Hands Down, These Pretty Winter Nail Colours Will Earn You the Most Compliments

No nail colour feels quite as glamorous as a turn of rose gold for winter. The shade has been trending for a few years now, but we swear we've never met a polish with the perfect proportion of shimmer and pigment until this Nars one came along. Post-Halloween, it was the first colour associate beauty editor Courtney Higgs and I both reached for. 

Black will never go out of style, but we love how bewitching and vampy it looks in the darker months of winter. Our recommendation? Wear your nails short to be especially on trend this season. 

Brilliant ruby red turns heads, elevates any outfit and feels undeniably holiday-esque for the perfect winter mani. Plus, it's just one of those colours that instantly make you feel happy (which we crave during the doldrum months of winter). Chanel's iconic hue, or one like it, is essential in every polish wardrobe. 

A shade of chocolate brown—similar to a cosy cup of cocoa or dark-roast coffee—is an obvious choice for winter. To keep things a bit more interesting (and to invite scores of compliments), we love the colour with a hint of sparkle.

Any metallic is on point for winter, but with holiday festivities in sight, we can't resist a Studio 54 jaunt of disco-inspired silver on our nails. This formula from Barry M is a favourite.

Gold is rich, universally flattering and the ultimate way to spice up your winter beauty look in a low-maintenance way. We love Smith Cult's cult-favourite colour for our winter nail game. 

The perfect compromise between white and black, a warm and cosy grey plays as a remarkably flattering neutral all season long. 

Dark red and shades of burgundy are par for the course in terms of the best winter nail colours, but a rich and moody pour of plum is slightly less expected and just as stunning. Dior's limited-edition winter shade is perfect. 

We're obsessed with OPI's covetable range of nail colours (all of which are on point for winter), but there's something especially cheery and bright about the shade Princesses Rule—your quintessential ballerina pink. 

It wouldn't be winter without a striking shade of deep blue. That said, navy is a bit passé, and we have our eyes on a more vibrant shade of sapphire (like this polish from Essie) instead. 

We await J. Hannah's polish releases with as much passion as a child awaits the ice cream truck in the middle of July. Its latest, called Fauna, is a neutral shade of Topaz sure to steal the show (and all the compliments) this season.

Why go with an opaque shade of emerald when you can try the hue with the finest flecks of gilded sparkle? 

If you want a truly immovable, at-home manicure this winter, Essie's line of Gel Couture is one of the best ways to go. For a hint of sparkle, we love the universally flattering colour Daring Damsel. 

A romantic shade of dusty rose is just what the doctor ordered this winter. We love that the colour gives our tips a warm dose of colour but still feels polished and relatively understated. Zoya has tons of shades within the rosy colour family, but we find ourselves coming back to this enchanting colour again and again. 

Last but not least, a cool shade of ice blue never feels more warranted than the onset of plummeting temperatures and ominous snowstorms. Or, you know, opening day of Frozen 2 if you're based in a warmer locale. 
Up next, 17 outdated beauty trends that are suddenly cool again.