Beat the Heat - No cutting, Summer 2012

[BeckyAH]

There are a few of us that are struggling with the urge to cut with the heat and humidity of summer - or who just need a manageable, finite, short-term goal (and support and accountability) to keep scissors away from our hair, and to ward off frustrated cutting.

This is the thread for that.

Come tell us your woes, whine about frizz and heat and growing out bangs and layers - whatever. We'll get through this.

[BeckyAH]

It's barely May. The heat and humidity, with the 'longer than I'm used to' length are combining to make me frizzy, poofy, unmanagable, and to really want to whack it off.

I bought hair toys and announced, publicly, that aside from my birthday (7-5) trim, I will not be getting my hair whacked off in a fit of frustration. And the upper limit for that trim is 2 inches.

It's four months. I can do that.

[mzBANGBANG]

Stupid face-framing last minute, no thought cut I made. :( I'm here, I sneer. Get used to it. ;)

[Madora]

BeckyAh, you have my sympathy!

Have you tried this one to keep the hair off your neck?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPHEzUr5bWQ

[BeckyAH]

BeckyAh, you have my sympathy!

Have you tried this one to keep the hair off your neck?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPHEzUr5bWQ


I have not, but I'm going to try it - ANYTHING to get it out of the way and off my neck will make me happy. ...and that's gorgeous. THANK YOU.

[amanda_the_tall]

count me in! this summer i'm going to be doing lots of moisture: co washing, oiling, deep treatments, etc. in an effort to not chop off the last five inches which are previously damaged by old dye/heat/currently in semi permanent dye. i really want to reach my goal of bsl/mid back (i'm currently an inch or two past apl) by my birthday (november) or christmas, then maintain and cut the damage off then. it's always SUPER muggy around here. bees get caught in my hair, it easily gets up to 100 degrees. it's been 80-90 lately. it's going to be hard because my hair is really fine and can be dry or oily and flat. there seems to be no middle. good news is the warmer weather makes it easier to air dry! :) i'm also wanting to work on new updos. so far i vary between cinnabun, french braid, and ponytail. i *might* have to make a trim soon, but it'll only be an inch. :)

[BeckyAH]

Stupid face-framing last minute, no thought cut I made. :( I'm here, I sneer. Get used to it. ;)

And four months from now, they will be blended in and invisible. I'm going to hold off cutting my bangs until July, too. Because while I like the bangs I gave myself. I, um. Did not section them right. >.< ...I may actually lock my scissors in the car trunk. That'll make impulsive cuts hard.

[BeckyAH]

count me in! this summer i'm going to be doing lots of moisture: co washing, oiling, deep treatments, etc. in an effort to not chop off the last five inches which are previously damaged by old dye/heat/currently in semi permanent dye. i really want to reach my goal of bsl/mid back (i'm currently an inch or two past apl) by my birthday (november) or christmas, then maintain and cut the damage off then. it's always SUPER muggy around here. bees get caught in my hair, it easily gets up to 100 degrees. it's been 80-90 lately. it's going to be hard because my hair is really fine and can be dry or oily and flat. there seems to be no middle. good news is the warmer weather makes it easier to air dry! :) i'm also wanting to work on new updos. so far i vary between cinnabun, french braid, and ponytail. i *might* have to make a trim soon, but it'll only be an inch. :)


I will be with you in the moisture, moisture, and more moisture thing. I'm growing out some bleach, but one trim and a bang cut will take care of that. Mostly? My hair needs moisture like WHOA. And if I'm DOING something with it, the 'shave it off!' thing won't be so intense.

Also? The APL-BSL stretch was awful for me. I swear my hair hovered above my bra strap like it was afraid to cross it forever.

[Phalaenopsis]

I feel your pain! Every hot summer here, I'm constantly saying "I'm cutting it off, I'm cutting it off!", lol ^^ It hasn't been hot here, though, it's quite cold here for a May month. I go crazy the most in the summer months (July and August especially). I remember one hot summer where my hair got dry, just out of nowhere. My hair soaked everything up, once the heat was over, it turned back to normal. My biggest frustration is the itchiness on my scalp from the sweating. It's like my scalp can't breathe with all the hair on my head. And then I also get irritated by all that hair in my neck and hanging like a blanket over my back. And if I put it up, it seems the back of my head can breathe even less, making me more itchy.

I get through it by making a French braid on most of those days and just suffer, sometimes :p

[BeckyAH]

I feel your pain! Every hot summer here, I'm constantly saying "I'm cutting it off, I'm cutting it off!", lol ^^ It hasn't been hot here, though, it's quite cold here for a May month. I go crazy the most in the summer months (July and August especially). I remember one hot summer where my hair got dry, just out of nowhere. My hair soaked everything up, once the heat was over, it turned back to normal. My biggest frustration is the itchiness on my scalp from the sweating. It's like my scalp can't breathe with all the hair on my head. And then I also get irritated by all that hair in my neck and hanging like a blanket over my back. And if I put it up, it seems the back of my head can breathe even less, making me more itchy.

