I’ve been patiently waiting to give my review on Dazzle Dry and I’m finally ready! If you have never heard of Dazzle Dry, you’re probably not alone. I actually hadn’t heard of it until some time last year.

Before we dive into Dazzle Dry specifically, I think it’s important to understand why it’s important to use safer nail polishes.

It’s actually not surprising that there are many, many harmful ingredients in nail products. When you walk into a nail salon, sometimes the smell can be overwhelming. I remember when I was pregnant and being concerned about getting my nails done. Asking them to open the door and sit in the chair closest to the door. Not ideal. Live and learn.

Historically, many nail polishes have contained ingredients like toluene, formaldehyde, Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), Camphor and TPHP. These ingredients have been linked to endocrine disruption, are known carcinogens, may cause skin irritation and reproductive toxicity. Toluene, for example, is one of the chemicals included in Prop 65 and also has restrictions in the EU in personal care products due to harmful fetal development.

If you’re looking for safer nail polish, you may see companies referring to themselves as “5 free” “8 free” “10 free” and so on. In general, this means that companies are excluding the top 5, 8 or 10 harmful chemicals from their nail polishes. Keep in mind that there aren’t any restrictions about this naming convention. Meaning, a company could be free of blueberries and say they’re “11 free” so take a look at what they’re actually saying they are free of when buying a polish.

Let’s move onto Dazzle Dry. Dazzle Dry actually does not refer to themselves as being X number free. But they do ensure that their entire line is free from animal byproducts, animal testing, and harmful chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde, TPHP, nitrocellulose, camphor, formaldehyde resin, ethyl tosylamide, phthalates, xylene, and MEK. What makes it different than a traditional nail polish is it’s basically a cross between a regular polish and a gel nail polish but doesn’t use UV light. On the site, they claim that it dries in about 5 minutes and can last up to 3 weeks.

So, how did it do? Well, I’ll say I was very impressed with the nail polish. It’s a 4 step system starting with a nail prep, 2 base coats, polish and the top coat. It seems like there are quite a few steps but it’s pretty on par with how you would regularly apply polish. The brushes are a little wider and I found that this allowed me to get a really smooth application. It seemed like it did dry pretty quickly – my judge of this is usually how fast I mess up my nails after they’re done!

Part of the reason I don’t usually get manicures is because they don’t last very long. Dazzle Dry lived up to its promise and lasted a full 2 weeks without chipping or peeling. My nails looked like they were in near perfect condition after 2 weeks. I could have left it on longer but I was ready to change colors! Also, I am not easy on my nails. I type all day everyday, run after a 6 year old, do dishes and pretty much everything in between. It stood the test of time. Here are my nails after 2 weeks:

You can get a full size system or a mini kit if you want to try it out. The mini kit doesn’t come with the nail prep step. I have no affiliation with Dazzle Dry but would recommend if you’re looking for a safer polish that lasts a long time!