Why does nail polish thicken and dry out?

Many women have the habit of painting their nails in a hurry because they do not have enough free time to wait for the coating to dry naturally. However, if the manicure does not dry properly, it will inevitably smudge, completely ruining your mood. To prevent this from happening, you should know how to quickly and effectively dry the coating without reducing the duration of its wear.

How long does it take to dry

First, let's figure out how long nail polish should dry. There is no definite answer to this question, since much depends on the composition, consistency and purpose of the product. The fastest drying nail polish is the one that is designed specifically for stamping, since it is designed so that when applying the fixer, the created pattern will not be smudged. This varnish hardens in air in 40-60 seconds. Varnishes in bubbles with thin brushes intended for painting take about the same amount of time to dry.

Keep in mind that “stop sticking” and “completely harden” are two different things. For example, a hardener applied in one layer will set in 2-3 minutes, and will finally dry in 15 minutes - this means that after two minutes the coating will no longer stick to the touch, but will inevitably smear if you start doing household chores within 15 minutes from the moment of its application.

One layer of regular varnish dries completely in about 30 minutes; when applied in several layers, the drying time of the coating can take up to two hours (sometimes more). Shimmers, glitters and varnishes with carotene dry a little faster - in 15-20 minutes (though they are usually applied in one layer).

How long does nail polish take to dry?

Drying speed depends on the composition. In short: the polymer with pigment will harden when the solvent evaporates, so multi-layer “pies” with topcoats only complicate the situation.

Regular option

Dry the first layer for a minute, then apply the second and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. During this time, it will set and stop sticking, leaving marks on all surfaces we touch. If the coating has stopped sticking, this does not mean at all that one careless movement will not smudge the drawing! Different products dry differently, and the final time depends on the number of layers. Quick-drying regular varnishes are ready for combat in 1.5–2 hours, regular ones in 6–8 hours. Super fashionable and eco-friendly products are free of impurities, so you need to be careful with them all day long.

After manicure, you need to be careful with sharp edges. For example, even after 2 hours there is every chance of ruining the beauty created by unsuccessfully zipping up your jeans.

Shimmers, glitters and liquids with carotene dry quickly, they last 15–20 minutes. But the secret is that they are applied only once.

Acrylic

A thin layer is fixed in a few seconds. This is a great option for creating inspiring nail designs. I would like to note that it is considered environmentally friendly. It can be easily washed off with plain water within 1-2 hours, so don’t be fooled by visual complete drying and don’t disturb your manicure for a while!

Gel

It is dried in an LED or ultraviolet lamp. In the first option, drying takes the least time, only 30 seconds. Or a little more, it depends on the composition; responsible manufacturers always write on the bottle the drying time for both lamps. On average, masters calculate the drying time of gel polish as follows:

Base – 1 minute.
The remaining layers are 2 minutes each.

After a manicure, you should refrain from water treatments for 2-3 hours so as not to spoil the achieved result.

Correct application

One of the key factors for quick drying is compliance with all application rules:

Don't forget to get a hygienic manicure (cut or European) and polish your nail plates before you start painting your nails.
Before applying the coating, the nail plates must be clean and dry. Wash your hands and dry them thoroughly, or use a special nail brush to remove foreign particles from them. If this is not done, the varnish will not only not dry, but will also become covered with bubbles in places where dust particles get under it. It’s even better to wipe your nail plates with nail polish remover after washing your hands - this will degrease your nails and provide better adhesion to the coating.
If you put the bottle of polish in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes, the coating will dry on your nails in half the time.
Do not apply colored polish directly to the nail plates - use a base or regular hardener first.
Don't try to paint your nails with old, half-dried and faded polish - it will take a very, very long time to dry (if it dries at all). Before you start applying, look at the expiration date on the bottle.
If the polish does not adhere well, do not be tempted to apply it in one thick layer - a thick layer takes a very long time to dry, and even after the coating stops sticking, there is still a chance of ruining the manicure with a careless movement. It is much better to apply it in two or three thin layers, drying each of them for at least 5 minutes. By the way, keep in mind: the darker the varnish, the longer it will take to dry.
Always use a sealer finish. It will not only speed up the drying of the base polish, but will also extend the life of your manicure.

