Winter is the season to create your own joy.
The light dims, the temperatures drop, and suddenly the world asks you to become your own source of warmth. But joy in winter isn’t found — it’s self-initiated. It’s the glitter you swipe on for an office party, the text inviting friends over when the instinct is to hibernate, the little acts of glamour that lift your mood when the sun clocks out early.
Although I live in sunny Los Angeles now — and this will be my third winter here — the New Yorker in me will never forget what the season truly feels like. I know the sharp bite of wind on your face, the sprint to the subway in a full-length puffer, the way a great coat can change your entire outlook on a day that feels impossibly gray. Winter requires resourcefulness. It asks you to participate in your own delight.
For this year’s Winter Lookbook, we embraced that ethos and dreamed up five archetypes, each embodying a different response to the season: the woman who refuses to be cold yet refuses to look bad, the early-morning studio devotee, the holiday enthusiast, the effortless hostess, and the one who transforms entirely after dark. They each dress for the mood they want, not the weather outside; they layer textures, play with proportion, embrace metallics, and create their own glow in the darkest months.
To bring this world to life, we partnered with three extraordinary artists:
Stylist Christine Nicholson built a visual universe where winter dressing becomes totally reimagined. Think silver chainmail draped over soft knits, feathered headpieces that nod to another era, and sculptural accessories that redefine cold-weather glamour.
Makeup artist Katie Jane Hughes reimagined holiday beauty with cool restraint. She showed us that luminosity doesn’t require heavy layers; sometimes, a shimmery lip and nearly bare skin is the boldest statement. Her rhinestone freckles for our Snowed Under look were nothing short of magical.
Nail artist Naomi Yasuda elevated winter manicures to high art, crafting everything from delicate reverse French designs to full-on disco-metallic sets that feel like jewelry in their own right.
And beyond the holiday parties, there is the quintessence of winter dressing: New Year’s Eve. It’s a night I take seriously: the ritual of it, the intention behind it, the desire to enter the new year as the fullest, most expressive version of yourself.
As you scroll, you’ll also find guides to braving the cold with style, ideas for hosting in chic winter whites, new ways to think about your nails and makeup this season, and fashion that helps you generate your own joy, no matter the temperature.
Because winter doesn’t hand you delight — you have to make it — and this season, we hope these images inspire you to create more of it.
See the full R29 Winter Lookbook
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