If you live in Chicago, you know exactly what we’re talking about.
For most of the year, your hair is battling cold, dry air — the kind that sucks moisture out of your strands, flattens your blowout, and makes static an annoying fact of life from November through April. You figure out a routine. You adapt. You think you’ve got your hair sorted.
Then June hits.
Suddenly the same hair that needed constant moisture is frizzing the moment you step outside. You walk out of the salon on a Tuesday looking great, stroll past the lakefront on your way to lunch, and arrive at your destination looking like an entirely different person.
This is the Chicago hair paradox: one of the driest, coldest climates in the country flips to one of the most humid summers in the Midwest — and your hair feels every bit of that whiplash. Add Lake Michigan into the equation and it gets even more specific. The lake creates its own microclimate, particularly for neighborhoods along the shore. If you’re near the water — whether that’s Evanston, Wilmette, Highland Park, or Chicago’s own Lakeshore East — summer humidity isn’t just seasonal, it’s geography.
Here’s what’s actually happening to your hair, and what Gordon Salon’s stylists recommend for how to protect hair from humidity and to stay ahead of it.
Why Chicago Humidity Hits Hair Differently
The Seasonal Contrast Is Extreme
Most cities have gradual seasonal transitions. Chicago doesn’t. The shift from bone-dry, heated-indoor air in February to oppressive lakeside humidity in July is one of the most dramatic climate swings your hair will ever experience — all without leaving the city.
That contrast matters because your hair adapts (slowly) to its environment. After months in dry conditions, the hair cuticle becomes trained to a lower baseline of moisture. When ambient humidity spikes, the hair shaft rapidly absorbs moisture from the air — unevenly, unpredictably, and at the worst possible times. That’s frizz: moisture entering the hair shaft in a disorganized way, swelling some parts of the cuticle faster than others.
Lake Michigan Is a Real Factor
The lake effect is real, and it’s not just about temperature. Lake Michigan holds enormous amounts of moisture, and prevailing summer winds push that humid air directly into the neighborhoods and suburbs along the shoreline. Evanston, Wilmette, Highland Park, Lakeshore East — these aren’t just great places to spend a summer afternoon. From a hair standpoint, they’re ground zero for humidity exposure.
Inland locations like Algonquin and Glenview get Chicago’s summer humidity too, but the lakefront locations experience it in a more concentrated form, especially on still, warm days when the lake breeze stalls and the air just… sits.
Tony Gordon, owner of Gordon Salons, sees this concern with his clients. “I noticed the humidity level on the North Shore, specifically at Ravinia Festival, is such that the hair of the streaming people—so many people in one place—actually just enhances the curl in a really great way. It isn’t that it necessarily becomes more flyaway. That depends. If it’s super hot, above 90, then the humidity is going to be so great and the hair will become untamable. In that case, fight water with water. Use a high-humidity product like Humectant Brilliant Pomade from Aveda.”
Outdoor Culture Makes It Unavoidable
Chicago summers are meant to be lived outside. Lollapalooza at Grant Park. Concerts on the lakefront. Dinners on Wicker Park patios. Mornings on the Chicago Riverwalk. Summer in this city is something you show up for — which means your hair needs to hold up in conditions it spent six months not dealing with.
That’s the real challenge: not just that it gets humid, but that you’re actually outside in it.
What Humidity Actually Does to Your Hair
Understanding the problem makes the solutions make sense.
Hair is made up of keratin proteins organized in a layered structure, with the outermost layer being the cuticle — a series of overlapping scales that ideally lie flat. When those scales are smooth and sealed, hair is shiny, defined, and manageable.
Humidity introduces excess water molecules into the hair shaft. Hair absorbs this moisture unevenly depending on its porosity (how open or damaged the cuticle is), its texture, and its current condition. The cuticle swells and lifts. The bonds holding the hair’s shape get temporarily disrupted. The result: frizz, puffiness, loss of curl definition, and a general sense that your hair is doing its own thing.
Higher porosity hair — which includes color-treated, heat-styled, or chemically processed hair — absorbs moisture faster and is more vulnerable to humidity. Low porosity hair is more resistant but can still feel heavy or lose definition in extreme conditions.
Curl patterns are especially susceptible because each strand curves differently, meaning uneven moisture absorption produces a wildly uneven result.
Stylist Tips: How to Actually Protect Your Hair from Summer Humidity
1. Start with a Smoothing or Anti-Humidity Treatment
This is the most direct solution, and it’s worth having a real conversation with your stylist about. Smoothing treatments or conditioning treatments— like those offered at Gordon Salon — work by sealing the hair cuticle, reducing the surface area available for moisture to enter. The result is hair that resists humidity at the structural level, not just at the surface.
The effect isn’t permanent, but a quality treatment done before peak summer can carry you through the worst months and dramatically reduce daily effort.
This is especially worth considering if you’re coming off a Chicago winter — months of dry air, heated interiors, and over-washing leave the cuticle rough and porous, making summer frizz even worse.
