Accessories in Iowa
117 freezing days, 11 below 0°F, and only 93 wet days — cold and surprisingly dry.
a real winter — 117 freezing days, 20 genuinely hot days. Measured at Des Moines, 5 years of daily observations.
Iowa is cold and dry in a combination that most of the eastern half of the country never sees: 117 freezing days, eleven of them at or below 0°F, but only 33.7 inches of rain across 93 wet days. The dryness is the part that gets ignored and it changes the material advice completely.
Dry winter air does three things. It cracks untreated leather along fold lines, which means a bag or a pair of gloves genuinely needs conditioning once a year here. It builds static, which makes fine hair cling to wool and silk and is a real daily nuisance from November to March. And it dries out skin under metal, which is why people who never react to jewellery elsewhere sometimes do in an Iowa winter.
The static problem has a genuine solution worth knowing: a claw clip or a fabric-covered band beats a silk scarf in dry cold, and a light conditioning spray on a wool scarf does more than most people expect.
Twenty-two inches of snow and eleven sub-zero days makes serious gloves a real purchase rather than a fashion one — look for a stated lining, and buy snug because leather stretches half a size.
Twenty days above 90°F means summer exists but is short. One pair of sunglasses and one packable hat covers it honestly.
What national advice gets wrong here
Being lumped with the humid Midwest. Iowa's 93 wet days is closer to Kansas than to Ohio, and the winter problem here is dryness and static, not damp — which is the reverse of the advice most cold-weather coverage gives.
Lined gloves earn their place
117 freezing days a year is enough that unlined leather will disappoint by January. A thin wool lining costs a few dollars more and is the difference between wearing them and carrying them.
Worth owning here
| Leather conditioner | Dry winter air cracks untreated leather along fold lines. |
|---|---|
| Clips over scarves in winter | Static makes fine hair cling to silk and wool. |
| Gloves with a stated lining | Eleven days a year at or below 0°F. |
The numbers
| January low – high | 15°F – 30°F |
|---|---|
| July average high | 85°F |
| Freezing days a year | 117 |
| Days at 90°F or above | 20 |
| Annual snowfall | 21.7" |
| Annual rainfall | 33.7" over 93 wet days |
| Summer humidity | 68% |
| Bright sunshine | 9.2 hours a day |
