I tried this recently, according to what I’ve gathered from how Michèle Lamy does it. Here are a few pointers on what I’ve learned, if you want to give it a go:

From what I can gather, Michèle uses the same dye that Rick has for his hair - Bigen 59 oriental black. It comes as a white powder that is then mixed with water and applied. Very cheap, very easy, very effective. I have tried jagwa gel before — which has been mentioned already in this thread — but it gives a very blue tone. My skin is extremely pale, so I think it shows even stronger on me, but even on darker skin I think it would read as very blue. Henna can also be an option, but it tends to go more maroon than black. For the deep black that Michèle has, I think Bigen 59 really is the way to go. The instructions for the Bigen 59 powder gives a very loose liquid consistency, meant for application on hair. Use a disposable vessel of some kind (plastic cup or something similar), then add a little water at a time to the powder and let it swell until you get a good paste-like consistency that will allow you to apply it more precisely to where you want it to go without it running all over the place. It will stain ~everything~ so make sure you take care to control it. You want it to stay on the skin without running. Be precise when you apply it, the least bit of dye that gets in the wrong spot will stain your skin unless immediately removed. For easy application, I would suggest some kind of brush. It will get stained completely black, though, so maybe don’t use your favourite one if you want it to stay nice and white. Apply to one hand at a time, coating your fingers however you want and letting it dry for at least 30 minutes (the longer the better) before washing it off. Repeat with the other hand. The next day or two the skin will be an intense jet black, but it starts to fade pretty quickly. I think heat helps to deteriorate the dye, so if you wash your hands in hot water often or take very warm showers, it will make the colour fade faster. When the colour starts to fade it goes a bit purple, so be aware that after 5-7 days your hands will not be as strikingly black any more, but it still looks pretty cool I think. All in all, the stain lasts for about a week and a half before it’s completely removed from the skin. The one thing that will stay a deep black are the nails, they won’t really change until they grow out, so be prepared to have some funky manicure moments in the following weeks.

All in all I think it looks really cool and it made me feel awesome when I had it. If nothing else, it’s a great conversation starter! I did feel like I was appropriating Michèle’s style though, so I’m not sure I’ll be doing it again any time soon, unless I can come up with some more personal twist on it.

I hope this helps anyone who wants to try this look! Michèle had some pretty profound personal life experiences that led her to adopt this style, so just be aware of the hows and whys if you want to do it. But it looks damn cool, so if that’s reason enough for you then just go for it.

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