Like most little girls, my daughters love imitating Mommy. For Kay that means pretending to nurse her dolls and put them to bed. Tee likes trying on my glasses, bossing her little sister around, and pretending to wear makeup and do her nails. At four years old, she’s far too young to wear makeup, but I don’t mind her playing dress up with nail polish. I don’t feel comfortable letting her use my nail polishes though. Not only do they contain unpronounceable chemicals unsafe for kids who chew their nails, but getting this kid to sit still for 5 minutes let alone the time required for nail polish to dry is nigh on impossible. And then there’s the ordeal of removing the nail polish. Not for us.
So what’s a wannabe nail fashionista to do? Play Love Laugh has the solution. Their nail polishes are handmade from fruits and vegetables. They’re 5-free (NO toluene, dibutyl phthalate, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, or camphor) as well as free of nitrocellulose (plastics), glycol ethers, biphenyl A, acetates, acetone, alcohol, FD&C, or any artificial colors/dyes. That makes these genuinely non-toxic and safe for kids, expecting moms, and even animals. That’s my kind of nail polish!
Here are the colours we received to try out. From left to right: Baby Blues, Grapelicious (pearl), Rosie Posie (pearl), Go Pink, Pink Fairy Twinkle (glitter), and Sour Apple.
I loved that these polishes truly were odorless and dried quickly, just as advertised. It’s so hard for little ones to sit quietly and not touch anything, but these were dry in less than 5 minutes. Just like regular nail polish, two coats are recommended for best coverage, but only one coat is needed for tiny nails.
I found these nail polishes more watery than standard nail polish. They do separate a bit and need to be shaken before use. This is because they don’t contain plasticizers. Play Love Laugh uses only non-carcinogenic, safe, and nontoxic ingredients. Here’s their ingredient list: Water-soluble/nontoxic copolymer, fruits & vegetables, natural mineral, pure cane sugar. May also include nontoxic pigments and/or nontoxic glitter.
Here’s Rosie Posie on Tee’s right hand and Fairy Pink Twinkle on her left.
Tee loved her alternating Baby Blues and Grapelicious toenails!
It looked like so much fun I got into the act too!
How Did The Nail Polish Wear?
All the colours we tried were surprisingly vibrant. I thought it would be difficult to get full coverage, but for almost all of the colours two coats was fine. I found the pearl colours and glitter looked and held up great, but I did have a harder time getting even coverage with the cream colours. You can see that the Green Apple on my index finger would have benefited from a third coat.
The first time I tried the cream polishes, they never seemed to cure completely. Even the next day they were still very slightly soft and the polish started to peel off, so I reached out to Play Love Laugh for some advice. Now, I’m used to regular nail polish, and I would never dream of putting on the second coat right after the first, but that’s exactly what they suggested. These polishes dry so quickly that you can start putting the second coat on almost as soon as you finish the first. They also recommended keeping the nails away from water for at least 30 minutes after application. Exposure to hot steam or warm water (like in the shower or after doing the dishes) will also soften the polish, but rinsing your nails for 10 seconds in cold water will reharden it. I tried these tips and they made a big difference in wearability and longevity.
Play Love Laugh polishes are advertised to last on fingernails for an average of four days (one to seven days depending on lifestyle) and up to 14 days or more on toenails. We didn’t quite achieve those results, but we got close and Tee and I are both pretty hard on our nails. With or without pretty nails, Tee is always the first to climb the monkey bars and dig in the sandbox. I noticed Tee’s polish starting to peel off after three days, and mine lasted about two before I saw the first signs of wear (about when I start getting chips with regular nail polish). The cream colours were the first to dent and peel.
When we were done, I loved that we didn’t need polish remover. We soaked our nails in warm water then picked and peeled the polish off. It came off fairly easily from the nail plate, but I did have to work harder when I got to the free edges of my nails. For the most part our nails were left clean and residue-free, but you can see there were a few small spots where a little bit of colour stuck, mostly on the edges of the free edges. These bits wore away over the rest of the day.
Even with the learning curve, Play Love Laugh polishes are a good option for moms wanting safe and non-toxic nail polish for the kids or to reduce your own exposure to toxic chemicals. Come back next week when you could win four kid-safe peel off nail polishes in your choice of colours in the Green Your Summer Giveaway Hop. Sign up for my emails to make sure you don’t miss this giveaway or any of my other posts.
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Regular retail is $6.50 per bottle, but Play Love Laugh is offering some great package deals right now. Go shopping on their website.
Disclosure: I received sample items for review. All opinions expressed are completely honest and my own, based on my personal experience. Your experience may differ.
i love Really Teally Fun and Blue Skies Ahead
I like the grapelious
id use the grapeliscious on my fingers and toes!
I would choose It’s a Play Day for my nephew’s little girls
How wonderful to find a safe nail polish especially for the little girls who love it.
The colours I would choose are Merry Berry Berry, Rosie Posie, Sweet Purple and Copper Tan.
I love grapelicious and Rosie posie, go for green abd really tealy fun! I love them all, its a pretty tough choice!
Wow, there are natural nail polishes! That is exciting! The more I think about the chemicals in things, the more I don’t want my daughter around them. Thank you for introducing me to a nail polish option that takes the chemical factor away! My baby may get her nails pained now!
Really Teally Fun and Grapelicious and Royal Princess and Sour Apple
I like Sour Apple, Go Green, Mellow Yellow and Purplicious
The Grapelicious and Rosie Posie! Combination of the two together reminds me of summer 🙂
My daughter would LOVE orangesicle and any pink available!
I would choose Really Teally Fun, Grapelicious, Rosie Posie and Blue Skies Ahead
I would choose really teally fun, orange spice, go for the green and royal princess
I love that you can peel it off. Now my kids can remove their nail polish on their own.
i love the really teally fun, orangecicle, go green and copper tan
Adorable polishes and the colors looks amazing and bright. I think the 4 I would pick are: Sour Apple (or go for the green, can’t decide!) royal princess, go pink, and sunny days!
How neat! I love that they are made with fruits and vegetables! I’d love Pink Fairy Twinkle, and Pink Twist for my daughter!
Dorothy Teel said on June 30, 2014 at 4:45 PM
I would be in love with Pink Fairy Twinkle, Orangecicle, Purple Fairy Twinkle and the Sparkley Really Teally, they are so pretty and would be wonderful on my granddaughters feet.
Love Grapelicious and Purple Fairy Twinkle!
I like merry berry berry, grapelicious, and really teally fun.
Grapelicious (pearl) is my favorite one of these kids nail polishes. I got it for my 4 year old and totally satisfied with the quality.