The Best Summer Accessory Is a Shaved Head

Summer is hot. This is a fact (one as old as time, even). And yet, without fail, the first truly hot day of the year always catches me off guard, sending me into a spiral about the state of my wardrobe as I tell myself that everything I own is wrong. Those shorts I loved last year? Bad. The hemlines of my T-shirts? Too long.

Call it the curse of growing up in hypercapitalist America, where seasons were marked by sales at the GAP (and Hollister and PacSun), but summer doesn’t feel like summer to me unless I panic-buy at least one new pair of shorts and a breathable shirt.

There’s a creature comfort in refreshing my wardrobe, but alongside these fresh threads, I’ve come to rely on one consistently reliable style hack to stave off heat death: taking an electric shaver straight to my dome. 

You can dress in sheer fabrics or turn boxer shorts into outside shorts; you can let the dogs out or aggressively wave a paper fan in your face. These strategies may help, but I’m telling you right now: Nothing feels as good as bald. 

Millimeter-short hair isn’t just scientifically cooler — hair is an insulator, trapping heat on your scalp — but looks cool, turning your cranium into something akin to an especially aerodynamic sports car. 

And with almost no upkeep (besides the occasional shampoo and a daily slathering of sunscreen), it frees up time to focus on what’s most important: putting together great fits — or, in my case, deciding which near-identical pair of cargo shorts to wear. 

A close crop works because it fades into the background, allowing everything else to pop, from faded blue jeans with aerodynamic rips to baggy cargos, boxy T-shirts to long-sleeves, billowing in the breeze. But it also gives your look a punkish edge, even if only gently. The streets outside the Spring/Summer 2027 fashion shows were full of bald baddies thriving under Europe’s sweltering heat dome, as were the runways. 

Two of my favorite looks from the Paul Smith SS27 collection — a dress shirt layered over a tank top and pleated slacks; a grey suit over a loud print button-up, open to the waist — were elevated by the model’s own buzzcuts, lending a touch of edge to the slightly off-kilter officewear ensembles. 

I recognize that I may be biased as a decade-long disciple of the shaved-head cult, but really… You don’t need some fancy fabric to beat the heat all summer. A pair of clippers will do just fine.

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