Creator Lee Anne describes Darkest Days as a "deep emerald teal linear holo with teal holo microglitter." The color is a deep, well-pigmented green-leaning teal along the lines of midnight or eagle green. Scattered holographic microglitters in teal glimmer discreetly within the base, which is nuanced and dimensionalized by lush, holographically-generated hues of ultramarine, forest, skobeloff and sparkling emerald -- more so than my photos show. The dark, dense color is especially inky under incandescent light, where it develops an interesting navy aspect. In direct sun, its blue tones come to the foreground and there's a slightly dispersed but sparkly prismastic flare predominated by bright sparks of azure and emerald green.
Application was fraught with peril, at least it was for me and my shaky hands. *lol* I was hoping against hope that Darkest Days would not be a stainer but it is. Happily, though, the formula is almost as sublime as the color. The consistency is fluid, full-bodied and smooth with a medium viscosity and a plush, velvety, self-leveling glide over the nail. Pigmentation is excellent and provides evenly opaque coverage in a single medium coat, although two renders richer color and holographic effects. Cleanup is something you'll want to do as little of as possible due to significant pigment travel and residual staining. Darkest Days dries naturally in very good time to a silky smooth finish. Topcoat adds a becoming gloss and does not appear to impact the holographic properties in any way.
Photos show two coats of Darkest Days over KBShimmer Love You Strong Time treatment and Pretty Serious All Your Base basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
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| Colors by Llarowe Darkest Days |
This polish is actually even more beautiful and vivid in person, with a glorious opulent quality that isn't quite captured in these photos. If you love your dark vampy colors, this is the teal for you! It's deep but the intensity is such that you can always tell that's you've got a luxurious, resonant blue-green on your nails, even in very low light.
I love that Lee Anne chose this shade to represent "darker days." Although meant to reflect the most difficult times in life, it is by no mean a dreary polish. The richness of the color seems to suggest that even times of struggle are deeply engrained with reminders of life's value, touchstones that can act as hand-holds toward healing.
xo,
Liz
A glorious polish! Wow! So dark but so rich. This looks fantastic on you, Liz! And to judge by your meticulous cleanup, you would never know this is a stainer. Even knowing this sad news, it is so beautiful that would not stop the use of it.
ReplyDeletep.s. Did it stain only the skin? I know you use base coat but do you think it would stain through some base coats? I can handle skin stained a bit - it will eventually wear off but don't want something to stain my nails since it takes forever to grow out. Also, I can use a cuticle/skin protector to keep polish off my skin. Or, hahah, be very careful in its application!
Thank you, Lara! The color in the photos seems a little too dark to me now, in retrospect, than it looked in person. It was more verdant than it looks here, less moody.
DeleteThis did actually stain my nails, but lightly. They looked ok after a couple of handwashings, just a bit of a blue-green tint at the top of the sidewalls, what I think of as the shoulders of the nail, which would probably have faded over a day or two of regular household activities. Still, it did stain. Sad star!
I inevitably have a messier application when I suspect or know the polish is a stainer. What is up with that?