I'm going to post this here, because it needs to be posted, and because most of the (five?) people who read this blog have young children.
On boxing day, I found these sets of peelable nail polish at Wal-Mart. They have 18 colors, some of which are super fun. Because I have to pay attention to my actual nail colour, I tend to avoid proper nail polish, and this seemed like a fun way to have a "spa day" with some of my favorite kids. There is no expiry date on the box (just a symbol that seems to indicate the product should be used or discarded within 12 months of opening it). I bought the Disney princess set, and what the hey, they're half price, I grabbed a Sofia the First set, too. There was no indication that either box had been opened, damaged, or tampered with.
A couple of days later (this being a busy time of year and all), I opened one of the boxes, and I chose a random bottle to try. The polish had solidified to the point where the brush tip stayed in the bottle, and I was holding a cap with a stick attached. More random selections from both boxes yielded similar results. Many bottles had clear liquid around the outside, and a solid blob in the middle, and no amount of shaking would help. Others were just dried right out.
Then I opened this bottle, which required very little force.
Instead of the cap unscrewing, the bottle literally broke apart in my hand. These are glass nail polish bottles. I was holding in my hand broken glass from a product whose packaging says "not for children under 3" like basically every toy says, and whose instructions simply say "with adult instruction, apply to clean nails." It was more by good luck than good management that I didn't slice my hand open. This one was from the Disney set.
Closer inspection of the bottles on the Sofia set revealed this one, cracked quite badly.
Please note that these products are marketed to preschoolers.
These are going back to Wal-Mart tomorrow. I want you to be warned: if you see these things, and you just HAVE to buy them, be careful. Make sure your child is not the one who opens them. These products pose a serious safety hazard. Feel free to spread the word. I would hate for a little kid to be hurt by a randomly exploding nail polish bottle.