I get through it by making a French braid on most of those days and just suffer, sometimes :p

I really don't know what's happening with our weather, this year, but it's HOT already. My hair is fuzzed out like nothing I've ever seen before, and I swear to goodness today I was using clippers on my kid's hair and started eyeing them speculatively.

...at that point I realized I probably needed a public 'I WILL NOT" post, or I was going to lose my mind and do something I'd REALLY regret.

It's finite. I can live through. (Repeat that forever.)

[shutterpillar]

I just posted on the other thread, but just thought I would chime in here and let you know you've got one more who sympathizes with you on the heat issue.

thankfully my hair sticks will make this summer a tolerable one.

[BeckyAH]

I need to figure out how to use hairsticks reliably. OR ANYTHING that keeps me from looking at it.

[leslissocool]

Honestly, long hair or not, my house is 80 degrees right now and I just want to curl in the freezer and nap there....

[BeckyAH]

Honestly, long hair or not, my house is 80 degrees right now and I just want to curl in the freezer and nap there....

I napped with a frozen gatorade bottle (filled 2/3 full with water and frozen) earlier. Worked surprisingly well, even if it is a little silly.

[shutterpillar]

I need to figure out how to use hairsticks reliably. OR ANYTHING that keeps me from looking at it.

My hair is just a bit shorter than yours, and the one that is easiest and works best for me is the pencil bun. I actually had no idea what it was the first time I did it, and thought I created something new. LOL. thankfully the community here figured out what it was for me and I could put a name to it.

[leslissocool]

I napped with a frozen gatorade bottle (filled 2/3 full with water and frozen) earlier. Worked surprisingly well, even if it is a little silly.

That's a great idea! I've got a couple of water bottles I can freeze...

[Ligeia_13]

I need to figure out how to use hairsticks reliably. OR ANYTHING that keeps me from looking at it.

This is the first summer for me that I actually know how to use a hairstick and for it to actually stay there. So I think I'll be OK this summer. Just today, one of my friends was saying she was going to get a bob this summer :D

[BeckyAH]

That's a great idea! I've got a couple of water bottles I can freeze...

They help so, so much for being able to sleep. Sleeping hot is just - miserable, and danged near impossible. Just - anything that helps, right?

[longcurlygirl<3]

Welp I am here too! Any styles to keep hair off the neck would be great but for thick waist/hip length curly hair. As you all may see my hair is curly and heavy and a crown braid is calling tangle city!

[BeckyAH]

Welp I am here too! Any styles to keep hair off the neck would be great but for thick waist/hip length curly hair. As you all may see my hair is curly and heavy and a crown braid is calling tangle city!

I really wish I knew. Right now my hair is shorter than yours, and less curly than yours. I THINK I can manage the crownbraid if I put it up sopping wet, but other than that, I just don't know. I see a lot of claw clips and bizarro twist/bun hybrids in my future. Or just clipped up english braids.

Which is just fine for home, but really not attractive (on me)

Oh, wait. Heidi braids might work?

[amanda_the_tall]

I will be with you in the moisture, moisture, and more moisture thing. I'm growing out some bleach, but one trim and a bang cut will take care of that. Mostly? My hair needs moisture like WHOA. And if I'm DOING something with it, the 'shave it off!' thing won't be so intense.

Also? The APL-BSL stretch was awful for me. I swear my hair hovered above my bra strap like it was afraid to cross it forever.

glad to know someone else went through this painful phase. i've never made it to bsl before. i've always been around apl, and i feel like i've been here for at least 6 months. i will be glad and happily grow out any damage at bsl, i just need to get there!

[sisi33]

I'm committing to this. No hack of the ends just 'cause they're giving me the evil eye. No thinking, "oh, itll be fine! Hair grows back!" I'm being stubborn, and keeping it- except the bangs, they must be trimmed once! I just keep on repeating what my dog grooming instructor once told me (and applying it to humans):
"People get their dogs clipped (shaved) down in the summer because they think it will help them- but in reality, it just makes them more influenced by the weather. They get cooler quicker, but they also over-heat easier, as well." Makes sense to me!

[Libbylou]

I'm excited about my hair this summer, it will be the first time in 40 years I will be able to put my hair up. At almost APL. No more sweat soaked hair on my neck.

[sfgirl]

Count me in! It's not the heat, it's just my birthday is in August and every year I always want to switch it up, so I get bangs, hate them a month later, and than grow them out for a year. I've done this 4 times, not about to do it the fifth!

[jacqueline101]

We have all had the urge to cut our hair I found the urge to cut came to me when I wanted change. Try doing something new to your hair. If you want a cut wait two weeks before doing it.

[BeckyAH]

We have all had the urge to cut our hair I found the urge to cut came to me when I wanted change. Try doing something new to your hair. If you want a cut wait two weeks before doing it.

Normally, I'd go with 'two weeks' but in this case, I'm going to be hot and fed up with my hair for longer than two weeks. I'm giving myself an 'until September' limit. Because from about now until then? My hair is going to be a nightmare. It always is. And I always whack it. And I always regret it.

[Mountaingrrl]

I'm going to do a small trim at the beginning of the summer and then commit to no trimming until September.

