eternal girlhood

It has been an ungodly hot summer and I don’t know about you guys but my New York apartment has no central air. Here are a few survival tips for not getting heat stroke when you live on the top floor of a walk up and the apartment has a black roof (aka, it’s ten degrees hotter inside than outside and it’s like 98 degrees outside.)

1. Freeze green seedless grapes and eat them constantly like the magically delicious things they are. Seriously guys, even if you’ve never tried this TRY IT. When they’re frozen the insides become a delightful consistency that’s sort of similar to a soft popsicle. This healthy treat will keep you cool and won’t give you indigestion like the 10 popsicles I ate in a row last summer.

2. Cold showers. Now the key to a cold shower is you can’t just jump into freezing water. You start with it lukewarm and then gradually decrease the temperature. The important thing here is to never make it so cold you start to shiver. If you’re shivering you’re actually using up precious energy. You just want to cool down your core and get your hair cold and wet.

3. Braid that wet hair! You’ve accomplished your cold shower so now take your cold hair and french braid it as quickly as possible. You want the cool water against your head for as long as you can. Now sit in front of a fan! Profit.

4. Wrap an ice cube in a summer scarf (silk or nylon or whatever), wrap the scarf around your head with the ice cube on the nape of your neck. It will melt and drip into your collar, but it’ll be totally worth it. If you really want to bask in the coldness, sit in front of a fan.

5. Get big ice packs like what you’d use in a cooler, put one at the head of your bed and one at the foot. It’ll keep your bed cooler if you absolutely have no a/c whatsoever.

6. Drink water. Lots of water. All the water you can. Just carry that water bottle around the apartment with you because chances are you’re a sweaty mess and it’s super easy to get dehydrated.

7. Go ahead and walk around your apartment in as little clothes as possible. I highly recommend a sports bra and boxer shorts. Everyone will get over it once they realize you’re a brilliant nudist who isn’t getting sun stroke.

8. Opening windows can cut down on electricity costs for fans, but don’t open the blinds or shades. The direct sunlight will heat up your room like a microwave.

9. If your apartment is just too miserable, find free or cheap places with a/c in your community. I recommend libraries, museums or movies.

Try switching your soap out for a mint soap so that when you bathe, you get an all over cooling sensation that will last a bit

Try a mint deodorant to stay fresh and get a shot of cool to the parts of your body that need it. Native has a few mint scents every summer. Cucumber Mint is like B&BW’s Cucumber Melon’s older, more sophisticated, NB sibling: highly recommend.

Mix up some roll on mint oil to dab on your pulse points while out and about. 2.5 ml of essential oil : 100 ml carrier oil such as jojoba. This is also great for cooling the itch of mosquito bites, sunburn, and poison ivy. If you’d prefer a solid formula, mix the same ratio of mint oil to coconut oil and keep it in a lip balm tin.

Burt’s Bees lip balm (the plain yellow one) is a beeswax based peppermint infusion that you can use anywhere you don’t mind feeling waxy.

II. Cover up if you’re going to be outside for extended periods of time

Wear a big hat to protect yourself from the sun or carry a parasol. Keeping the sun off of your head will help you stay cool longer and you’ll be carrying your shade with you.

Wear light colors and cover your body. This sounds crazy, but people from hot climates (whether desert or tropical) traditionally wear body covering clothing in light or bright colors. Try it! It’s like a floppy hat for your whole body. You’re preventing the heat of the sun from touching your skin and making you sweat. White reflects light and heat, the darker in value a color is the more heat it absorbs.

Fiber content matters! Natural fibers like cotton, linen, wool, and linen deal with the heat better than synthetics like polyester or acrylic. Rayon is made from wood pulp and does ok but is weaker when wet so proceed with caution. Cotton fibers are hygroscopic which means that they hold and absorb water which is why they’re so good for face masks and can make you feel clammy when you get sweaty. Linen, hemp, and ramie are stem fibers and convey water along their length. There’s a specific fine wool called “tropical weight wool” which is used to make men’s summer suits. It’s very light weight and smooth, allowing the wool to work its magic. Wool is excellent at managing water and can hold up to 30% of its weight in water before it even starts to feel damp. It also wicks water away from the skin further allowing you to feel cool longer. I’m not sure about silk’s specific heat properties, but every time I’ve worn a silk dress to a summer wedding, I’ve been perfectly comfortable. Plus it is the traditional fabric for saris and if anyone knows how to dress in heat and humidity, it’s Indian women.

Carry a hand fan. You can make your own breeze, have a gorgeous accessory, and use it to gesture with like an 18th century coquette. You’ve always wanted to gossip behind your fan to your bestie, right?

III. addendums to OP’s points

frozen fruit in general is amazing. My kids especially like frozen watermelon and frozen bananas. You can also make your own popsicles out of pureed fruit or plain fruit juices. An old school summer treat, is to pour OJ in an ice cube tray and then put in toothpicks once it’s started to set for handles.

You can freeze partially full water bottles and then fill it the rest of the way from the tap to have cool water longer.

For a make-shift AC unit, fill a basin with ice cubes, sprinkle with a table spoon of salt and set in front of an oscillating fan. Way more economical than standing in front of the open fridge.