Non-Toxic Nail Polish

• Save

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that nail polish is not the healthiest thing to put on your body.

After all, nail polish is paint.  It doesn’t wash off.  It (usually) doesn’t chip.  That can’t be healthy, right?

It turns out that–as you might imagine–most nail polish contains at least three major toxins: Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), Toluene and Formaldehyde.  

I won’t spend time detailing the ill effects of these chemicals; you can read all about them from the links at the end of the post.  They’re bad stuff.

What we’re looking for is “Three-Free” polish, meaning it is free of those three nasty chemicals.  

Now, you should also be aware that “Three-Free” polish is much better than regular nail polish, but is still not technically a healthy, natural product to apply to our bodies.

But, if you’re like me, you still want to paint your toe nails, even if it’s slightly risky.  So, here are a few “Three-Free” polishes I’ve tried, with good results.

(You may also want to check out the links below, for additional “Three-Free” options.)

Three-Free Nail Polish 

1.  Sally Girl

Sally Girl polish comes in teeny, tiny bottles, which is perfect for me.  I use polish only on my toes, and change it so infrequently that I’ve never, ever gone through an entire bottle of nail polish.

• Save

The Sally Girl display at my local Sally Beauty Supply. (My apologies for the poor quality phone pic.)

Sally Girl polish is actually aimed at little girls, which is why it’s free of the three major chemicals, and why the bottles are so small.

It’s also the reason why mostly only bright colors are available, with no “mature” shades.  I happen to love the three colors I selected (see first photo above), especially for summer time.

• Save

Sally Girl polish bottles are so tiny, there didn’t seem to be any room for color names. I call this one “Sally Girl Blue.” Original, I know.

Another bonus: the tiny bottles are only $.99 each (available at Sally Beauty Supply stores).

• Save

This is the base coat used at my local nail salon.

2.  Spa Ritual

My nail salon introduced me to this brand of Three-Free polish.  They’ve got an amazing array of shades!

Unfortunately, my salon doesn’t sell the polish.  They use the clear base coat on all clients, which is fantastic.  I haven’t tried any SpaRitual color polishes, because I always take my own color in order to do touch ups at home, if necessary.

SpaRitual polish can be purchased online, and I would imagine that more and more salons will begin to carry the line.  I even saw some random colors recently at Marshall’s!

• Save

3.  Gabriel

This line of polish is available at My Favorite Health Food Store, which is how I came to own the clear polish and the shimmery Guava Glaze.

• Save

The quality of the polish seems good, but I didn’t wind up loving the color I chose.  I should have realized it was a “glaze” and would have more of a shimmery transparent look, as opposed to the shiny, opaque look I was going for.  (Seems obvious now, when I look at the picture above, and at the color card below.  Oh-well.)

• Save

I’d still love to try some of their other shades.

Do you have a favorite Three-Free nail polish?

Sources and Additional Reading

• The Daily Green: Natural Nail Polishes
• All Lacquered Up: Celebrate Earth Day–Check Your Ingredients
• Green Living: Avoid the Toxic Trio with Natural Nail Polish

Looking for Non-Toxic Personal Care Products?

• My Favorite Brands of Non-Toxic Make-Up
• My Favorite Natural Deodorant
• Homemade Hand Sanitizer
• My Favorite Natural Hair Products

• Save