Perkiest Nail Polishes for the Depths of Winter

I love winter…everything about it…the cold, the heavy clothes, even the dark makeup colors. But I was flipping through a magazine from summer the other day while my black manicure was drying and a photo of a woman with her 10 fingers decked out in Dior’s Nirvana from the Rock Your Nails collection from last spring practically jumped off the page at me. Why, I thought, can’t we wear some of spring and summer’s colors to give our nails – if not our spirits – a little boost in the middle of January?

I set about making a short list of those colors that are spring and summer-like  but will just give you that little shot of color, not make you look like you’re having a misplaced resort fantasy.

My favorite, and not just because of the name, may be Nirvana. A groovy, dense, more green-than-blue teal, it could BE the cornerstone of your black-cigarette pants and black turtleneck ensemble. It will lift your spirits everytime you do something with your hands.

A few summers ago, Essie came out with one of my all time favorite colors, Lapis of Luxury. I couldn’t stop looking at my toes every time I wore it. Last summer they went one better and darkened the shade, creating Coat Azure. A blue to remind you of the Caribbean you’re not seeing during your urban winter, but a pick-me-up nonetheless.

The orange craze isn’t over, and it’s not just for summer, as evidenced by my young, hip colleague Krista who showed up with her orange manicure this week. My favorite orange for winter is without a doubt Deborah Lippman’s Lara’s Theme (named for model Lara Stone), in part for its opacity but also for lack of blinding brightness.

Summer and pink just go together, meaning your pink nails might look a little strange in February. But not if they’re Graphic Berry. This deep berry is such an odd color in certain light it can almost be mistaken for red. Only it really is a glorious, deep fuchsia.

So there you have it, perk up your nails – and your spirits – for the price of a manicure and/or pedicure.

It's a Green! It's a Blue! It's a Gray! No, It's...Black Pearl

If you're suffering from the least little bit of black nail polish malaise, which I assure you I am, there is salvation in this little bottle. Two coats of Chanel's new spring color, Black Pearl, and you have several colors in one. It's like those old-fashioned postcards that give you one view of a landscape and then with a tilt of your hand a completely different view. That's just how this is, except your color choices range from a wonderful pearlescent-seafoam green to an indescribable shade of blue to - finally - an enigmatic grayish black.

With all this versatility of color, you'd think this would be a totally wearable shade for day and night, but I didn't find it to be so. I found it to be great for evening, but pretty heavy for day, and I say that with a lot of snow on the ground in New York, walking around pretty bundled up, so I can only imagine I will feel less like wearing it during the day once the weather warms up. I had a couple of evening events that it was perfect for, but during the day I confess I thought it actually looked a little silly. That said, it is a nice departure from the pinks and lavenders so common in springtime so I'm looking forward to trying it again then.

Now, I have no problem dropping $25 on a Chanel polish (for me it's worth the quality of everything from the lacquer, pigments and brush to the way it lasts), but I do acknowledge that others may not feel the same way. So for those people, this is an especially good color because you literally do get several colors in one. For my money Black Pearl just may be a new and wonderful twist on the black manicure, which has grown so tiresome of late. Why, Black Pearl may be the new black!

From Selma’s Chic Green Fingertips Straight to Your Heart

Selma Blair (and her chic green nails) with my friend Christopher (Tofer) Matthew Papish

Most women herald the arrival of fall with a new sweater, an on-trend bag, maybe a new pair of fabulous boots. Me, I’m looking mostly at nails and lips. By August I pretty much know which two or three new lipsticks I’ll be carrying around with me for the Season, as well as which nail colors I’ll be waiting for, as I always assume my good taste will align with that of other New York women and that I will be waiting for something.


I had heard about my soon-to-be new favorite color before Chanel even released it, but I couldn’t tell from their ads and promos if it was really something I couldn’t live without. The color of which I speak is Khaki Vert, an indescribable creamy green and one of the three new Khakis that also includes Brun (a gorgeous rich greenish-brown) and Rose (a woodsy rose). But it wasn’t until I saw it for the first time gracing the beautiful hands of the resplendent Selma Blair that I realized what a knockout it was…and that I could not, in fact, live without it.

But here the actress was, graciously hosting the Chernobyl Children's International Project (CCPI) auction of Helena Christensen’s photography at Stella McCartney on Fashion’s Night Out, wearing a gorgeous white dress, emerald and diamond ring, with her fingertips freshly painted in Khaki Vert. My friend Christopher (Tofer) Matthew Papish, President of Water, et al., Inc. and Selma were discussing the Fund and its founder’s Angels, both here and abroad. They also stopped to note each other’s outfits. She loved his vintage swank bolo tie over an Oscar de la Renta necktie, and he – being a little like me about these things – was stunned by her perfect nail color.

But I digress from the real point of the evening, which was to benefit Chernobyl Children's Project International, founded in Ireland by the incomparable Ms. Adi Roche, the organization’s Executive Director, who has tirelessly worked since 1990 to provide aid to the children of Belarus, Western Russia and Ukraine. She, along with CCPI, film director Maryanne De Leo, and Kathy Ryan, of CCPI’s U.S. Division, are the forces behind the truly incredible Oscar-Winning Short Subject Documentary Chernobyl Heart.

Now, for the record, my life is not nearly as interesting nor as humanitarian as either Ms. Blair’s or Ms. Roche’s, so I satisfied myself with looking through Tofer’s photos from the event, which included the above – at least to the nail-color obsessed – show-stopper of an image. The very next day I headed off to my Temple of Happiness, the Bloomingdale’s cosmetics floor, where I was able to score the last bottle they had on hand of Khaki Vert.

I have never – and I do mean never – received as many comments on my nails as I did during the week I wore it. Some people said nothing and just stared while I did mundane things like swiped my debit card and signed receipts. Whenever it seemed appropriate, I mentioned where I first saw it, what the event was and who was wearing it. And now that you’ve read this and you know what I know, and how to get more information, you may decide you want to donate your time or resources to the cause where I first saw it make its public appearance.

Can a nail polish be a gateway to doing good for humankind? If it’s this one, it can.

Special note about this post: this would not have been possible without the tireless help and dedication of my dear friend Tofer, my new friend Angela Trofi, whom I am honored to know now because of writing this, and Kathy Ryan herself, who approved the text despite her relentless schedule. If you read this and are moved to action, please consider contacting and donating to CCPI and sharing this information with your friends. Makeup enhances our beauty and confidence, but it's our beautiful deeds that make a better world.