Illamasqua Art of Darkness nail polish for Winter 2010

Two more dark shades from Illamasqua. Thankfully, I like these much better this time, no disappointment here!


Scarab. My favorite of the two. A rich, velvety red shimmer. This is not just plain red- it's a little brown toned and has some gold in it. It's one of those dark on the edges/light in the middle glowing 'lit from within' shades that I love so much, like OPI Royal Rajah Ruby. It has some really awesome looking gold duochrome in the bottle but it's not really visible on the nail. Oh, and it's a one-coater. I did two here just because. I like everything better with more coats anyway.


Viridian. A deep blue-green shimmer. People were telling me this was frosty... I don't see frosty here... I see shimmer. I am relieved. Not brushstroke-y, not dusty looking, just a nice green shimmer. Gorgeous gem-like shade, but I feel like I've seen it before... It strikes me as being similar to Nubar Earth or something in that blue-green shimmer category. Makes me think of Christmas ornaments, both these colors together. Cute!

The formula on these was excellent in true Illamasqua tradition. Super opaque, I did two coats in these pictures but I really only needed one. Smooth, even, not runny or too thick, just all around good. Drying time is average, nothing worth noting. Dries to a dull finish, but that's sort of irrelevant cause topcoat instantly removes that... just thought I'd mention it, though.

I like these. Scarab came in a cool box with an over-sleeve with a picture of a Scarab beetle on it and some spooky butterflies on the side. It was a nice touch, unfortunately I forgot to photograph it once I saw the polish inside! I usually love polishes with names that remind me of things, but these polish names make me totally geek out.

* is dork *

(These were sent to me for review.)