Are nail polish names anti-feminist? Manufacturers accused of disempowering women with colors like 'Dirty Slut'



When it comes to nail polish, women will use a catchy name to help them choose between four identical shades of pink.

Color names - usually a play on words - range from quirky to kitsch; but some are being accused of objectifying women, and young girls, with offensive and anti-feminist language.



Los Angeles mother, Breanne, told xoVain : 'My daughter liked [a color] that was called something like Sparkly Tramp, or Glitter Tramp. I didn’t want my daughter using a nail polish with "tramp" in the title. I mean, she’s only six!'

What's in a name? Nail polish color names - usually a play on words - range from quirky to kitsch; but some are being accused of objectifying women, and young girls, with offensive and anti-feminist language

Names like 'Iris I Was Thinner' by OPI and 'Trophy Wife' by Essie are doing women a disservice, according to comedian Glennis McCarthy.

She said: '[The names] paint women into the intersection of awful and objectified, or just makes me feel plain ick'.

'Jizz' by Bleach Black, 'Before He Cheats' by Deborah Lippmann, 'Gold Digger' by SpaRitual and 'Sugar Daddy' by Essie are also offensive to women, argues Ms McCarthy.

'Are men’s grooming products named equally? Is there a hair gel out there called Mom’s Roommate? Are dudes applying Couch Potato to their armpits and putting on Nerd Alert aftershave?' she asked. 'Of course not!

'Men’s products have awesome names like Matterhorn, one of the highest peaks in the Alps! Men’s products inspire confidence with names like Swagger and Playmaker.'

OPI is created with pioneering nail polish names, a trend that caught on quickly.



Disempowering? Names like 'Iris I Was Thinner' by OPI (left), 'Before He Cheats' by Deborah Lippmann (middle) and 'Pussy Galore' by Nars (right) have been accused of doing women a disservice



Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI executive vice president and artistic director, told the Los Anegeles Times : 'We got into nail color in 1989, when colors were "Red No. 19" or "Mauve No. 7." It wasn't sexy and it wasn't fun.

'We made it into an emotional experience and named the colors after destinations.'

Meanwhile Essie founder Essie Weinstein explained to Fashionista how she comes up with her company's polish names: 'I think about a moment, or something that inspires me, like a summer vacation.



'Sometimes it’s an irreverent play on words, a funny story or theme. Ultimately, the names have to be memorable.'

But it is not only names offensive to women that have caused controversy.

M.A.C changed the names of its Rodarte nail polish collection in 2010 after one bottle called 'Juarez' sparked an outcry because of its connection to Juarez in Mexico, a city plagued with violence.

Ms McCarthy said: 'There is no excuse for choosing names that insult your potential consumers.