Nail Art Society January 2013 Bag Review

Here we are again - Nail Art Society bag came in the mail today and, well, they switched who they buy mailers through apparently (they posted up that they did on their Facebook wall). Fearing the worst I went to grab my bag and sure enough it's wide open. So I'll jump right in:

The package:
 The mailer is definitely cheaper and the loss on the adhesive shows such :( Lucky for me all of my items were still in the bag - miracle though as they didn't even bother to tape shut the smaller bubble wrap bag that they dumped the items all into. Last month had everything all nestled safely together in bubble with no room to bump or break and was secured with tape. *Facepalm* I'm not even sure they're trying at this point.

Contents:
1. One Layla Magneffects in Silver Galaxy (you got one random polish from this line and I, of course, got the only one I own from them)
2. Cherimoya Nailed It! nail art pen in Black! (it's a striping brush and not a pen)
3. Swarovski flatback gems in sizes SS9 and SS7 - 12 clear and 2 smokey black
4. Stella Beauty Products tweezers

Pros:
1. Layla is actually a pretty well-known and spendy polish so the value actually really comes out in this aspect retail-wise technically.
2. The card with the curated look instructions actually has images of the look on the reverse this time.
3. The look is a simpler version of the chunky bling looks being pulled off by major celebrities. The look is cohesive and feels very well thought out (thank you ES Nails!)
4. The striper has a nice brush so it was easy to do the look on both nails. 

Cons:
1. Packaging was TERRIBLE! :(
2. While this is a Layla it's a much older collection Layla and these can be found in clearance bins for a couple bucks.
3. The striper came apart pretty fast - I can glue the brush back into the cap but it's definitely indicative of a cheap product.
4. While technically Swarovski flatbacks aren't rhinestones they give a slightly blingier version of last month's look. The addition of stripes is nice, but it's just odd to get a similar look twice in a row.
5. Once again there is not a single product from the advertised brands on their site. Well unless you count the crystals from the banner that is.
6. Magnetics are not trending and have not been for quite some time. Had it been one of the new Essie snakeskin polishes it would have been a different story. I saw one blogger mention that it seemed this subscription service would be nothing but old looks with past trends and it's shaping up that way.

In conclusion the 19.95 value is technically there but the trend value is not. Rumor is that the code NAS10 will allow you to try the service at the intro price of 9.95 so if you want to give it a go then click here (not an affiliate link).

Now for the look itself:

The weather is cold and my cuticles aren't the nicest - I had to photoshop out a nail owie :( But you get the idea. It did say to cover the nail with stones but there really wasn't enough to accomplish that and I like this look better. Also I switched the accent nail to the ring finger.

Anyhow let's cross our fingers for next month! If you'd like to watch the video I did (it has last month's review in it too) Click Here.