Give it a minute or two, wave around to shake the drops off and then lightly feel to make sure it’s not tacky. Im pretty impatient, so sometimes I don’t wait long enough.

I learned a lot from this set of instructions and the tips at the end. Especially capping/sealing and base coats. They’re talking about nail wraps – which I love – but I have use the same techniques with just normal color as well and had a lot more success.

lilyandfox.com/…/how-to-apply-lily-fox-nail-wraps

I see some people mentioned gel. I have never successfully used gel, I’m just aware there are extra steps and a light or something to cure, but if you find that the polish is taking longer than 5 minutes per coat to be dry enough to pet the kitties, then you might have a gel polish. Those really require the light to cure (if I’m understanding correctly).