Elevation Polish Antelao

Antelao was released by indie polish maker Elevation Polish as part of the Italian Collection in August 2014. Described on the Elevation website as a grape/blurple creme, this is a deep dusky blue violet, not blackened but well-saturated and opaque. It has a cool, shadowy moodiness on the nail that is well-suited to its inspiration, the steep, rocky Dolomite peak of Monte Antelao in the northeastern Italian Alps. In certain lights this polish can read as indigo or navy, giving it the versatility of a dark neutral.

Application was buttery awesome. The consistency of Antelao is fluid, creamy and dense, with a velvety slip over the nail and wonderful self-leveling properties. Pigmentation is excellent. With a well-loaded brush and a light touch, this might could be a one coater. Two coats delivers completely even opaque coverage, and that's what I used for this manicure. Cleanup was remarkably easy for a polish this well-pigmented, with absolutely no running of the pigment and no trace of residual staining. Antelao dries naturally in good time to a stunning glossy finish.

Photos show two coats of Antelao over treatment and basecoat with a bubbly (ugh!) topcoat of Seche Vite.

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Elevation Polish Antelao

Couched smoothly between navy and violet, this resonant deep violet would certainly please my cousin, Christie, who is a connoisseur of dark blues and purples. Lulu's cremes are always so consistently elegant both in their application and appearance on the nail. I don't know how she does it but I hope she never stops. 

Next to Deborah Lippmann's My Prerogative, one of my favorite saturated dark blues (along with OPI's Eurso Euro), Antelao is decidedly more purple, duskier and, I think, more soulful. My Prerogative seems almost giddy in comparison.

View from the west of Monte Antelao, the highest mountain in the eastern Dolomite section of the Alps of northeastern Italy, elevation 3,263m/10,705 ft. Looking at the sooty shadows on the sides of Antelao, you can see its influence on the color of this polish.

Seated on the edge of the Dolomite uplift, the distinctive pointed shape of Monte Antelao drops dramatically to the valleys below.

I have never seen the Alps. I grew up in the shadow of the forested rolling profile of the Blue Ridge Mountains and have only seen the Rockies once, so I have no concept of the awe-inspiring magisterial splendor of such peaks. I can only imagine the profound thrill of seeing mountains like this in person, it must be truly life-altering.

love,
Liz