[RisaMoe]

Keep up the good work and motivation, guys! Once you get it long enough to pull up the heat gets alot easier to deal with. My hair is long enough to twist up into a knot when it gets hot and it makes a big difference in the summer.

Of course that's when you start to justify way WAY too many hair sticks and other hair toys. :)

[Finnenna]

I thought about cutting it when it got hot. I realized that my hair was down and I was boiling - so I grabbed a chopstick from the kitchen and shoved it in a bun! No fuss no muss - and best of all - no need to worry about it growing longer and re-heating me next summer! :D

Also - to those of you who have short hair - try clipping your hair up then using one of those wide stretchy headbands that encircle the head - that keeps hair off the neck and out of the face.

[bte]

Easy solution - come and live in the UK. We had some nice warm (not not too hot) days in March, nothing since.

[Zindell]

My new best friend during hot summer days since my hair grow longer...

The beak clip! Just twist the hair up, fold and tuck in under the twisted roll, and fasten with the clip. Messy french twist style! Takes about 5 seconds. :D
Added bonus... when you let the hair lose again it gets nice big curls. Probably enhanced by the heat and humidity.

(Works well att BSL to midback length at least)

[Viola88]

I run hot and it's already getting steamy here in South Carolina. I have to work outside for my job. It's not all the time luckily. I have to mow grass and weed wack. Ugh long hair and weed wacking doesn't mix. I also have to wear a hat as part of my uniform. I've been letting my hair down when I am in the hat and using forks and sticks to put my hair up once I can take the hat off indoors. I've just started braiding my hair in 2 braids to sleep in. I think I am going to start doing this for work too. I hate summer :D

[FireFromWithin]

I am simply preying that the hair sticks I ordered get here before we get any more hot weather (although right now it seems determined to reverse the drought).
I'm finding the rain comes with its own problems though since I can't fit my hood over a hair stick and my umbrella is brocken.
I am also quite jealous of all the hot weather you all seem to be having (I live in the UK)

[Tisiloves]

Easy solution - come and live in the UK. We had some nice warm (not not too hot) days in March, nothing since.


Now we just have the wettest drought ever.;)

[bte]

Now we just have the wettest drought ever.;)
Yes, it takes a particular kind of genius to have a hosepipe ban amongst floods, which have killed at leaast two people (a man and his dog in a car and an 8 yeear old swept into the river Wear).

[Carolyn]

I don't think I've ever once had the urge to cut due to heat. I've always simply put it up in some way and been fine. A long time ago I realized that long sweaty hair can be put up in a ponytail or bun and look good while keeping the hair off my neck and back. Short sweaty hair is just short sweaty hair and looks awful and is probably hotter than long hair in a bun. So for me there has never been a question of a short cut for summer.

[Aveyronnaise]

Now we just have the wettest drought ever.;)

It's the same in my area in france , it's driving us all insane and impacting tourism.The river is about to flood through the center of town .

Oh and OT I need this thread , this is a major cutting trigger for me. If I can get past this hump I'll break some records - I think.

[BeckyAH]

I don't think I've ever once had the urge to cut due to heat. I've always simply put it up in some way and been fine. A long time ago I realized that long sweaty hair can be put up in a ponytail or bun and look good while keeping the hair off my neck and back. Short sweaty hair is just short sweaty hair and looks awful and is probably hotter than long hair in a bun. So for me there has never been a question of a short cut for summer.

THe heat does bother me, but the (much) bigger issue is the humidity. I end up in frizz city, with the extra tangling and difficulty getting and keeping it up that comes with extra curl and volume. Hot I can live with. Four months of bad hair days is harder.

[Neneka]

Last summer with a pixie was very easy. Now I plan to keep my hair up all the time if it gets hot, including bangs. I am actually thinking about growing my bangs out and it will be easy if I keep it pinned aside anyway.

I remember the summer 2010 with APL hair very well. I didn't know about LHC and I could just put it in a pony or braid it and it was still on my sweaty neck! I didn't how to bun. It was very hot and I really was suffering! Thanks to LHC that wont happen again.

[Chetanlaiho]

I want my bangs and face-framing layers back, but I'm afraid the heat will drive me crazy ^^;

[sibiryachka]

Beating the Sacramento Valley summer heat is one my primary reasons for keeping my hair long. No short cut ever did the job as thoroughly as putting it up and getting it all the way off my neck!

[Amber_Maiden]

I'm in. But I'm also in the long haul thread as well- no cutting till next year!

[lapushka]

I usually get the urge to cut in the springtime, wanting to change it up a little, wanting something new. When I used to give in to the urge, I would usually end up with a style I couldn't put up in the summer, having hair that stuck to my neck in the heat. I'm still struggling come spring, very much so, but then I remind myself of the fact that I won't be able to put my hair up come summer - and it helps.

[cremenoir]

i'm in! my last cut was early march. took off 1.5" of damage and have been heat-free since then.

[oktobergoud]

Ah yes, count me in! :D I only have chin-length hair but I keep cutting it because of the mullet and stuff. I'm not cutting it anymore so I can sort of put it up in summer!