How to dry nail polish very quickly

How to quickly dry nail polish? In fact, how quickly the polish dries depends on the technique of applying it to the nails. In order not to waste extra time waiting, do not forget about the basic rules:

Nails must be dry

You should not do a manicure immediately after taking a shower. To achieve maximum results in terms of durability and drying speed, immediately before manicure, degrease your nails with a special nail cleanser or dehydrator.

The varnish should be applied in two thin layers

The thicker the coating, the longer it will take to dry and the worse it will adhere. If the varnish does not give a dense color even after applying it in two layers, use the following life hack: first apply a thin layer of white varnish, and on top - one layer of colored varnish. This will avoid a multi-layered “cake” on your nails, which will take forever to dry. And don’t forget that before applying another layer, you need to wait at least a minute or two for the previous one to dry.

Wait 15 minutes for the coating to dry

Even if the bottle of varnish bears a promising “60 second” mark, do not expect that you will be able to run errands immediately after this time. In one minute, the varnish will only “set”, but the coating will not withstand such a test as fastening a button on a coat: the varnish will definitely smear. Give your manicure at least 15 minutes - read a book, sort out your email on the computer, or watch a new episode of your favorite TV series. Of course, everything necessary for this should be prepared in advance.

If the coating is damaged during drying, moisten your finger with water or oil and rub the damaged area in a circular “polishing” motion. You will have time to do this quickly - there will be practically no traces left!

Professional life hacks and special products, the range of which is expanding every year, will also help speed up the drying process:

Top coat with drying effect. Typically, this is a quick-drying clear varnish that will not only speed up the drying of all layers of varnish, but will also help secure any protruding design elements.
Spray drying. Evaporating from the nails, the product helps the polish dry quickly.
Oil drying. Special oil-based drops not only speed up the drying of the polish, but also care for the skin around the nails.
Cold water. When exposed to low temperatures, the varnish hardens much faster. The easiest way is to place your hands under running cold water.
Oil. If you don’t have a special oil dryer at hand, you can use caring nail oil or even regular vegetable oil. It will prevent accidental smearing and speed up drying.
Special drying apparatus with a fan. The cool air flow will allow the polish to dry faster, but it's important not to overdo it. Too high a speed can cause the coating to shrink at the edges and cause bubbles to appear.
Hairdryer with cold air function. It is important not to use high temperatures - under their influence, the varnish, on the contrary, will soften more and more.

Do you have your own tips for drying nail polish quickly? Share with us in the comments!

Express drying of manicure

If time is running out and your nails still won’t dry , you can resort to tricks that will help speed up the hardening process:

Cold water. Fill a shallow bowl with very cold water (you can add a few ice cubes for best results) and soak your painted nails in it for 2-3 minutes. Please note: before immersing your fingers in ice water, you need to wait a few minutes so that the nail polish has time to set a little - otherwise bubbles will appear on it.
Hair dryer. Direct a stream of air onto your nails and dry them until the polish hardens. This method can only be used if your appliance is equipped with a cold air function. Hot air will soften the coating even more and increase its drying time.
Blower for cleaning parts. This simple device is not only suitable for cleaning your keyboard or camera, but will also help you quickly dry your nails - you just need to point the blower at them and dry for five minutes. Keep the device away from the nail plates so as not to spoil the manicure with too strong a stream of air.
Vegetable oil. Paint your nails, wait 2-3 minutes and apply a thin layer of vegetable oil over the polish with a brush. After 2 minutes, rinse your hands with cool water and wipe with a napkin.

Home Tips for Fast Drying

To prevent your manicure from spoiling at the most inopportune moment, first of all you need to take into account timeliness. The rhythm of a modern girl is quite fast, and often she has to do everything on the run. But a competent lady should have everything planned, including painting her nails.

It is most convenient to perform this operation in the evening, when all work is completed. Then you can calmly put your hands in order, without thinking about how long it takes for your nail polish to dry, and wait the necessary time. There are unforeseen cases in the form of chips, for these troubles it is better to always keep a bottle of varnish with you. But you don’t need to redo everything on the run, just paint over the chipped area and redo the nail in the evening.

To avoid inadvertently damaging your fresh polish, it is better to prepare everything you need for a manicure in advance.

But if it does happen that the manicure was done just before going out, there are a couple of tricks on how to quickly dry your nails at home:

Before a manicure, prepare the nail plates by degreasing them.
Place your coated fingers under running cold water, or put it in a bowl and dip your polished nails there for a couple of minutes. Then remove your hands and let the water air dry. This is a proven method that reduces drying time by half
Using the same principle, you can place your hands in the freezer or snow, but this is not very comfortable
It is inconvenient to wave your hands to dry quickly, and the coating may be unevenly distributed over the surface of the nails. It is better to use a fan or hair dryer.

Just be sure to set the temperature setting of the hair dryer to cold, otherwise the gloss will fade from warm air, and the varnish will quickly crack and come off

Pre-frozen varnish will also speed up the process and the coating will lie smoother. Just don’t be zealous, leaving it in the refrigerator for a long time, 10-15 minutes is enough
Olive oil is a very beneficial way for nails. To do this, you need to paint your nails, wait a minute, and apply oil on top. After three to five minutes, rinse with cool water, blot with a napkin, or rub into hands. If you don't have olive oil, you can use sunflower oil.

What else can you do

If the methods described above do not suit you for some reason, the best thing you can do is to acquire special means for quickly drying the varnish. Fortunately, manufacturers offer a wide range - quick-drying finishing fixatives , sprays, oils. They can be purchased at any specialized store, choosing for yourself an option from an affordable price category.

There are also drying lamps for regular nail polish - as a rule, they are included in electric manicure and pedicure sets, but are also sold separately. These devices are very similar to UV lamps for drying shellac, but instead of fluorescent “tubes” they are equipped with a fan that blows cold air onto the nails, thereby speeding up the drying process.

Why doesn't shellac dry?

As a rule, there are no problems with gel polish - it dries perfectly under a special lamp. However, it also happens that after drying, the coating is partially or even completely removed along with the sticky layer of the top . There may be several reasons for this phenomenon:

The lamp is not suitable for drying specific varnish. The bottle should contain information about which lamp the product is intended for - UV, LED or hybrid. Most varnishes will cure successfully in all types of lamps, however, if the product is designed exclusively for a UV device, it will not cure in others.
The application technology is not followed. It is possible that the coating has flowed under the cuticle or into the side ridges - in this case, it is unlikely to harden properly. And even if this happens, literally after a couple of days the leaks will begin to peel off.
The drying time has not been met. The drying duration depends on the power and type of lamp - in LED devices the drying process lasts much less than in UV, and a 9 W device will dry shellac longer than a 36 W lamp.
The lamp has failed. In this case, there is only one thing left to do - replace the device with a new one.

By the way, many women try to dry regular polish with a shellac lamp and, moreover, claim that the coating actually dries much faster. However, in ordinary varnish there are no particles that react to ultraviolet radiation , so the use of a UV or LED lamp in no way affects the speed of its hardening. The same myth is the statement that shellac can be dried without using a special lamp - yes, it can really set and even stop sticking, but it will never harden completely.

Acrylic coating

I would also like to mention the so-called ecological, that is, acrylic varnish. It is an acrylic emulsion and does not contain harmful substances such as formaldehyde and toluene, which means it is completely safe for health. This coating may contain a variety of useful additives that help strengthen nails, accelerate their growth and prevent splitting. Keep in mind that acrylic by itself does not have any beneficial effect on nails. Moreover, it can even be harmful because it prevents air from reaching the nail plate. Therefore, pay special attention to the components listed in the product.

Acrylic emulsion dries quite quickly, but only with skillful application. In addition, within 1-2 hours after application, the coating is easily washed off with water even if completely dry, so you need to wear gloves when doing homework. Of course, you should not use ice water in an attempt to dry the varnish as quickly as possible.

Alkyd varnish is applied in extremely thin layers (no more than two), starting from the center of the nail. Nail plates must be absolutely clean and free of grease. Before applying the second layer, you need to wait until the first one has completely dried. You can also use regular decorative varnish on top of acrylic, but it should only be dried in air. Acrylic manicure is worn for 2 to 7 days.