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Don’t fight the weather
“You don’t want to try and construct a style that’s not going to be feasible in the climate that you’re in,” says Amber Fairlie, hair stylist and owner of the Manor Salon in Toronto’s Davisville neighbourhood. In the summer, that likely means dealing with heat and humidity. If you’re doing outdoorsy stuff, accept that you’re not going to have “glamour hair. You want something that’s true to nature.”
Mousse it up
To that end, Fairlie is a big fan of mousse, which can give a beachy look. “A mousse is going to give you a little bit of natural body. Scrunch an apricot-sized amount into your hair and let it air dry. It’s going to give curl where there’s no curl, but it is also going to tame curl where this is some.” Go easy with the salt sprays: “Salt dries hair out. It will knot and then you’re breaking your hair by brushing it.”
Protect your hair
“It is imperative to protect your hair from UVA and UVB. If you don’t, for instance, somebody who’s blonde can go crunchy very quickly. You want to be wearing hats, you want to have the best of the best products. You want to use a hair mask, even if you don’t any other time. You’re on vacation. You have five minutes.”
Actually wash your hair
Dry shampoo can be a savior but overdoing it can clog your pores. “You’ll get a scalp condition,” she warns.“You need to be using balancing shampoos after. What it’s doing is absorbing oil with a powder, and that powder is adhering to your scalp. So, no, you shouldn’t go 15 days without ever shampooing.” Washing hair twice a week will work for most in the summer.
Road trip hair
Have road-trip fantasies about driving down the highway, hair blowing gorgeously in the wind behind you? Reconsider. “I’ll be honest,” Fairlie says, “if you want to stand still and have road trip hair I can help you with that. But if you’re actually getting into that convertible, nothing is helping you but a silk scarf. I know it looks fabulous but you’ll have a real a mess to brush out after.”