I thought I’d start a short recurring feature on here about beauty products that I swear by. Each post will sing the praises of just one product. With a lot of beauty and skincare items, I feel like they’re either not for me, or they might seem alright but who really knows if they’re doing anything. My posts will be about products that actually do the thing they claim to do. (At least for me.) Maybe I’ll quickly run out of things to write about because I don’t think my list is very long. We’ll see!
Anyhow, first up: Karma Organic nail polish remover. Karma Organic is a spa focused on natural nail care with two locations in New Jersey. They produce their own cruelty-free products including polishes, hand lotion, and scrubs. But the only item I’ve tried is the nail polisher remover.
Karma Organic makes several varieties of nail polish remover including orange blossom, tea tree oil, and a halal one made with rose oil. I have a bottle of the lavender.
There’s just four ingredients on the label:
- Lavender Essential Oil
- Propylene Carbonate – a synthetic solvent (passes the EWG’s safety rating.)
- Soybean Oil Methyl Exter – a biodegradable solvent
- Tocopheryl Acetate – a synthetic form of Vitamin E
The ingredients label is refreshingly short compared to conventional nail polish. (The Target brand nail polish I was using before contains 15 ingredients, including highly flammable acetone.) Is it organic, though? No. “Organic” is just part of the name, but the product itself does not contain organic ingredients. (Confusingly, the label says “Karma Naturals” even though the company name is Karma Organic. Their different products have different label names. The polishes, for example, are called “Karma Hues.”)
The difference between using Karma Organic and conventional nail polish remover is stark. First, there’s no intense chemical fumes. It actually smells nice.
The difference between using Karma Organic and conventional nail polish remover is stark. First, there’s no intense chemical fumes. It actually smells nice. Conventional nail polish remover also dried out my skin and nails. Not an issue at all with Karma Oganic.
As to performance, it works well. It doesn’t smear the polish around your nail. And it removes polish quickly. It doesn’t work quite as quickly as conventional acetone nail polish remover, but pretty quickly — even with metallic nail polish. Oh, and I appreciate that it comes in a glass bottle, too, not plastic.
A 4 fl. oz. bottle of Karma Organic nail polisher remover retails for $12. So yes, it costs more than regular remover. (A 6 fl. oz. of the aforementioned Target nail polish remover is $1.69.) But I think the higher cost is well worth it. It just feels so much better. Conventional nail polish remover always seemed like this toxic thing I had to use because there wasn’t a better option. But there is!
Karma Organic sells their nail polish remover through their website and on Amazon. I’ve also seen it on the shelves at Whole Foods (which, to be clear, is also Amazon now.)
One word of warning, though: wash your hands right after you use it to remove any residue. Do not remove the polish from your nails and then immediately grab your favorite glossy trashcan. Doing so will leave a dull mark on its surface! Ask me how I know. 🙁
