Allure's February issue has in Insider's Guide that includes How to Choose a Nail Color. The magazine interviewed Josephine Allen, a nail tech at NYC's Samuel Shirqui Salon. (Julia Roberts is one of her clients.)

She says, "When women say, 'Purple doesn't look good on my hands,' I tell them they just haven't found the right one. There's a shade of each color that will flatter every skin tone."

Here are her hints for choosing polish colors.

1. Study the skin tone. Understand if you have yellow or blue undertones.

2. Pick a pearl. Pearl polishes are different from frosted polishes of the '80s. They help nails look glossy.

3. Ask for advice. Manicurists know all the colors, ask them for recommendations.

4. Sample generously. Glob it on so you can see how it looks.

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