May 1, 2007

green toes

yes summer is just around the corner in the land of the flipflop. and that means that my toes will be leaving the safety and coverage of my sneakers for a bit of fresh air. i had never had a pedicure before i moved to l.a. and over the first few years visited a salon with some frequency. i chose one with good ventilation. the smell in many bothered me so. then i got pregnant. and the smell - even in this well ventilated space - was more than i could bear. (yes, the products are dangerous for the client, but think about the effects of levels encountered by the technician too!) pregnancy also got me reading more and more about the effects of various chemicals on my body - and in turn on my babe. phalates, toluene, formaldehyde... i had no idea that there was so much bad stuff in that little bottle of red polish. (ms. pea's post below covers so much of this so well.) i stopped with the pedicures. (heck, i couldn't see my toes anyway!)

there are few options for a "green" (and safe) pedicure. a seemingly small number of spas are pioneering new practices. (priti even has their own line of nail products.) and some companies are slowly making the necessary changes to their products. (though even with the removal of banned chemicals, many others remain. think about opi's 52 ingredients to honeybee gardens' 8!) for me, i've chosen the diy approach, and will take the matter into my own hands. (or feet as the case may be.) i have searched the web for the safest options. after some research at skindeep, the campaign for safe cosmetics, and the guide to less toxic products, i have ordered some polishes and enlisted my honey to help me out. (i have promised him a footrub in return.) (i love the one-stop nature of greenhands but have yet to find an equivalent closer to home.) flipflops here i come...i'm thinking rockstar. or maybe even applegreen. will get you a review soon. (any other suggested brands?)

(oh! and please don't forget - you cannot throw those half-empty bottles of nasty polish into the trash! what hurts you will also hurt our environment. please contact your local waste management authority for safe and proper disposal.)

15 comments:

f. pea said...

i can't wait to see some green toes unleashed!

Carlene said...

Buffing and jojoba oil are going to do it for me this summer. I hope no-polish pedicures catch on...it seems as if Every Woman is wearing polish these days.

Tracy said...

love that idea carlene! that is what i do with my nails already. (don't know why i didn't mention it?!)

lisa solomon said...

tracy... i LOVE this. you'll let us know which works well? and we'll get to see the fancy toes, yes???????

Anonymous said...

Can't wait to see the results - I hope this stuff is good! I stopped using nail polish years ago for all of the reasons you described. But sometimes I miss it, especially in summer.

Ruth Singer said...

in the UK there is Beauty without cruelty brand which is free of phalates, toluene and formaldehyde. I've just bought a fab bright pink for the summer. it's a frivolous bit of wastefulness, i know, but I like painted toenails!

Nat said...

Thanks for mentioning not to throw the nail polish in the garbage. I had forgotten to treat it like paint, and not just makeup, and was getting ready to throw it all out. I will take it to our facility here in Chicago that takes things like paint and batteries.

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for the mention Tracy, I am thrilled you found the greenhandssite and liked it! Thank you for spreading the word. Honeybee Gardens are soon to be available too. Sign up to the newsletter for updates, this months tips are all about feet! Best Wishes, Naomi (Green Hands)

amy h said...

I was just reading about the Priti stuff in Blueprint. I pretty much neglect my nails, but I'll have to look into this for the maybe one time a year I do color!

Beth said...

Thanks for this post... I gave up polish when I was pregnant and never went back because the idea of all of that seeping into your body: Yuck. I do wish for nicer-looking toes though, so this is fantastic. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

I live in the *greenest* part of LA and I can't believe no one has started a green spa over here yet. I need to take a hop over to Burbank and check out Ra, but in the meantime, I will certainly be buying polish from Greenhands! Thanks Tracy.

Briana

Anonymous said...

Coincidentally, Ideal Bite just posted about this the other day and they had some pretty good suggestions for nail polish alternatives:
http://www.idealbite.com/tiplibrary/archives/a_real_nail_biter/

jessica said...

i took the polish off my toes several months ago. i want them to be free from the chemicals. recently i was in brazil and bought healthy nail polish, when ready will use that. great post, so important. thank you

Anonymous said...

Have you investigated henna? It is a nice alternative. It's more of a stain than a polish (and it can't be removed but it does fade) but it's natural, and it doesn't peel off.

bugheart said...

i never thought
about my
toe polish
(since i rarely
get a pedicure...
i have to check it out...
and i would go for
apple green
or
peacock blue!
thanks for
the tips!