[mzBANGBANG]

I need to come back here to let it out. The bug is catching up to me. It's been like two days since I've joined, this is how bad I am! It's those dang face framers I cut. They're so terrible! I keep wanting to take scissors to even them out, but I know it's a horrid idea because that's how they got so short in the first place. I may schedule I salon appointment in the next couple weeks just to get the front professionally taken care of (requesting a small style change to "grow into" I think is the best route). I've realized it's not so much the shortness I hate as it is it just generally looks like I cut my own hair. Which I, of course, did. Lol

[BeckyAH]

I'm seriously thinking about taking that two inches I allowed myself for later in summer sooner rather than later. My ends are bleached - and were meant to be cut off. Now they're just bugging me.

FORTUNATELY, my mother got her hair cut to a chin length bob and kind of pressured me to get mine cut. This is fortunate because my response to pressure is to dig in my heels.

[mzBANGBANG]

I'm seriously thinking about taking that two inches I allowed myself for later in summer sooner rather than later. My ends are bleached - and were meant to be cut off. Now they're just bugging me.

FORTUNATELY, my mother got her hair cut to a chin length bob and kind of pressured me to get mine cut. This is fortunate because my response to pressure is to dig in my heels.

I've been trying everything I can to keep from cutting it, funny the things that motivate us? I've even decided that flat iron straightening the fringe was a better option than cutting it. My hair has been requiring some serious love lately to keep the scissors away. I think it might have to spend most of the summer tucked away.

[Changling]

OMG this summer is going to be difficult for me. Back when I was a pre-teen longhair, I'd just put it in a ponytail and BAM! no hair in my face, on my neck, getting all sweaty or getting up in my armpits D:

Now that I'm growing out a pixie...my hair is OFTEN in my face (maybe always is a better word to use there). I've got a jaw-length bob, nearly all one length...sometime during the summer I'm going to have a trim to get it all one length, then I will be growing like crazy...forever, I guess XD

I guess my proto-french braid pigtails are going to be my best friends this summer. Especially as my hemline starts to move down my neck!

[mzBANGBANG]

http://i939.photobucket.com/albums/ad238/caslpierce/May-fringegrowth.jpg

All right, I'm posting this here since the photo uploader is broken. Hopefully I'll remember to make a new folder for it. My goal is no longer hair length, just to grow out this fringe. I'm tired of looking at my hair from the back anyway. I'll consider May my starting month even though I cut it sometime in April. It's grown at least half an inch so far. My goal is collar bone. Maybe 2 more inches at most. I can do this!!!

[Oksana]

I'm seriously thinking about taking that two inches I allowed myself for later in summer sooner rather than later. My ends are bleached - and were meant to be cut off. Now they're just bugging me.


I am feeling the same. my longest layer is looking so thin and pathetic :( I gave it a 0.5" trim last night. Although it looks neater, it didn't make any noticeable difference to the thinness. Only thing that is stopping me is my university graduation in September- it has been my goal to have waist length hair and cutting now would make that totally impossible!


http://i939.photobucket.com/albums/ad238/caslpierce/May-fringegrowth.jpg



Honesty, It doesn't look bad at all but I do understand how you feel. I have the same face framing layers and I hate them.

[mzBANGBANG]

Honesty, It doesn't look bad at all but I do understand how you feel. I have the same face framing layers and I hate them.

Thank you. That's kind of the conclusion I came to. I figured if I posted a picture I'd feel better, and even better watching them grow (since watching my whole length grow has become just about pointless). On the plus side, they make the rest of my hair look longer. On the negative side, it personally makes my hair feel shorter.

Alas, not here to eat up internet cookies. Just complain. :cool:
And to stay away from the scissors.


ETA: So I worked up the courage to shape up the front while taking off as little as possible... and now I love it!!! I'm glad I didn't let my fears win out, I think I just needed a couple weeks away from the scissors. Still going to grow it out but at least now it looks nice!

[Oksana]

ETA: So I worked up the courage to shape up the front while taking off as little as possible... and now I love it!!! I'm glad I didn't let my fears win out, I think I just needed a couple weeks away from the scissors. Still going to grow it out but at least now it looks nice!

Good good! I think we need someone to confiscate our scissors for a few months. I was only a tiny bit away from chopping four inches off last night to finally have layer free hair. I chickened out and I am so relieved today!

[Changling]

OH MY GOD we have had a really hot couple of days here! And it's only been low 80s (Fahrenheit), it gets up into the 90s and even 100s here in the summer! My head was so hot, I just drenched my hair with Mr. Bottle and sat in front of the fan. I couldn't help but remember two summers ago, when I would just rub my prickly, shaved scalp with a wet washcloth I put in the freezer....AHHH it felt SO good!!

What am I going to do?! My hair is too short to wear up T__T

[Aveyronnaise]

Ugh, I am wishing I had heat issues these days . It's been cold and raining forever and will rain forever . I am so over it.

