BellaOnline Forums Beauty and Self Large & Lovely What do you do to keep cool and dry in the summer?

Summer can be a particularly trying time for summer when you have a little (or a lot of ) extra insulation. What do you do to keep cool and dry during the hot and humid days of summer?

good question...besides wearing lots of linen, I haven't found many solutions!

lots of skirts, looser fitting clothing, driving with the windows down, lots of fluid drinking and knowing that due to the fact that I live with asthmatics that I will be coming home to a nice frosty cold house =]

Lots of fluids , fans etc.
I also retain water really bad in humidity and don't really know what to do about it!!

I wear as little as possible and use gentle deodorants on areas that sweat alot. Not sure how much I can go into that <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I have AC but if necessary, I'd just soak my feet in cold water to cool the body down. That works too!

Stay in Air-Conditining a lot! Wear natural fibres (they don't keep the heat in against your skin), good deodorant, and making sure I keep my underarms & legs hair free.

When I'm home, a quick duck under a cold shower (for only 1 minute even) also does a quick cool down.

A sure-fire way to cool down is to keep some sort of refresher (witch hazel is great - or even just evian water) in a spray bottle in the fridge. A spritz on your face will cool you down, and won't kill your makeup.

What is considered a Good Deoderant/Antipersirant? Just curious what works for everybody.

I used to use antiperspirants but got concerned with the aluminum in them. I now use Toms of Maine natural deodorant. While it won't stop your sweating, it does control any odor. I like the fragrance too.

[color:"purple"]I live in the deep, semi tropical South. Even before I gained weight, I struggled with the heat. I am now pushing 300# and its miserable here for me in the summer. We keep our home cold (even in the winter we rarely turn the heater on) and I take showers in the evening... A hot shower to get all the sweaty grunge off followed by a brisk, cold rinse does wonders to cool me off, and its heavenly for the skin.

I keep witch hazel or alcohol mixed with water, scented with a few drops of essential oil (peppermint and rosemary are my favorites in the summer) in a spray bottle in the fridge. A quick spritz on arms and chest and back of neck cools me down quickly, and it smells good, too. I make a lot of iced tea all year long (I'm Southern, lol, its damn near required of me *grins*), but in the summer I substitute two of the seven tea bags I use to make a gallon with two peppermint tea bags. Mint tea is extremely refreshing in the summertime.

And I use a good antiperspirant (I really like the Secret line of invisible gels), and I use a lotion-to-powder on my skin-on-skin areas. Monostat makes one that they market for those between-the-legs chafing areas, but its expensive. Huggies (I think its Huggies... One of the diaper companies anyway) makes one, too, that comes in a bigger bottle for less money, and it works just as well. I keep the smaller tube of the Monostat stuff in my purse for touch ups, and use the other for everyday use.

I also keep a fold-up ladies' fan in my purse or vehicle for those times when I have to be in the heat for any length of time and don't have access to A/C... The one I have is sandalwood, and it smells lovely, too.

And I wear as little as possible whenever I can. I used to be self conscious about my big flabby arms, but I finally decided that if I was going to embrace the big beautiful me, then I should embrace ALL of the big beautiful me. *grins* So I bought a lot of cute, flowy, natural fabric tanks and baby doll tops, and I layer them with cotton tanks (for the built in bra support, and layering is the KEY to keeping cool).

Lots of sunscreen and a living in a place where things just are slower and easier (the South is an amazing place) helps... Everyone has a/c and people make arrangements to be out of the heat during the hottest part of the day.

I do, however, look forward to October. *grins*[/color]

Living in Brisbane - a sub-tropical city with summer temps around 36+ celcius and 80+ humidity, you learn to keep cool.

I always wear natural fibres - cotton and linen. Always keep your underarms shaved, and wear plenty of anti-perspirant.

The biggest secret is to keep a spray bottle of evian or even just normal water in the fridge. A quick spritz of this will provide you with an instant cool lift.