August is called the “Dog Days of Summer” for a reason. It’s bloody hot, especially these days. As someone who has lived in Los Angeles without air conditioning for the past 25 years, I’ve become pretty adept at beating the heat. Besides the obvious of staying hydrated by drinking lots of ice water, below are a few of a my favorite tips for staying cool:
Make Your Own AC
I got this trick from my friend Jules. Take a bowl or shallow dish like a baking dish and fill it with ice. Place it in front of your fan, sit back and let the cool times roll. It won’t take down the temperature in the entire room, but it will spray a cooling mist on anything in it’s path like you or your pet.
Place a Cool Towel Around Your Neck or On Your Head
I’ve been doing this one for years. Take a wet washcloth and put it in the freezer until it’s nice and icy. Then place it around your neck. If you want something a little bit more high tech (and a lot less messy), try one of these Mission Instant Cooling Towels. These high performance beauties claim to bring your body temp down by 30 degrees.
For all of you crazy fools who want to exercise outdoors in the summer heat, you might want to try this Cooling Cap from Hammacher Schlemmer. Same concept — soak the hat in water for 2 minutes and the lining stays cool and damp for hours. And as we all know, keeping a cool head is always a good idea.
Turn Off All Electronics & Lights
Electronics such as your coffee maker, microwave, TV, DVR and stereo are always on, generating heat and using electricity even when they’re not actually in use. So, if you want to bring down the temperature inside your house (and help the environment), unplug your electronics. Especially at night. Turing off the lights helps for the same reason. In fact, a great habit to get into for both the planet and your checkbook is to turn off the lights every time that you leave a room.
Cool Your Lotions & Potions
Nothing feels better on a really hot day than a cold shower. A great way to cheat this feeling is to keep your facial moisturizer and eye cream in the fridge during the summer. Another instant “pick me up” is this Cooling Water stick from Milk Makeup. Infused with caffeine, this gel stick is not just cool to the touch, but it’s immediately hydrating so it will reduce AM puffiness while giving your skin a lovely glow.
Cotton Is Your Friend
When it’s a 100 degrees outside, nothing feels good on your skin, but since walking around naked is not an option for oh so many reasons (scaring the neighbors and getting arrested for indecent exposure come to mind), you want to make sure that your clothes are cotton. Especially your underwear. Why? Because cotton breathes. It’s woven so it allows air to literally circulate around your body, kind of like a built in air conditioner. And if you keep things loose, you’ll be even happier.
All of these tips will definitely help to keep you cool this August, but sometimes, a girl just needs a break. For me that means a big tub of popcorn and a cool movie theater. Ahhh, paradise.