[Changling]

but, but, but... I live in Maine (USA), so I know that when it is cold, you can put on more layers, but when it is hot, you can only get SO naked! After that you just...melt! There is no remedy :(

[akilina]

Count me in! It is so hard for me not to...I touch my hair all day long and look thru all the things that are wrong with it and think that I just NEED to cut it so bad!
I am also growing out an undercut that is maybe...4 inches long or more now.
I could never cut my hair that short to match it all but oh how I want to do it and get some kind of really cute asymmetrical A line to get rid of all my layers as well.
I like the ideas some had of doing lots of oiling and deep treatments and just wearing it up.
I'm thinking of some benign neglect while Im not working :)

[DayDreamerDani]

Aaaah I so belong here! I impulsively got my bangs cut / weeks ago and I've been regretting it since! It's sooo hot already and they stick to my forehead lol! Gross! What makes me the most mad is that I had let my bangs grow out to past my chin! It was so manageable and easy. What was I thinking???!!! I cut them because I always feel a little insecure about my long forehead but now I just want these bangs to be gone! When I first cut them I asked my boyfriend if he liked them and he of course said he did. But a few days later he was like " I'm starting to like your bangs" and I said "so you didn't like them initially?" he said " no I like them, they are just not for long term. It's a good change for right now. But I miss the way you used to look" gee thanks honey, way to twist the knife! Lol oh well, it's just bangs, I'll live. Right....

[Ligeia_13]

http://i939.photobucket.com/albums/ad238/caslpierce/May-fringegrowth.jpg

All right, I'm posting this here since the photo uploader is broken. Hopefully I'll remember to make a new folder for it. My goal is no longer hair length, just to grow out this fringe. I'm tired of looking at my hair from the back anyway. I'll consider May my starting month even though I cut it sometime in April. It's grown at least half an inch so far. My goal is collar bone. Maybe 2 more inches at most. I can do this!!!

That's exactly how the front of my hair is :D

[Raging Wolf]

Can I join too? I hate the summer time heat and humidity. I makes my hair looks like a horrid mess of matted tangled lifeless hair. Now that I have found out about hair sticks and how to use them in my hair it has helped out tremendously. I am trying to be positive that this will be the first summer my hair has not looked like death warmed over. It may even help me to avoid that itch to chop it all off that I get every summer because I get so frustrated... Got to hide those scissors...

[torrilin]

but, but, but... I live in Maine (USA), so I know that when it is cold, you can put on more layers, but when it is hot, you can only get SO naked! After that you just...melt! There is no remedy :(

Actually, naked tends to be worse for heat :). There's always stuff you can do when the weather is hot.

Start by learning ways to clip part of your hair up. At your length you should be able to do lace braids as a kind of headband, or various sorts of half up styles. That will get more air flow to your scalp so you're less likely to soak your hair with sweat. And yes, long hair is definitely cooler for me... but there's pretty much always something that can be done.

Put on a hat. Traditional summer hats are all some kind of mesh design, whether made of straw, mesh fabric, or other materials. This shades your head slightly, and makes it easier for a breeze to remove the air your body heats up. Voila, natural air conditioning! Don't have the hat skin tight to your head. You want space for your body to heat up air, and space for any wind to blow that heated air away.

Knit fabrics tend to trap air fairly well. Woven fabrics tend to work more like a mesh hat. So try to stick to woven clothing that isn't skin tight. Loose clothes allow more room for air to flow and cool you. Skin tight and knit stuff will tend to be good at trapping your body heat, so avoid it unless you need it for specific athletic reasons. Clothes that are wool, cotton or linen will tend to allow better flow of warm, wet air off your body. (I tend to cheat a lot in summer and wear thin cotton lawn sundresses with shorts underneath, so I look spiffy yet have light and airy clothing to stay cool)

I don't care how humid you think it is. Drink more. Water is good. So's lemonade, iced tea, iced coffee and all those other traditional summer drinks. Stick with ones that have less sugar if you can, since our bodies burn sugar for energy. Even in very hot, humid and sticky weather, drinking enough water goes a long way for your comfort level. Even in very humid weather, our bodies sweat to regulate heat. If your body doesn't have enough weather to make sweat properly, you'll feel a lot hotter.

Avoid direct sun and try to hang out in shadier spots. It's always hotter in direct sun.

If you're still uncomfortably hot even with your hat, stick some ice cubes in a bag, and tuck them under your hat. Our heads are one of the ways our bodies dump excess heat, so a nice shaded ice pack under your hat can go a long way towards helping with the heat.

Related to that, our hands and feet also act as radiators for our bodies. There's usually a spot around your ankle or wrist where big veins and arteries run to your hands and feet close to the skin. Soaking your wrists and ankles in cool water at that spot, or just plain going swimming so that spot stays cool will help you cool off faster.

Different people have different heat tolerance too. I'm the sort of person who is happiest in tropical heat, and trying to keep up with me or a me equivalent doesn't work if you're one of those people who loves cold weather. Most folks who say they do worse in heat than me don't actually do worse... they skip a lot of steps that I'm listing and then are surprised when I do stuff I listed and feel fine.

[Changling]

Actually, naked tends to be worse for heat :). There's always stuff you can do when the weather is hot.

