Water based nail polish. I tried one of those once, years ago. It was poorly pigmented, runny, and chipped within a couple hours. As much as I loved the concept of a less toxic nail polish, the formula wasn’t quite there. When Tomato reached out to me to see if I wanted to try our their high quality water based nailpolishes, I was apprehensive, but also excited to give it another try.
Sylvia, the founder of Tomato, created her line after an endless, frustrating search for good, non irritating nail polish. Sylvia is highly sensitive to toxins, and every nail polish out there, including the 10-free ones, would give her an allergic reaction. She finally teamed up with chemists to create the product she’d been looking for: a water based, toxin free nailpolish that performs like regular nailpolish. And it worked. Tomato nailpolishes are suitable for even the most sensitive nails & skin. They are odorless, cruelty free and vegan, and they come in 10 fun, vibrant colours. I got to try out four of them, and would like to share them with you today!
Tomato
Tomato’s signature colour Tomato is a vibrant, true red. A beautiful classic! Opaque in two coats.
Coconut
Coconut milk is currently the only sheer colour in Tomato’s range. It’s a lovely light colour for those looking for a more natural look. I love it!
Chanterelle
Chanterelle is a warm, mustardy brown. A beautiful colour for autumn. Opaque in three coats.
Pomegranate
Pomegranate is a rich, deep burgundy. You know how much I love my burgundy! This colour is stunning, and I’ll definitely wear this a lot over the colder months. Very vampy. Opaque in two coats.
My Verdict
I’m very, very pleasantly surprised by these nail polishes. The difference with regular nailpolish is only in the way it is removed; you don’t need smelly nail polish remover to take off Tomato polish. You just use their odorless eraser gel to dissolve the polish and wipe it off.
The nail polish is very easy to apply. The formula has a lovely consistency that truly makes smooth, neat application a breeze. It dries very quickly, much quicker than regular nail polish. I’m a rather clumsy person and the drying time is usually where things go wrong when I try to paint my nails. I can never sit still long enough to avoid getting imprints in my nearly-but-not-quite-yet-dry polish. No such troubles with Tomato! Each layer dries in about a minute, and doesn’t need extra time to harden.
The one thing where I feel there’s still room for improvement is the lasting power. Now I must say that even regular nailpolish doesn’t usually stay on my nails for more than two days, so it may last longer on others, but on me Tomato lasts about a day. It’s perfect for date night though, and given that Tomato polish is so easy, quick and pleasant to both apply and remove, the lower durability is something I’m happy to accept. You can’t beat the lack of strong chemical smells.
All in all, this is by far the best non-toxic nailpolish I’ve ever tried. I’ve been wearing it lots since I got my bottles, and in fact this has been the only nailpolish I’ve worn in months (not counting my wedding manicure, of course). If you’ve been looking for a zero irritant nail polish, I highly recommend checking out Tomato!
I’m glad to see you found a water-based nail polish that actually works! That’s great!
Did you use the glossy coat on top, too? If so, what kind of difference did you notice between using the glossy coat vs. not using it?
I did! The glossy coat works as any top coat would, it makes the polish last better and gives a nice finish