Although I am excited to see that there is an increased demand, it is a little frustrating to see so many “non-toxic” 3-free nail polish companies come out and declare their righteousness.  “3-Free” means free of Toluene, formerly used to make polish flow easily, Formaldehyde, sometimes used in nail hardeners, and Dibutyl Phtalate, a plasticizer formerly used to make polish more flexible. While I think Zoya, Sparitual and others are fabulous companies doing great things, in some sense I feel…what’s the big deal? Did you know that most drugstore AND salon AND department store brands are also 3 free? OPI, Revlon, Chanel, Nars, even Wet n Wild are all 3 Free!  The only one that isn’t that comes to mind is Essie. I think what I find a little frustrating about it is that I know some of us are willing to pay a premium for a more earth-friendly and safe product but the difference between a wet n wild and another brand may just be marketing. Certainly there will never be any such thing as organic nail polish but I am more a little more impressed with Acquarella and Suncoat water based formulas. I chose Acquarella for Spirit Beauty Lounge because it really lasts long, comes in great colors, actually leaves your nails hydrated and doesn’t even contain propylene glycol. The ingredients are simple: Acrylic polymer emulsion, Water, and non-toxic colorants (No FD&C). To me, that stands out amongst the rest. Even with 3 Free polish, the fumes will hit you when you open the bottle. If I can avoid that, I would rather. How about you?

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