Start by learning ways to clip part of your hair up. At your length you should be able to do lace braids as a kind of headband, or various sorts of half up styles. That will get more air flow to your scalp so you're less likely to soak your hair with sweat. And yes, long hair is definitely cooler for me... but there's pretty much always something that can be done.

Put on a hat. Traditional summer hats are all some kind of mesh design, whether made of straw, mesh fabric, or other materials. This shades your head slightly, and makes it easier for a breeze to remove the air your body heats up. Voila, natural air conditioning! Don't have the hat skin tight to your head. You want space for your body to heat up air, and space for any wind to blow that heated air away.

Knit fabrics tend to trap air fairly well. Woven fabrics tend to work more like a mesh hat. So try to stick to woven clothing that isn't skin tight. Loose clothes allow more room for air to flow and cool you. Skin tight and knit stuff will tend to be good at trapping your body heat, so avoid it unless you need it for specific athletic reasons. Clothes that are wool, cotton or linen will tend to allow better flow of warm, wet air off your body. (I tend to cheat a lot in summer and wear thin cotton lawn sundresses with shorts underneath, so I look spiffy yet have light and airy clothing to stay cool)

I don't care how humid you think it is. Drink more. Water is good. So's lemonade, iced tea, iced coffee and all those other traditional summer drinks. Stick with ones that have less sugar if you can, since our bodies burn sugar for energy. Even in very hot, humid and sticky weather, drinking enough water goes a long way for your comfort level. Even in very humid weather, our bodies sweat to regulate heat. If your body doesn't have enough weather to make sweat properly, you'll feel a lot hotter.

Avoid direct sun and try to hang out in shadier spots. It's always hotter in direct sun.

If you're still uncomfortably hot even with your hat, stick some ice cubes in a bag, and tuck them under your hat. Our heads are one of the ways our bodies dump excess heat, so a nice shaded ice pack under your hat can go a long way towards helping with the heat.

Related to that, our hands and feet also act as radiators for our bodies. There's usually a spot around your ankle or wrist where big veins and arteries run to your hands and feet close to the skin. Soaking your wrists and ankles in cool water at that spot, or just plain going swimming so that spot stays cool will help you cool off faster.

Different people have different heat tolerance too. I'm the sort of person who is happiest in tropical heat, and trying to keep up with me or a me equivalent doesn't work if you're one of those people who loves cold weather. Most folks who say they do worse in heat than me don't actually do worse... they skip a lot of steps that I'm listing and then are surprised when I do stuff I listed and feel fine.

Oh. My. God. THANK YOU for all the tips!! I often wear my hair in pigtail half-ups, but I have never owned a summer hat. In fact I don't remember ever seeing one on a person or in a store...probably because, living in a cold-weather region, I've never looked! And I had no idea sugar makes you hot. Probably why I gain ten pounds every winter, I'm subconsciously keeping myself warm with snacky cakes XD

[Tisiloves]

Oh. My. God. THANK YOU for all the tips!! I often wear my hair in pigtail half-ups, but I have never owned a summer hat. In fact I don't remember ever seeing one on a person or in a store...probably because, living in a cold-weather region, I've never looked! And I had no idea sugar makes you hot. Probably why I gain ten pounds every winter, I'm subconsciously keeping myself warm with snacky cakes XD


There's also the fact the fat is a very efficient insulator so all warm blooded animals tend to lay down fat layers in cold weather.

[Changling]

There's also the fact the fat is a very efficient insulator so all warm blooded animals tend to lay down fat layers in cold weather.

that too XD

[torrilin]

Oh. My. God. THANK YOU for all the tips!! I often wear my hair in pigtail half-ups, but I have never owned a summer hat. In fact I don't remember ever seeing one on a person or in a store...probably because, living in a cold-weather region, I've never looked! And I had no idea sugar makes you hot. Probably why I gain ten pounds every winter, I'm subconsciously keeping myself warm with snacky cakes XD

Glad they seem like they'd help.

I'm not sure I'd think of it as sugar makes you hot. But sugar is really easy fuel for your body, and if you think about the sorts of food you crave in hot weather, it's probably healthy stuff like salads and grilled meat. So I try to avoid gooey sweet drinks too.

The hat thing is cultural. Sometime in the 1950s and 1960s, people started making a big deal out of the idea that hats were "formal" clothing and "ostentatious"... so it became unfashionable to wear them. Yet if you put on a snug winter hat, you feel much warmer. And if you put on an airy summer hat, you feel cooler. They really were practical clothes originally. And it's totally doable to wear a hat with long hair, since women have done so for centuries :D.

I usually play a game with my partner so we see how long we can go each summer without using air conditioning. He's like you, and grew up in a cool climate. He's getting better and better at handling heat each year tho :D. I live in hope that someday I'll get him into a house with no AC.

[zombi]

ye blessed goddess it was 94 degrees today!!! :thud:

Time to start learning the art of the updo. I might try to make this the summer I fully get the hang on all kinds of crown braids on my own hair!!

