June hits and we start getting the same questions. My color looks dull. My blowout doesn't last anymore. My ends feel rough and I just did a deep conditioning treatment. What's going on?
What's going on is Austin summer. Not just heat. UV radiation working on your hair all day the same way it works on your skin. Humidity that swings between 40 and 95 percent depending on the day. Pool chemicals. The kind of sweat that doesn't let up from May through October. Your hair is dealing with all of it at once.
What Summer Is Actually Doing to Your Hair
The biggest culprit most people don't think about is UV exposure. You protect your skin from the sun. Your hair is out there with nothing on it. UV rays break down the melanin in your color, which is why colored hair fades faster in summer and why even natural hair goes brassy or dull by August. The cuticle gets damaged by repeated sun exposure too. Once the cuticle is roughed up, everything else gets harder to manage.
Humidity follows right behind. Hair is porous, and it absorbs moisture from the air. When the cuticle is already compromised, this happens fast. The hydrogen bonds in the hair shaft break and reform in response to that moisture, and that's your frizz. In Austin's combination of heat and wet air, a smooth blowout can be a memory within an hour of stepping outside.
Chlorine strips natural oils from the hair shaft and changes its pH. Sweat deposits salt and product residue on the scalp. By the time August rolls around, clients who haven't adjusted their routine are dealing with all of this layered on top of each other.
"Austin summer doesn't just fade your color. It changes how your hair behaves every single day."
What the Aveda Sun Care Line Actually Does
We carry the Aveda Sun Care line because it's built for this specific problem. This isn't a shampoo with a beach photo on the bottle. The formulas use UV filter technology to protect the hair shaft before damage happens, not just condition it after the fact. Two products do most of the work, and they cover both sides of the problem.
Start with the Protective Hair Veil. This is the one you reach for before you go outside, not after. It's a lightweight mist with UV filters that lay an invisible screen over the hair, the same idea as putting sunscreen on your skin. Spray it on damp or dry hair before you head out, reapply after you swim, and it shields your color and your cuticle while you're actually in the sun. If you add one thing to your summer routine, make it this.
Aveda Sun Care Protective Hair Veil
A weightless, water-resistant UV mist that shields hair from sun, salt, and chlorine before the damage happens. UVA and UVB filters plus antioxidants help stop color fade and dryness. Spray it on before you go out, reapply after you swim. Works on color-treated and natural hair. $40, available at both MFX locations.
Then the Hair and Body Cleanser handles the cleanup. It removes chlorine, mineral buildup, and sweat without stripping. Use it after a day on the lake, after the pool, after any afternoon you spent outside. If you're spending real time outdoors this summer, the pair belongs in your routine.
Aveda Sun Care Hair and Body Cleanser
Removes chlorine, salt, and mineral buildup without stripping. UV-filter protection for hair that's actually outside all summer. Works on color-treated and natural hair. $32, available at both MFX locations.
The Pre-Summer Investment Most People Skip
A keratin treatment before summer is one of the more practical things you can do for your hair right now. Keratin smooths and seals the cuticle, which is exactly the part of the hair shaft that humidity attacks. A sealed cuticle doesn't swell and frizz the same way. Your blowouts last longer. Your hair dries faster in the heat. And if you're coloring your hair before summer, doing your keratin treatment after helps that color last significantly longer. Color needs an open cuticle to penetrate. Keratin seals that cuticle down afterward, which holds the pigment in instead of letting it fade out week by week. It's protection as much as it is a style service.
If you're not sure whether it's the right fit for your texture, we'll give you an honest answer in a consultation before you commit to anything. We'd rather tell you the truth than book a service that won't deliver.
Ready to Prep for Summer?
Come in before the heat is fully in charge. We'll walk you through what your hair actually needs this season.
South Lamar · (512) 472-3331 Circle C Ranch · (512) 637-08889600 Escarpment Blvd, Ste. 920H, Austin TX 78749