2. Switch to a Humidity-Blocking Leave-In or Serum
Your winter routine was probably built around moisture and damage repair. Summer calls for a different set of priorities: humidity resistance and cuticle sealing.
Look for products that create a light barrier on the hair shaft. Aveda’s line includes options specifically formulated for this — your stylist can recommend what makes sense for your texture and how your hair has been behaving.
A few principles:
- Apply any humidity-fighting product to damp hair, not dry. Dry hair absorbs product less evenly.
- Less is more. Using too much product in summer heat can make hair feel heavy or greasy.
- If you use a blow dryer, finish with a cool shot to help close the cuticle before you go outside.
3. Rethink Your Wash Day Routine for Summer
Summer heat changes how your scalp behaves too. More sweating, more SPF products, more time outdoors means a different rhythm than winter. A few adjustments worth making:
Don’t over-wash. It’s tempting to shampoo more in summer, but stripping natural oils makes the hair shaft more porous and more vulnerable to humidity. If you’re washing daily, try scaling back to every other day and using dry shampoo on in-between days.
Use a clarifying shampoo periodically. Sunscreen, sweat, and product buildup can accumulate fast in summer. A clarifying wash once every week or two removes buildup without over-stripping if you follow it with a deep conditioner.
Deep condition more frequently. Humidity adds moisture to the air but it’s chaotic moisture — it doesn’t nourish hair the way a quality conditioner does. A weekly deep conditioning treatment keeps hair in better condition to resist frizz rather than absorbing it.
4. Embrace Protective Styles
The most effective defense against humidity is minimizing how much time your hair spends exposed to it. Braids, buns, low twists, and other contained styles aren’t just practical — they’re genuinely protective. A loose braid keeps your hair from absorbing ambient moisture while still looking intentional.
For clients with natural curl or coil patterns, this is especially powerful. Summer is a great time to lean into styles that work with your texture rather than against it.
5. Get a Summer Cut
Sometimes the most practical thing you can do is take some weight off. Heavy, dense hair holds more moisture and frizzes more dramatically. A well-placed cut that removes bulk — without sacrificing length — can make a meaningful difference in how your hair handles humidity.
Summer is also a great time to think about layering for texture-heavy or curly clients. Layers allow curl patterns to form more consistently instead of being weighed down by length.
Hair Type–Specific Advice
Fine, straight hair: Prone to going limp rather than frizzy, but can still puff and lose shape. Focus on lightweight hold and a humidity-blocking finishing product. Avoid heavy oils.
Thick, wavy, or coarse hair: The most vulnerable to frizz volume. Smoothing treatments are worth a serious conversation. Leave-in products and a diffuser (rather than direct heat) help maintain shape.
Color-treated hair: Higher porosity = higher frizz sensitivity. A bond-strengthening or keratin-based treatment before summer hits is a smart investment. Consistent deep conditioning is non-negotiable.
Curly and coily hair: Humidity can enhance or destroy curl definition depending on your routine. The goal is giving curls organized moisture (through product and deep conditioning) so they don’t grab chaotic moisture from the air. A stylist who specializes in textured hair can walk you through a summer-specific curl routine.
What to Do When Your Hair Has Already Been Wrecked by Humidity
It happens. You had plans. The lakefront had other ideas.
A few quick fixes that actually work:
- Wet your hands slightly and smooth over frizzy sections — this resets the hair shaft enough to re-style without full rewashing.
- A small amount of anti-frizz serum on dry hair can smooth the surface without adding weight. Less than you think. Start with a pea-size amount.
- A high bun or low braid is never the wrong answer. These styles are humidity-proof by design.
- Avoid touching your hair. The more you handle frizzy hair, the worse it gets. Set it and leave it.
Build a Summer Routine Before the Humidity Gets Here
The best time to adjust your hair care routine for summer is before you notice the problem — not after your blowout has already started expanding on the train platform at Belmont.
That means:
- Talking to your stylist about a smoothing treatment before July
- Swapping in your humidity-defense products now
- Thinking about a summer cut while you still have control over the situation
Gordon Salon’s stylists at all six Chicagoland locations are available for consultations — and if you’re near the lake, they understand exactly what you’re dealing with from the moment you walk in the door.
Book Your Summer Hair Appointment
Six locations across Chicagoland — including right on the lakefront:
- Evanston — 2018 Central Street | (847) 266-7777
- Highland Park — 653 Central Avenue | (847) 266-7777
- Wilmette — 3232 Lake Avenue | (847) 266-7777
- Glenview — 1992 Tower Drive | (847) 266-7777
- Chicago Lakeshore East — 333 E Benton Pl #106 | (773) 388-9999
- Algonquin — 1940 S Randall Road | (847) 458-9990
Book your appointment online →
Your summer hair doesn’t have to be a seasonal battle. With the right cut, the right products, and the right stylist, Chicago humidity is manageable — even lakeside.