TORRILIN, I love all your tips. Great ones! Mr. Zombi is very enamored of ladies in floppy sunhats. I've promised to buy one this year ^^;;;

[LizTheLyre]

Good Golly, every summer I chop off my hair but this year I;ve started to take care of it and grow it out. I don't want to cut it, but i can't stand it always touching me. This will be the summer I learn how to do more then 5 updos.

[ApatheticFairy]

I still can't figure out hair sticks. >.< I'm just awful with them. They don't make my hair stay at all, but it may because I'm just APL.

I've been doing Chinese bun and cinnabuns since... March? *hooray Florida heat* But my bangs are growing to the sticky-sweaty-in-the-eyes, I-can't-tuck-the-behind-the-ears-YET!?!?? phase and it's driving me crazy.

I wear glasses and have a headset I have to use for my job, so headbands are totally out, because I can't stand more than two things on my head/face at once. Bobby pins just make my frizzy ends cockatiel out. My braiding kinda still stucks. But I've been sticking to it.

Must. Not. Cut. *eyes bulge out*

I've coating my hair in olive oil when I drive/ go out of the house, so my frizz is better than normal.

But my heat tolerance is awful, even with hydrating, loose, light clothes, etc. I was really not made for the tropics.

[long&blonde]

My trim after years away from scissors early this month has me firmly in on this thread too. I don't even Like a neat hemline! Give me length, crazy beautiful fairytale end length, hanging down over my waist tattoo like Spanish Moss. I like the low lights salon guy gave me,blending in my "skunk stripe" roots. I've called salon back allready,& told them to note on my July and future apts. It will be no more scissors. I got a trim of my ragged ends, 3-4 inchs, on a Saturday. I liked it till Monday. Annoyed ever since. And long layers? Never again. All they do is blow out of my updos and into my face. I am so in on this. Scissors are Not my friend.

[AnimaSola3o4]

SWEAT is my ultimate nemesis. It's because of a medication that I'm on, it makes me sweat like mad. And with my hair being at its' longest ever, and regaining its' thickness... it makes for a hard summer. Not to mention they are predicting a record breaking summer, AND I don't have A/C in my car. I just basically have to put it up and leave it alone. If I take it down, the base of whatever updo I'd chosen will be sopping wet. I've learned to just live with it up, and take it down when I get home and let it dry with my fan on me. I have gotten over the idea that my hair needs to be clean all the time and that sweat in my hair is 'gross' even after it's dried. It's really not a big deal. It doesn't generally cause an odor that I can detect, but if it did I'd just spray something in it that smelled good like hair perfume.

I've also given up on the idea of styling my hair in any way that takes longer than 5 minutes because chances are my hair is going to end up being put up in a few minutes anyway. I wear a lot of headbands to try to mask the wet scalp look. And braids have become the best way to wear my hair at night, because it doesn't induce a very warm scalp area that will end up drenched.

[julierockhead]

NO :scissors:

I haven't had a haircut in a long time, I don't even remember how long it's been, it may be as long as two years. I'm perfectly fine with it but it has been a while since I've had BSL hair in summer, and it gets brutal in the summer in the Chicago area. It's the Windy City but only in the winter! So I'm going to hang out here *just in case*.

I was at the dog park today in the sun with my hair up but I was still like :headache:. I'm going to have to invest in a hat!

[Tisiloves]

I still can't figure out hair sticks. >.< I'm just awful with them. They don't make my hair stay at all, but it may because I'm just APL.


I still maintain that us straighties need more length for updos as a) we don't have any extra hiding in our waves/whirls and b) our hair tends to be slipperier and needs the extra to be secure ( or at least mine does, I might rename it houdini).

[lundmir]

I'm silly, I got thick bangs that will stay on my forehead for the summer. I shouldn't have, but I wanted to do something with my hair, and I definitely wasn't going to get it shorter.

[kitekats]

bun works the best for me in summer, but that darn bang that I am trying to grow back for 2 years now is making me crazy, it's ruining my already oh so thin hair.

[kitekats]

haven't trimmed my hair since 2009, and I'm not eager to do do so ;)

[julierockhead]

I still maintain that us straighties need more length for updos as a) we don't have any extra hiding in our waves/whirls and b) our hair tends to be slipperier and needs the extra to be secure ( or at least mine does, I might rename it houdini).

I agree! As my hair gets healthier it get even more slippery. Hairsticks are for sitting around looking pretty, not for yard-work! (Yet.)

[Kristin]

I've been trimming a lot lately, but I'd like to get back the extra length and be back to hip-length by the end of summer. I can commit to no more than one stylist cut this summer plus S&D on my own.

It shouldn't be that difficult...my mane will be in a bun, braid, or braided bun all summer, anyway. :)

[julierockhead]

Everybody hanging in there? I'm starting to get used to the way I look with my hair up, and no urges to chop!

[cheetahfast]

I can't believe I missed this!
I am in!!!

So far no urges yet. I've been wearing my hair up nearly all the time though.

[Changling]

I trim by the moon, so I'm going to do a micro-trim around midsummer, when the waxing moon is in Cancer. I kind of need it though, my ends are becoming difficult to manage. Other than that, no urges to actually cut my hair at all. We had that one sweltering week, and it's been cold and rainy ever since. Typical New England weather, lol.

