The bright side of summer in Texas is that we don’t have to look up the weather to know what to wear. We know each new day from June to September will be another scorcher, and last year’s inferno, the second-hottest Texas summer on record, is still emblazoned in our memories. Sky-high temperatures loom around every corner, and it’s not just your imagination that the humidity is rising.
You might prefer to look like naked Oppenheimer at home all summer, but sometimes it’s necessary to leave the house in clothes. Shorts and tank tops are popular go-tos, but considering long-sleeved construction workers or the robes and turbans worn by many desert-dwelling folks, what exactly is the best type of clothing to wear in high temps? Is there a secret to staying cool that seems contradictory to the impulse to walk around in a swimming suit?
The most important factors in staying cool and safe from heat illness are acclimation, hydration, and sun protection, says McKinney–based sports medicine physician Rathna Nuti. Wearing skin-baring clothing keeps you cooler, in a way, she says, but you also expose your skin to the sun, and some people are prone to forgetting about sunscreen. “If you have anything covered, it helps protect you [from UV rays],” she says, “but the color and the choice of clothing that you wear also makes a difference.”
Building up tolerance to the heat is also key. According to Nuti, a lack of acclimation played a role in the 1,300 deaths that occurred at this year’s hajj in Saudi Arabia, in which pilgrims traveled from parts of the world where 120-degree temperatures aren’t common. One way to adjust to high temperatures is to begin outdoor activity before the hottest hours of the day, typically between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., a rule practiced by marathon runners, high school football coaches, and state park officials, such as Doug Cochran, superintendent of Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, outside Fredericksburg. Lawn work and other outdoor labor there can start as early as 6:30 a.m. to avoid the strongest of the sun’s rays, but rangers must still be prepared to work outside for six to eight hours a day, Cochran says, many of them during peak hours. To make it through, they travel in pairs with hydration packs and water coolers packed with ice water and Gatorade.
Replenishing fluids lost from sweating is another vital component to staying safe. Unfortunately, “a lot of people can’t gauge how to hydrate properly,” says Nuti. So a good rule of thumb is to look at the color of your urine—”the lighter the yellow, the better.” If you do start to feel ill from heat exhaustion, get in the shade, peel off any unnecessary layers of clothes, drink cold liquids, and, if it’s available, take an ice bath. Anything to bring your core temperature down is vital.
Building from Nuti’s medical advice, three Texas fashion experts share what they’re wearing to stay cool—and look cool—when it’s hot as all get-out.
It’s pre–Labor Day, so you won’t break any fashion rules with an all-white wardrobe.
As Nuti explains, “the closer you get to black in terms of the color spectrum, the more waves of energy you absorb from the sunlight.” So white and light-colored clothes are the way to go during summertime.
Amber Venz Box, who moved from Dallas to the Big Bend region after opening Terlingua yurt hotel the Local Chapter, points to often white tenniscore as all the rage on LTK, a shopping app she cofounded to help influencers earn commissions from their online recommendations. She recommends this clubby Jane court dress from Varley because it’s stylish yet practical. (And there’s a coordinating cardigan for indoor venues where the AC is blowing a little too strongly.)
Austin-based Jen Pinkston—former wardrobe stylist to celebrities including Ellen DeGeneres and Chris Pratt and current content strategist for women’s lifestyle brand Katie Kime—recommends this Harbour dress in white vine eyelet. From Mirth, a sister-owned brand based in Houston, it can be dressed up or down, but Pinkston likes it most for the loose fit. Like us all, “I truly want nothing clinging to my body in the summer,” she says.
Who wears short shorts? We wear short shorts.
If you will be in the shade during an outing—and you didn’t forget the sunscreen—wearing as little as possible is the best way to allow your skin to cool off.
Pinkston likes this sleeveless Puglia top, also by Mirth, a wardrobe piece that can be carried into fall with a cardigan or blazer, as well as this Andrea floral dress from Mi Golondrina. Owning a handmade piece from Mi Golondrina, founded by Dallas-based Cristina Lynch, is “like owning a little work of art,” Pinkston says. “The dresses are very timeless, super loose, and easy to wear.”
Houston-based influencer LuxMommy has built a following across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for her affordable clothing picks paired with luxury handbags. Amanda (her real name) packs these stretchy $15 high-rise linen pull-on shorts in her beach bag to throw on over a swimsuit or to walk the boardwalk.
Sport clothing made from Texas’s largest crop, cotton, and other lightweight fabrics.
With a degree in textiles and apparel from the University of Texas, Pinkston says that being intentional about fiber content and choosing fabrics that are breathable, such as cotton gauze, is an easy way to maintain style in the heat.
She likes this matching tank and pants set by Harper Sage, which recently opened an extended pop-up on fashionable South Congress in Austin. The textured cotton dobby comes from deadstock, or remnant fabric, so it’s also eco-friendly. And this semi-sheer Color Block Charlotte shirt, by Katie Kime, can do double duty as a beach cover-up and a top at nicer business casual events when tucked into wide-leg pleated pants.
Amanda/LuxMommy fancies this Sierra top, in a rayon-linen blend, from Forth & Nomad, a “feel good lifestyle brand” that expanded from Houston to Dallas’s West Village last year.
Your clothes need fresh air too.
Not only should clothing be made from light fabrics, it should also be designed to allow air to flow around you. To keep dust, sharp plants, and bugs off her skin in the Texas desert, Box wears these Citizens of Humanity Horseshoe jeans. She also sports this moisture-wicking Sahara solid long-sleeved shirt with a mesh-yoke back vent when she’s hiking or otherwise being active.
Hang on to your wide-brimmed hat.
According to Nuti, one of the first places through which heat escapes the body is the head. However, a well-designed hat can provide much-needed shade and sun protection, which can be even more important in keeping comfortable. Look for light-colored hats with ventilation and wide brims.
LuxMommy’s pick, the Anine Bing Venus visor, is perfect for allowing heat to escape the body while still providing shade. Box prefers to go to Big Bend Saddlery, in Alpine, for its palm leaf hats. She has grommets installed and adds chin straps to keep her hats on during windy days, and she adds brooches for more personalization. Pinkston points to Sunshine Tienda’s fair trade Jane palm hat. It’s another Texas brand owned by sisters, and proceeds help keep women artisans in Guatemala employed.
Fan mugginess away with an attitude that matches the heat.
If getting air to circulate around you while looking sassy is the goal, we at Texas Monthly love these fabulous hand fans created by Texans. Among the bamboo fans designed by the Houston-based Gay Fan Club is this WhatABitch fan, in Whataburger’s bold orange-and-white color scheme. Or, for that clack-clack sound in Spanish, check out the Chingona snap fan, made by Anthony Diaz for Karolina’s Antiques, in San Antonio.
