Hometown Haul!

I was back in my hometown of Astoria, Queens this weekend for a surprise party for my Aunt. Since I live about 2 hours away from home, I usually just stay for the weekend when there's a special event going on. That resulted in me also making plans with my best friend to see The Vow (because we love sappy chick flicks) and then go in search of shamrock earrings. While I did not find shamrock earrings (sad), I did manage to find every store within three blocks that sold nail polish.

Anyway, that brings me to the reason for my post. I came across some great polish that I normally don't have access to, so I went a little crazy. Here's my hometown haul! (I also broke my no buy, but it's back on again.)

I ended up getting these beauties from three different stores. A random beauty supply, Claire's, and Ricky's. 

I found the L.A. Colors in the beauty supply store. I like the colors and they are super cheap (.99 cents), so I had to pick them up. On the left is Pink Sizzle, a lovely pinkish red / gold duo-chrome. The one on the right is Rainbow Glitter, which actually just looks mostly like red, blue and silver glitter. I think it will be great for around the 4th of July.

Next was Claire's where I managed to find two of their Magnetix collection. These were the only two colors left and they were buy one get one 50% off. They actually don't have names, which is unfortunate. It was funny buying these because I remember going into this particular Claire's all the time when I was in grammar school for all the latest trendy jewelry. I guess things haven't changed all that much.

I went to Ricky's last, which was a mistake, because they had everything I could ever want. Well, not really, but almost. They had the OPI Holland Collection, a whole display of Color Club Magnetic Force lacquers, one OPI DS, and a lot of Butter London polish. There was also other displays that I didn't even look at. I was in heaven to say the least, but after a whole day of shopping I had to choose wisely. 

I picked up Electro-Midnight from the Magnetic Force by Color Club collection. I think out of any magnetic nail polish, I have to own a blue. And of course, I picked up Butter London Knackered (my first BL), which is absolutely gorgeous in the bottle. Ricky's also had a promotion: when you buy any Butter London polish you get a nail file and bottle of Powder Room for free. I love the shape of the Butter London nail file and who doesn't need more remover?

And because I am in love with Knackered in all it's duo-chrome sparkly goodness, here are some gratuitous bottle shots.  

No flash

With flash

Look at that sparkle!

I can't wait to wear all of these!

Have you had any good hauls lately? Do you own any of these colors? Let me know in the comments!

Knowledge is Power: Know What's on Your Nails

I've been using nail polish since I was about 12 years old and most of the years since have also included biting my nails. It's a bad habit that I'm sure many nail bloggers share and many have stopped over the years because of nail polish. However, over those years I never stopped to consider what was in my nail polish. I just assumed that if I could put it on my nails, it would be safe.

Now as I've learned more and more about the nail polish industry, I've found that that isn't necessarily true. Chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP), which are also known as the Big 3, have been ingredients in the products I put on my nails.

Many cosmetic companies are making a very strong effort to not include these ingredients in their products. There are 3 Free, 4 Free and even 5 Free nail polishes out there. Some companies even go as far to make vegan and water based nail polishes.

There are also brands who are cruelty free, meaning they do not test on animals. At times I still can't believe that there is animal testing in the 21st Century, but it does happen. I love animals and would never think of testing anything harmful on my two cats, Dynamo and Ripley. Why should animals suffer for our vanity? It's yet another topic to consider when purchasing cosmetics. Who knew buying a bottle of nail polish could have so many implications?

To me, knowledge is power and I believe everyone should be aware of things like this. Check out these websites for more information about companies that are 3 free and more about the Big 3 toxins.

Inspirationail - A great resource for 3 free, cruelty free, vegan and water based nail polish companies.
Persephone Magazine - A good article about 3 free and a better explanation of why these chemicals could be potentially harmful.
Lacquerized - A good blog post about being cruelty free. The post is from over a year ago, so some of those brands may have stopped their animal testing.

Disclaimer: I am in no way an expert on this topic, I'm just learning all of this myself. I'm also still trying to decide if I should ditch all my non-safe polish and solely support 3 Free, vegan and cruelty free brands. I will say one thing, now I understand why some brands are more expensive than others and I won't shy away from paying that little bit more for a 3 Free product. In the future when picking up a nail polish, I'm definitely going to check out the label.

Are you tired of hearing about 3 free nail polish or is this news to you? Have you switched to brands that are only 3 Free, 4 Free, 5 Free, cruelty free or vegan? Or do you still buy some brands that are not? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic!