nails | the quickest way to dry your manicure



I feel like I spend an unholy amount of my evenings waiting for nail polish to dry; I decided to buy a selection of products to test out in the hope of finding a solution that works for me..


if you're painting your nails in a hurry don't be fooled into thinking one thick coat will do the job, it'll take even longer to dry through and even if it seems touch dry once you apply pressure it'll smudge so badly you'll have to start all over! paint 2-3 thin coats, each layer dries through much quicker and you'll find you have a much better manicure for it.

so here's some of the rapid dry topcoats and products I've tested:


simply spray onto your wet nails (approx 10cm away) and this will help to dry your polish quicker. It's not foolproof but it definitely seems to help speed up the process and at £3 is one of the most affordable sprays on the market. I'm happy to carry on using this!


this is simply a speed dry top coat to me. you can't really apply it over wet polish (well you can but it takes longer to dry throughout!) you have to wait at least 2 minutes for your base colour to dry and even then I found the polish underneath indented with pressure applied after the 30 second dry time. it does dry very quickly but as a top coat it doesn't seem to make my polish last for an extended amount of time, it's ok but I wouldn't repurchase!


this is a nice top coat but you'll still have to wait for your mani to dry before you apply. it dries fairly quickly with good high gloss shine and a cool feeling on application, the only downside is if you don't have enough product on the brush it'll streak on application- gah! 


quite simply my hero I've tried a lot of top coats but this is the only one that I can paint onto wet polish so it really cuts down on the wait time! this dries quickly and its finish is hard, shiny and chip resistant. I've found not only does this eradicate the dreaded smudges but it makes my polish last days longer.. hands down my favourite nail product ever. I've heard some negatives about seche- slight cracking after a few days and occasional 'shrinkage' but I've not had these problems myself. I do find that when you get towards the end of the bottle it becomes quite gloopy and harder to apply but this is my only gripe with an otherwise fantastic top coat.


a good all round topcoat that leaves a wet look shine to your nails. I've used this a few times and although I like it it doesn't beat seche on keeping my nails chip free.


for me the combination of the elegant touch spray and seche vite are the most effective at drying my manicures. I haven't yet tried out any of the drops (like essie quick-e drying drops) so if you've experimented with them let me know how you got on!

have you used any of these before?

caroline x


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21 comments

  1. Absolutely love Seche Vite, I use it every time I paint my nails, the gloopiness is there the more you use it, but it's tolerable!

    LIVE . IN . LOVE ✞

    ~

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    1. yes- I totally find the benefit outweights the gloopiness ;) xx

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  2. Seche Vite sounds brilliant, I've never tried any of these before but I may have to give them a go- I manage to smudge even quick dry nail polishes!
    Emma xo thewallflowerwardrobe.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. sounds like seche is the one for you- really can't recommend it enough :) xx

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  3. Might look into the rapid dry spray! I'm terrible for smudging my nails. Every. Time. :)

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    1. let me know how you get on with it! :) xx

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  4. I love seche vite! Great post xx

    ellenunderwater.blogspot.co.uk

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  5. I need to try seche vite! I use the Nails Inc topcoat too but I don't think it's that quick drying although it provides lots of shine. I'm currently using the OPI drops which I like but I've gone through half the bottle in 2 weeks!

    Tara x

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    1. crikey I bet that wouldn't last me long!! very tempted to try them though!! and yes try seche- amazing I think :) xx

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  6. I need to try Seche Vite, my nails always chip!

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    1. I found if I used 2 coats my nails were so much stronger they lasted waaaay longer without really chipping! :) xx

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  7. I've always been curious of the sprays. Do they leave a film on the nails or does it actually enhance the shine?
    Seche Vite has been the best I've used thus far though.

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    1. yes they leave a light film on your fingers/nails as they have oils in the spray but I like that as my cuticles always need plenty of moisturising! You'll need to wipe them clean if you are going to apply a top coat after using the sprays though :) xx

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  8. I've tried the spray here and Seche Vite and really liked both. Seche Vite is incredible but like you I found it went really gloopy which did annoy me, it isn't that cheap really.
    Amy x | A Little Boat Sailing

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    1. yep and yep! I'll forgive it though because it's kicked the butt of every other topcoat for me- the fact I can apply it to wet polish still blows my mind haha! xx

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  9. I'm a big fan of Seche Vite but I hate how it goes off half way through the bottle. I moved on Ciate's Speed Coat and that also went off half way through. I then went on to Insta-Dri and although I do love this one (and it's cheaper than the others which is good) I've found it smudges nail art, even if I've left it for 30 mins before applying, which really isn't ideal. I've currently gone back to Caviar as I used to use this a few years ago and it doesn't smudge my nail art. Who would have thought finding the perfect top coat was so difficult!

    Becky @ The Little Blog of Beauty

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  10. Reading this with wet nails. Will keep these in mind for next time x
    www.ambellia.blogspot.co.uk

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  11. Thanks for these tips, I HATE waiting for nail polish to dry and I'm so impatient so I always smudge. I like an Avon spray would you believe! It's pretty good and only £6 http://avonshop.co.uk/product/make-up/nail-experts/nail-experts-liquid-freeze-quick-dry-spray.html

    I've also tried a Sally Hansen complete care one which I use as a base and top coat.

    x

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