This post isn't so much for those members who have been around the site for a while, but more for those who have joined in within the last year or so.

Hi lite is as a rule something added to the plastic and cooked in to get the plastic some reflectivity at the surface. It makes for a pretty bait as long as you want all of that particular color of plastic to show the sheen that hi lites offer. What if you want to add hi lite to just a certain portion of the bait? Pick up a paint brush is the answer to that.

The 4 baits shown here have 0 hi lite in the plastic itself. The baits were made and then the eyes added, but before the cover dip was done I used a very fine, soft, pointed artist brush to apply hi lite right from the jar to the baits in specific areas. Very little of the hi lite powder is needed on the brush and 99% of the time I just use the powder found inside the cover, not from the jar proper. By adding the hi lite after the injection you can create some very nice and natural looking baits. We all have seen minnows that look one color at one angle in the light but shift the minnow a little and they change color or go dull looking. That is what is achieved by doing this.

The top bait has a green hi lite added along the lateral line of the bait on both sides from behind the eyes to where the tail section starts. I added a blue contrast powder right at the nose. The picture does a fair job of showing the green along the flank of the bait. The blue shifts color as well but it has to be viewed from the front to really see the shift happen.

The second bait is done in hot pink under purple. The hi lite used here is a deep wine red and is only on the sides of the bait as done in the first bait. This one too has a bit of blue at the nose.

The third and fourth baits have the same purple hi lite powder and a dab of rose at the front end. The third bait has the power applied like the first two along the sides. The bottom bait has the powder applied right down the back and is feathered gently down the sides a ways.

After adding the brushed on powder each bait was dipped in clear right to where the tails start to seal the eyes and to seal the powder coat. This probably is less than practical if you are selling baits in any numbers but if you have a customer who wants a truly unique bait, this is one way to deliver. Its also a great way to have in YOUR tackle a bait that simply isn't going to grace a bait shop's tackle hooks, at least not affordably.

I am using a Jacquard Pearls product here in these examples. The powder is called a "pearl" powder but its every bit as fine as the hi lites sold here. In fact it can be used and cooked in using small quantities to hi lite a plastic. Its a potent powder though and does have a staining tendency if cooked in so keeping the plastic and powder colors on the same page will help prevent any sour looking plastic. On the baits though, its a real trick component to play with. Your regular hi lites will handle the same exact way. The Jacquard just offers me more unique colors. Any flubs created with the powder can be wiped right off using a soft cloth and alcohol, then just start over. This is one of those techniques that many people look at and say " Man I wish I could do that", but the reality is that you can. Give it a try and you might just find out that there is a little Picasso in you. lol