to as metal-flake paint, but a specific variation uses larger flakes of metal that are individually visible. Flakes with different colour effects may also be used within the same paint. Pearlescent paint uses embedded pieces of iridescent material to produce subtly different colours depending on the angle and intensity of the light. More radical colour changes and two-tone or flip colours are sometimes produced. Two-tone paints such as ChromaFlair have been used by Nissan on some special parts, and are frequently associated with TVR cars. Metallic paint is sometimes described as polychromatic paint, although sometimes only two paints showing strong colour-changing effects. This is distinct from polychrome decoration, which is a traditional decoration in multiple flat colours. Candy apple or flamboyant paint consists of a metallic base coat, usually silver or gold, covered with a translucent coloured lacquer, or more commonly urethane. It gives an unusual effect of depth, but is almost impossible to touch up after damage without leaving an obvious mark. It is common on bikes, motorcycles and electric guitars. It has also traditionally been used on custom hot rod cars, and in the 21st century, has become more common in factory paint colors. One example of such a color is Mazda Soul Red Crystal, which consists of a transparent red layer over a separate layer containing both reflective and light-absorbing metal flakes, creating a strong difference in the brightness of the color depending on the viewing angle.