Whether it’s a DIY job or at a salon, I love a good manicure. Number one priority for me is making sure my nail products are safe but I also want them to be effective and long-lasting. Is that even possible? Yes! I’m amazed by the non-toxic nail products now available that actually give you a fabulous manicure. In addition, the color selections have grown exponentially since I picked up my first bottle of clean nail polish 10 years ago (a lot of improvements have been made since then). I’m going to give you the scoop on the nail care brands that I know as well as provide links for application tips and easy nail art design videos!

Ten Over Ten - Ten Over Ten was launched by a three-woman team out of NYC and is one the first “new generation” non-toxic nail products that I tried after many years of skipping the ineffective and disappointing polishes and treatments. If you happen to be in NYC, you can visit one of their two salons or you can buy their full line of products online. They offer 36 different colors and a full line of accessories and tools. Ten Over ten is “8-free” which means its free of 8 of the most toxic nail polish ingredients (dibutyl phthalate (dbp), toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, camphor, ethyl tosylamide, xylene, triphenyl phosphate (tphp)). The polish is $12/bottle. Shop their full line of products here.

Cote - Cote is another great non-toxic nail polish company out of Los Angeles started by two clean beauty conscious women. They have an amazing collection of 126 colors along with a line of accessories, treatments and tools. Polish is $18/bottle and also free of formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene, camphor, formaldehyde resin, TPHP, xylene, ethyl tosylamide, parabens, and gluten. Shop Cote products here.

Sundays Studio - I have not tried Sundays Studio yet but they have a collection of 50+ sleek, sophisticated and long-lasting shades. All polishes are 10-free which means free of the 10 most toxic nail polish ingredients (TPHP, dibutyl phthalate, toluene, xylene, ethyl tosylamide, camphor, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, parabens, and tert-butyl hydroperoxide) normally found in conventional polishes. $18/bottle. Shop online here.

JinSoon - I’ve used JinSoon for a few years now and I love the color selection, ease of application and durability. JinSoon is $18/bottle and their full line of products are available online here. JinSoon polish is also “10-free.”

Zoya - Zoya is another great brand I’ve used for years. I only recently learned that they were one of the first nail care companies to eliminate the top six most toxic chemicals from their formulations. Zoya has about 400 colors and are $10/bottle. Shop the Zoya website here.

Nail Application

Get the easiest, stress-free nail polish application instructions via Sunday Studios by clicking here.

Nail Art Videos

Access Cute Polish’s easy beginner nail art videos on YouTube by clicking here and their nail art videos using household items (no nail art tools necessary!) by clicking here.

Want just holiday nail art? Click here.

Browse Cute Polish’s full line of nail care and nail art videos here.

My Recommended Tools

I recommend getting yourself some basic nail tools to make things easier and help give a cleaner, salon-grade manicure (or close to it). Cuticle pushers and nippers have been a game changer for me. Here is a set on Amazon, but many of these recommended nail polish brands also have tools. I recently purchased this nail clean-up brush and nail polish remover pot from Olive and June. The pot makes it easier to remove polish from individual nails in the event you make an oops and without ruining your remaining polished nails.