NYX Shadow Eyeliner Brushes - Eeeeek

A few weeks ago, there was that Cherry Culture free shipping sale going on. I've heard about some good thing about the website and NYX products, so I decided to give them a try, but what should I try?

NYX eye shadow has some insane popularity but the packaging reminds me of Too Faced (the black square case), Anna Sui (squiggly and printed name) and Chanel (cushioned print) all at once...Needless to say, I didn't want any of them...They do have some cool polish as well but I think it's more fun hunting for fun colors at the drugstore...What's left? Their makeup brushes!

After doing a bit of research in Makeup Alley, I picked up eye shadow brush#1 as well as the eyeliner brush since I don't have any tiny brush for smudging the shadow along lash line or a super thin liner brush for applying gel eyeliner.

The two brushes came with a thick plastic case along with a flashy paper at the back telling you how and where to use the brush...I never really cared since I tuck brushes into a brush roll anyway. Having a fancy packaging with cheap looking brush makes them look even cheaper.
The eyeliner brush is alright: It's very fine, does a good job picking up the gel eyeliner and doesn't poke There is, however, a piece strand of hair getting out of place, the ferrule is slightly bent to the side and the plastic handle feels very flimsy...For a budget brand, not an issue for me at all (as long as it gets the job done). And as for the shadow brush...
When I opened the package...Is it just me or that's a crack? Wait, here is another one! (There are two on the two sides as well, so 4 big cracks grand total on a tiny brush)

The brush itself isn't all that wonderful at all because the tip feels quite scratchy...On the back of the package, it says that it's supposed to use for highlighting the brow bone (that area is not as delicate so it's OK to be scratchy), I can do the same thing with Stila brush #5, #15,#20,#30, Q-tip, my fingers...I mean, isn't it a bit silly to just buy one (scratchy) brush for the brown bone?

Needless to say, I was irritated by the fact that I spent money only to receive defective products...I checked back Cherry Culture about their (hairy) return policy and found out that I will have to pay to ship it back (well packaged and have pay for the extra tracking), and get a exchange or store credit refund. There is nothing I want from their website and a replacement brush would be as useless as this one.

Anyway, being a resentful person I am, I still e-mailed Cherry Culture about "What if I just got a defective item"...I just want to see their response.The customer service representative actually sounds pretty nice (I do appreciate that) , she (or he?) told me that they have no control over what NYX do for their quality control and offered to refund me ground shipping and replacement brush when I attached the e-mail along with the brush...But printing, packaging, sending, all the hassle for a brush that I have no use for...it seems pretty pointless.

So,one more buh-bye-brand. Thanks a lot NYX (for saving me money in the long run)! I guess I will save money for that Laura Mercier fine point liner brush ...

And for people who wonder what bag I use to carry all my ginormous hunk of junks...It's an over sized Roxy PVC bag. I like how it's relatively cheap (20 bucks at TJ-Maxx), soft and very durable (it can handle two thick textbooks along with other junks.) I use it for school, grocery shopping, vanity shopping, library trips (loads of manga and Harry Potter)...Whenever it's dirty (more like the lining got stained by pens), I just soak it in a bucket of soapy water.