VSCode theme based off the easemate IDE and Jetbrains islands theme

A dark color theme for Visual Studio Code inspired by the easemate IDE. Features floating glass-like panels, rounded corners, smooth animations, and a deeply refined UI.

• easemate
• easemate Nav
• easemate effects

• Deep dark canvas (#131217) with floating panels
• Glass-effect borders with directional light simulation (brighter top/left, subtle bottom/right)
• Rounded corners on all panels, notifications, command palette, and sidebars
• Pill-shaped activity bar with glass selection indicators
• Breadcrumb bar and status bar that dim when not hovered
• Tab close buttons that fade in on hover
• Smooth transitions on sidebar selections, scrollbars, and status bar
• Pill-shaped scrollbar thumbs
• Color-matched icon glow effect (works best with Seti Folder icon theme)
• Warm syntax highlighting with comprehensive language support (JS/TS, Python, Go, Rust, HTML/CSS, JSON, YAML, Markdown)
• IBM Plex Mono in the editor, FiraCode Nerd Font Mono in the terminal

This theme has two parts: a color theme and CSS customizations that create the floating glass panel look.

The fastest way to install:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands/main/bootstrap.sh | bash

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands/main/bootstrap.ps1 | iex

If you prefer to clone first:

git clone https://github.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands.git islands-dark
cd islands-dark
./install.sh

git clone https://github.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands.git islands-dark
cd islands-dark
.\install.ps1

The scripts will automatically:

• ✅ Install the Islands Dark theme extension
• ✅ Install the Custom UI Style extension
• ✅ Install Bear Sans UI fonts
• ✅ Back up your existing settings and apply Islands Dark settings
• ✅ Enable Custom UI Style and reload VS Code

Note: IBM Plex Mono and FiraCode Nerd Font Mono must be installed separately (the script will remind you).

If you use Nix, you can run a pre-configured instance of VS Code (or VSCodium) with the theme, extensions, and fonts already bundled.

To run it directly without installing:

# Run VS Code
nix run github:bwya77/vscode-dark-islands#vscode

# Or run VSCodium
nix run github:bwya77/vscode-dark-islands#vscodium

To use it in your NixOS or Home Manager configuration, add it to your flake inputs:

{
  inputs.islands-dark.url = "github:bwya77/vscode-dark-islands";

  outputs = { self, nixpkgs, islands-dark, ... }: {
    # Then you can add and use it:
    # islands-dark.packages.${pkgs.stdenv.hostPlatform.system}.vscode
    # islands-dark.packages.${pkgs.stdenv.hostPlatform.system}.vscodium
  };
}

Note: The Nix flake automatically includes the Custom UI Style extension, Seti Folder icon theme, and all required fonts (Bear Sans UI, IBM Plex Mono, and FiraCode Nerd Font). It will also copy the recommended settings.json on the first run.

If you prefer to install manually, follow these steps:

Clone this repo and copy the extension files:

git clone https://github.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands.git islands-dark
cd islands-dark
mkdir -p ~/.vscode/extensions/bwya77.islands-dark-1.0.0
cp package.json ~/.vscode/extensions/bwya77.islands-dark-1.0.0/
cp -r themes ~/.vscode/extensions/bwya77.islands-dark-1.0.0/

On Windows (PowerShell):

git clone https://github.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands.git islands-dark
cd islands-dark
$ext = "$env:USERPROFILE\.vscode\extensions\bwya77.islands-dark-1.0.0"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $ext -Force
Copy-Item package.json $ext\
Copy-Item themes $ext\themes -Recurse

The floating panels, rounded corners, glass borders, and animations are powered by the Custom UI Style extension.

1. Open Extensions in VS Code: (Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
2. Search for Custom UI Style (by subframe7536)
3. Click Install

For the best experience with the color-matched icon glow effect, install the Seti Folder icon theme:

1. Open Extensions in VS Code (Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
2. Search for Seti Folder (by l-igh-t)
3. Click Install
4. Set it as your icon theme: Command Palette > Preferences: File Icon Theme > Seti Folder

This theme uses two fonts:

• IBM Plex Mono — used in the editor
• FiraCode Nerd Font Mono — used in the terminal
• Bear Sans UI — used in the sidebar, tabs, command center, and status bar (included in fonts/ folder)

To install Bear Sans UI:

1. Open the fonts/ folder in this repo
2. Select all .otf files and double-click to open in Font Book (macOS) or right-click > Install (Windows)

If you prefer different fonts, update the editor.fontFamily, terminal.integrated.fontFamily, and font-family values in the settings.

Copy the contents of settings.json from this repo into your VS Code: settings:

1. Open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P)
2. Search for Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON)
3. Merge the contents of this repo's settings.json into your settings file

Note: If you already have existing settings, merge carefully. The key settings are workbench.colorTheme, custom-ui-style.stylesheet, and the font/indent preferences.

1. Open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P)
2. Run Custom UI Style: Enable
3. VS Code will reload

Note: You may see a "corrupt installation" warning after enabling. This is expected since Custom UI Style injects CSS into VS Code. Click the gear icon on the warning and select Don't Show Again.

All key visual properties are controlled by CSS custom properties defined at the top of the custom-ui-style.stylesheet in settings.json. Edit the variables on .monaco-workbench to quickly adjust the look:

".monaco-workbench": {
    "--islands-panel-radius": "24px",
    "--islands-widget-radius": "14px",
    "--islands-input-radius": "12px",
    "--islands-item-radius": "6px",
    "--islands-panel-gap": "8px",
    "--islands-panel-top": "8px",
    "--islands-bg-canvas": "#121216",
    "--islands-bg-surface": "#181a1d",
    "background-color": "var(--islands-bg-canvas) !important"
}

These two colors define the theme's depth. The canvas is the darker base layer visible between panels, while the surface is the slightly lighter color used for interactive elements. To override the theme's panel colors (sidebar, editor, terminal backgrounds), use VS Code's workbench.colorCustomizations in your settings.

For example, to make everything sharper, set all values to 8px. For a fully rounded look, try 32px / 20px / 16px / 8px. Pill-shaped elements (activity bar, scrollbar thumbs, command center, badges) are not affected by these variables.

Increase to 12px or 16px for a more spaced-out layout, or reduce to 4px for a tighter look.

Try disabling and re-enabling Custom UI Style:

1. Command Palette > Custom UI Style: Disable
2. Reload VS Code
3. Command Palette > Custom UI Style: Enable
4. Reload VS Code

This is expected after enabling Custom UI Style. Dismiss it or select Don't Show Again.

If you previously used the Custom CSS and JS Loader extension (be5invis.vscode-custom-css), it may have injected CSS directly into VS Code's workbench.html that persists even after disabling. If styles conflict, reinstall VS Code to get a clean workbench.html, then use only Custom UI Style.

Run the uninstall script to restore your VS Code to its previous state:

macOS/Linux:

# If you still have the repo cloned:
cd islands-dark
./uninstall.sh

# Or download and run directly:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands/main/uninstall.sh | bash

Windows (PowerShell):

# If you still have the repo cloned:
cd islands-dark
.\uninstall.ps1

# Or download and run directly:
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bwya77/vscode-dark-islands/main/uninstall.ps1 | iex

The uninstall script will:

• Restore your previous settings from the settings.json.pre-islands-dark backup
• Remove the Islands Dark theme extension
• Unregister the extension from VS Code

After running the script, you'll need to:

1. Open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P) and run Custom UI Style: Disable
2. Open Command Palette and search Preferences: Color Theme to select a new theme
3. Reload VS Code

Inspired by the JetBrains Islands Dark UI theme.

MIT