The Alexa Edit • NAILS INC

I think just about everyone has a little bit of a crush on the girl boss that is Alexa Chung. Something about her just screams chic, quirky and badass all in one. So when this little box of gems landed on my lap I was more than excited to gain just a little bit of her coolness.

Nails Inc's 'Alexa Editions Collection' is full to the brim of luxe polishes and top coats chosen by the woman herself. But before I get into the nitty gritty, I'll get straight to the point admit that, although for the most part I kinda loved this set, there were a few disappointments... but you're just gonna have to read on to find out what they were. The suspense. Haha.

If you didn't already know, I've got a tiny little obsession with both packaging and, randomly, the names of nail polishes and this collection satisfies all my weird loves! I was partially shocked with the 'not your ordinary Nails Inc' packaging - they seem to have changed from the crappy round bottles to this more sophisticated square bottle (from what I see on the Brown Thomas website). To be totally honest I was getting a little sick of Nails Inc over the past couple of months and had started to shift my loyalties back towards Essie, but NI have kinda saved their asses with this move. Hopefully it's a permanent one!

The packaging completely embodies everything Alexa from the quirky 'what looks like florals but is actually samples of the polishes' stripes on the side of the main box, to the heavy gold metal polish toppers. Also... with names like 'Alexa in Wonderland' & 'Sleeping Beauty', I was taken straight away. The inner child in me was having a field day.

(R-L: Alexa Cashmere 'Sleeping Beauty', Alexa Edit Winter Lilac 'Once Upon A Lilac Dream' & Alexa Edit Night Sky 'Midnight In The Secret Garden')

First for review are the three opaque polishes. Honestly, I've got no complains whatsoever about these. All three apply super opaque - so you can be guaranteed that two coats will work a dream. The brushes are great too - not too small and not big enough that you're gonna paint half of your fingers along with your nails! I'm a bit of a lover of all things neutral and muted, so 'Sleeping Beauty' & 'Once Upon A Lilac Dream' are right up my street. While the blue tones have a glossy finish, the powder pink tone has more of a rough, frosted finish - apparently it's supposed to mimic Cashmere (hence the name)... I don't really get it but still a nice finish! Haha.

Now for the top coats... and this is where things get a little muddy.

 (R-L: Alexa Hearts 'Queen Of Hearts', Snowflake 'I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas', Alexa Stars 'Wish Upon A Star' & Alexa Holographic 'Alexa In Wonderland')

Ugh, WHY NAILS INC, WHY!? I really wanted to love all of these top coats. I'd started pairing them with their opaque buddies before I'd even taken them out of the box! But our love affair just wasn't meant to be because this happened when I swatched them...

While the Holographic & Snowflake polishes are sitting pretty, the Alexa Hearts & Stars are just dying in the second row. Holographic and Snowflake apply just like the opaque polishes and would work perfectly as a statement nail - no fuss or flapping around trying to get things to stick.

But Hearts and Stars... just no. Both top coats need about sixty million coats (slight exaggeration) before anything at all seems to come out of the bottle and to be totally honest, I don't have the patience for that! They don't apply, at all, like they are advertised to. You've got to fiddle around with the polishes forever before you get any form of a nice even distribution of shapes.

I did try my best to get them looking purdy, but I really wish they turned out better!

Putting aside the stress of fiddling around with two of the top coats, I do love this little set. It's one of those collections that you'll leave sitting in the packaging because it's too pretty to remove - the perfect little polish display. For the most part, the polishes are fab and because of the way they applied, I feel like they'll have a pretty decent lasting time.

Also, HUGE bonus to get all full-sized polishes in a set instead of the mini-bottles!

Buying these individually will set you back €17 - €18 in Brown Thomas. I can't find the euro price anywhere (I'm told it's sold out in BT) but you can purchase this gift set on Selfridges & Co. online for £45 which is an absolute steal, so get on that!

Did any of you get this box of beauties under your tree this Christmas?
What'd you think of the top coats?

Let me know in the comments!

XO, G.

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