[sarahbrownie]

I'm still going strong on my no-cutting 2012 resolution, though the last 2 inches of my hair has thinned out and I'm itching to cut it. Must. Resist.

[pandora114]

I suggest doing a kerchief thing..like the Rosie Riveter look...In case you don't want to constantly do updos :D

[battles]

I'm in for the summer! :D I can't go a whole year without trimming, but I can manage the summer.

I've never had long hair during the summer before, so this should be interesting. I'm thankful mine is long enough to put up.

[Changling]

I trimmed yesterday because the moon was good for it (I trim by moon phases), and I had planned for one micro-trim in June. I only took off the last 1/4 inch though, so I didn't really lose any length - it looks the same, just a bit neater.

Yesterday was the hottest day we've had this year - 88 degrees F (maybe hotter in my 2nd floor apartment), and a bit breezy, but still very humid. I wore a loose, thin white t-shirt and a pair of stretch demin short shorts, sandals, sunglasses, and my hat when I went out. It was hot but I was ok. I braided twin french braids damp first thing in the morning. That helped a lot. I drank many glasses of water, and exerted myself a little in the morning, when it was cooler. Then I laid low the rest of the day, sitting around reading or web surfing, drinking water and keeping a wet wash cloth from the freezer on the back of my neck while sitting in front of the fan. We had one fan blowing air in from the shady side of the house, and one blowing out on the other side. All our white blinds were drawn and slats tipped up. I had a cool bath after cleaning, and that really cooled me off. But then the heat just kept building, and by 2:30, we were both really overheated. So we covered ourselves in SPF 50 sunscreen, I put on my summer hat and we went swimming. We were outside for a total of 30 minutes, we just went in the water, swam a little, just sort of rested in the water a bit, then got out and went back the car, and my face was sunburned. It wasn't too bad, you can't see it today, but I still just don't even know what to do. When I got home I braided my hair into twin french braids again while it was damp. It just kept getting hotter, it was 4:30pm. It was even hotter outside, but even inside with all the fans on us and drinking water and damp, cold washcloths on our heads, we were just dying of heat. We were both red in the face. I took a cool shower, and felt a little better, but even after the sun set I just kept getting hotter. The forecast said it would get down to 65 F last night, so I left all the windows open and the fans on, hoping to pull in cooler air. It never got cooler, it just hovered around 78 F in our apartment all night.

When I woke up this morning, I was dizzy and confused and nauseous. I was also very lethargic. I recognized heat exhaustion, which I have gotten once before. Between that and my sunburn, I just don't know how to keep safe in the summer heat. What should I have done differently? We are going to spend some of our rent money to buy an AC today, so we should be better off, but I still just feel at a loss. I should be able to keep from getting heat exhaustion without AC.

I did hear that a very sudden rise in temperature can make one more susceptible to heat exhaustion, and the temperature has been around 15 degrees cooler, at least, all year up until now. So that probably has something to do with it. But I went to my school's Computer Center, where I work (its my day off), just to lay in the air conditioning and drink watered down gatorade and wait to feel better. A few hours later, I'm pretty much all better, but then I was afraid to go home. I had to charge my phone and check on my cat, so I had to go, but I'm so afraid of getting heat exhaustion again (it really sucks btw).

I'm home now and it's not too hot yet but it's only noon. Unless it storms, it's going to get hotter before it gets cooler. Can anyone tell me if I did something I shouldn't have, so I can avoid this in the future?

[SerinaDaith]

I am so in! My hair is just long enough to be on my neck but not quite long enough to pull up unless I put it into pig tails of some sort which feels awkward since I am a 33 year old mother of three. I keep thinking about going shorter but then come winter I will be sad because I won't have anything to cover my neck. We live in a place that gets into the 100s in the summer and can get into the -20s in the winter so having hair come winter is a must. We don't get much humidity I actually miss living in the south because of the humidity. My skin cracks here no matter what I do. :(
~rant over~

[Scarlet_Heart]

Camelia oil is my friend in this humidity. The other day I went shopping at an outdoor mall and by the time I was done, my hair was a frizzbang mess. I came home and took a look at my oils and tried the camelia, and I haven't been having problems since.

So oil up and/or bun ladies (and gents)! But don't let hair issues spoil your summer! Summer is so much fun so even if your hair is a fricken mess, get out and enjoy it anyway!

[MestizoGypsy]

No trimming and lots of moisture until August for me- I have to get it cleaned up a little bit before school starts again. I have a lot of heat damage on my ends, but I'm trying to avoid that this summer too. Keep me strong ladies, I'm usually an every 6 week trimmer, which is probably why I constantly whine about my hair not growing!!

[Sammie_holms]

I will not trim until August 31. I like the sounds of that. I got a trim around the beginning of June from a very nice hair dresser( she only took1/4" off! Imagine that at a professional salon!) so now I should be good until September 1 ish. It will be the second longest I have gone without a trim/cut. But hopefully the growth will be wonderful.

Good luck all and for those of you who have not been trimming, how's it going?