Do you have beauty goals? As I told Marissa at STILL London while getting my non-toxic nails done there this week, my goal for being a truly polished woman has always been to get a manicure once a week, and a haircut every fortnight.
Obviously, these are still goals for me, but having now experienced STILL for myself, I have to say I may just make my mani goals a reality now. I spent an hour getting these new gel nails and minimal nail art done (vegan, non-toxic, and cruelty-free polish of course), all while sipping peppermint tea and breathing in the soothing scents of the salon. It was just like a trip to the spa, except I left with prettier hands than I came in with!
Non-Toxic Nails: Best Salons in London
Finding beauty salons or hairdressers that exclusively use vegan and cruelty-free products can often be a challenge. And considering there’s multiple products used on each visit, asking to see the label for each item before it’s used is just too much!
It’s why I tend to stick to a few key places when I want a beauty treatment, and why I was so stoked to visit STILL London too. My visit there inspired me to write this guide, showcasing the best vegan and cruelty-free nail bars in London:
Ama: Ama has been on my list to visit for a little while now. They offer premium manicure and pedicure treatments using polish and gel brands that are up to 90% natural, 10-free, vegan and cruelty free.
Content*: I love shopping for natural beauty on Content’s site, so it’s only natural that their Marylebone store also offers natural beauty treatments, talks, and products.
Cowshed: Small chain of spas offering massages, facials, and nail treatments. I highly recommend their Shoreditch House spa!
London Grace: Vegan, cruelty-free polishes applied gently and professionally, with drinks and events hosting too.
Shoreditch Nails: Independent nail salon in East London using vegan and cruelty free polishes and gels.
STILL London: Dalston-based boutique nail salon with their very own treatment room. They use non-toxic, cruelty free, vegan and natural products – all the interior pics you see here are STILL. Thank you to Marissa and the team for having me!
Vegan & Cruelty-Free Nail Polishes
And of course, if a trip to the nail salon isn’t on the cards for you just yet, why not invest in a few beautiful non-toxic, cruelty-free and vegan nail polish brands? I’ve been collecting colours since 2016, when I first started researching into natural nail polish options.
As a rule of thumb, avoid any nail polishes that contain formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), and toluene. Many of the brands listed here go one step further, using three-, five- and even 10-free formulae. Here’s my favourite cruelty-free and non-toxic nail polish brands:
Kure Bazaar*: My all-time favourite nail polish brand, with a 10-free formula, and 90% natural ingredients. My favourite shade is French Nude.
Nailberry*: Another brand whose shades I collected for a while, Nailberry is famous for their square bottles and deep selection of shades. 4- and 5-free formula.
RMS Beauty*: A brand I love for cosmetics, RMS has their own range of nail polishes too. Think elegant, feminine colours, just like all their make-up.
Zoya: Zoya were potentially my first foray into vegan and cruelty-free nail polishes, and I was bowled over by their huge range of colours.
Disclaimer: I was gifted my visit to STILL London in order to write this review. All views and opinions expressed remain my own. This post contains affiliate links (denoted '*')
Hi. Do you have any recommendations for the least toxic nail polish removers? I’ve tried the one from Glossworks, but it smell super strong. Zao has another that works well with 10 free polishes, but not so much when I use standard nail polish.
That’s such a good question Kristi! I have a really conventional nail polish remover, but Kure Bazaar’s nail polish remover* is on my list to try next!
B x
Hi, when you say “toulene”, I believe you mean toluene. Would you mind going into why one should avoid formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate and toluene in particular?
Hi MS, thanks for the correction – now amended. These three ingredients are top of the toxicity scale when looking at nail polishes, according to data from EWG’s SkinDeep database. Formaldehyde is a known human carcinogen, DBP is an endocrine disruptor and is potentially going to be banned in the EU, and toluene has links to issues in the nervous system and reproductive system. As there are options available without these three, I prefer to go for those. I hope that helps!
B x