Illustration: Dana Davis

By Katie Okamoto

I wish I were the sort who could romanticize these sticky days of summer, when the border between my body and the air dissolves, and my sweat becomes indistinguishable from the atmosphere. Two of my friends are like this. When I complain about sweating, they shrug. They’re one with the season, and I’m the sweaty grump who doesn’t get it.

Sweat has been my nemesis since childhood. We lived in New Jersey, a state that has heat and humidity in equal measure, and for years the house was outfitted with one pitiful window AC unit that rumbled ominously. I was a kid with eczema, and my sweat left salt on my skin, triggering itchy flares that made sleep impossible. As much as I loved swimming, the shore, ice cream, and Italian ices, every year I could not wait for the humid summer to end.

So trust me, after decades of experience, I know sweat—and how to deal with it. And as Wirecutter’s sustainability editor, it’s my job to track the effects of rising temperatures and the sweat that follows: on our skin, sleep, odor, and even on things like our technology and our yoga mats. Starting tomorrow, we’re diving into all of that with Sweat Week. We’ll explore the ways we can all wipe our brows a little less this summer (or at least, wipe them a little smarter). Stay tuned. I hope you’ll sweat it out with us.

As for me? I’ve learned to love summer and keep my sweatczema in check, mostly by embracing water—misting, splashing, dunking, and dousing myself. Try it. You might like it.

How a nightly douse of cold water relieves my summer grump→

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Olympic athletes in Paris are sleeping on cardboard beds We put two similar(ish) models to the test→

We once spent a weekend with vacuum enthusiasts Here’s what we saw and learned→

How Wirecutter approaches sustainability Everything we test has an environmental impact→

Illustration: Dana Davis/Photo: Daniela Gorny

Powerful fans are often an eyesore. This one with a vintage vibe, though? It’s nice to look at, works great, and creates a pleasant but powerful oscillating breeze.

For those who need everything in their homes to be cute→

Don’t sweat it.

You can reach the Wirecutter Newsletters team at newsletters@wirecutter.com. We can’t always respond, but we do love to hear from you.

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