Preparing for Winter V

ET22

I got the dehumidifier out of the box and set it up. Humidity level was 76 in the bedroom and after an hour it was down to 55

Elisheba

I second the getting a double duvet for a single bed, Beckstar. That's what I had in halls at Uni. It was very cosy, and then I could use it on the double bed I had when I moved into a flat for later years. I also still use one of the sets of covers my Dad bought me to go with it 😁.

Laura_Elsewhere

After being 27ºC again on the Bank Holiday Monday, we have a week now of blustery wind, scattered showers (hurrah!) and definitely cooler temperatures... I love it! 

We've been out and picked the first batch of elderberries- we make a dozen pints every year and both take a spoonful every day, and it does seem to have changed our pattern of annual colds and sniffles and sore throats for the better! 
Not many blackberries compared to usual, but there should be enough to make a few jars of my husband's beloved blackberry jelly and then I shall use up everything together in hedgerow jelly. We have lots of cherry-plum jelly and jam, ditto greengage (bought fruit) jam, and I accidentally overdid my beloved gooseberry this year so I have enough for several years- I added tons of chopped mint to one batch and that's delicious. My strawberry jam refused to set despite added pectin so I reboiled it with some leftover gooseberries and some damsons from the freezer and labelled it as "Red Jam"!  

I'm working hard on clearing space in the freezer- it's only 3.5 drawers in a fridge-freezer that's not the full depth as it's built-in, but we have one drawer that is exactly three ready-meal trays wide and two trays front-to-back and 3-4 trays in height, and for years we kept the plastic trays from supermarket ready-meals so now we freeze our own homemade ready-meals- pasta with sauce, chicken pie with mashed-potato top, lamb stews with little baked potatoes on the side... but I want to try to clear more space in another drawer because then I can freeze lots of soups for my husband to have for a hot lunch. 

Topher

beckstar1975 said:

I'm delurking with a question if you don't mind, about to send DD off to university for the first time, and wondering what duvet to get her. She'll be in uni halls in the Midlands (we're London) but normally runs really cold, do you think 13.5 tog would be too much duvet wise or would it be OK? She has blankets and an electric blanket, really can't work out whether a 10.5 tog with extra bits for when it's freezing would be better? She'll also have a mattress topper as their mattresses are rubbish (going by DS experience but he never wears a coat so is a useless temp gauge!).

I'll make sure one of her sets of bedding is flannel/brushed cotton too.

Any other tips greatly appreciated

I second other posters’ advice about a double duvet for a single bed, something we learned from when DD was at uni then in rented. For sitting at a desk studying through winter, if you are handy with sewing or want to drop £20 at TK Maxx, a furry padded mermaid tail had proved a good idea for both my DD & later DH. - At a desk, quite often the kneehole section is cold and for some reason, the bum is subject to freezing. (DH’s desk was deep enough to safely put a small oil filled plug in radiator in the kneehole) Layering up in bed suits our family best so a cheap 10.5 Tog double quilt from As*a layered up with Wool blanket/cellular blanket or les popularly in our family: a fleece blanket has served well. 

boultdj

beckstar1975 said:

I think because she would rather keep her duvet for here, we don't have any spares (other than v thin summer togs) and no single duvets, so we'd have to buy one anyway so may as well buy a single as it's cheaper.

She doesn't drive and will be coming back by train/coach so it's not practical to lug between the two

If she feels the cold really badly and using train/ coach for transport how about a couple of foil blankets, small, light weigh and she could also use them with a quilt for extra heat when in the hall and also use them when traveling.

Fruball

Van_Girl said:

I've been helping clear my Nan's house, and snaffled some wool blankets that had been on my Mum's bed as a child. I adore them, but nobody else was in the least tempted. I also got some good quality flannel flat sheets that my Nan had made little repairs to. So I'm rather looking forward to trying those out in winter. Much nicer than my cheap B&M sheets. 

You have made me think about my windows though. I have one window which really doesn't shut well, and it's been like that for years. They are decent windows that haven't been cared for, and I'm also very guilty of that it my ownership. Time to have a look at those I think and avoid the drafts this year! 

Guilty of this too but I have stuffed mine with bubble wrap until I can afford the repair.  I may make a wooden frame and use that shrink plastic film to cover it and prevent heat loss this winter until funds allow me to get someone to replace the hinges. xx

Laura_Elsewhere

Our local damsons are ripe now, so I’m trying to work out how many jars of damson jam is reasonable for a household of two I do love just eating them raw as well…

it definitely feels much more like we’re on our way now, towards the colder months! We still haven’t cleaned the window glass yet (outside of casement windows on the top floor is tricky!!) and I also want to empty out the woolly balls from my wool pillow, give the quilted case a really good wash, with the woolly balls spread across the bed to air, and then refill the pillowcase, adding some lavender essential oil as I do so. I also want to sew myself a little lavender pillow to slip inside it but for now, getting my wool pillow properly redded up for the cold months is my priority! 

ET22

Im finding the BBC weather app is not very accurate today. Thundery showers are definitely not happening here. Is it me or are we still having quite warm weather this time of year in comparison to previous Septembers? 

Laura_Elsewhere

@ET22 - I haunt the weathergeek websites and forums quite a bit (I don’t understand much but I love learning a little more) and the apps are often mentioned as being unreliable compared to websites, so maybe try the webpage instead? The Met Office app is totally different from the webpage, I know! 

But also it does seem that climate change has caused problems with forecasting generally in the last couple of years- predictable patterns that have remained predictable for a century are suddenly now less reliable… the forecast at a larger level is still fairly good, ie a changeable week with showers coming in but generally mild, but at local levels for each individual day it is becoming harder to predict with the accuracy we all were used to! 

(As a note, snow is the hardest thing to forecast in Britain- the tiniest change can throw a forecast completely in either direction! I enjoy the possibility of snow, and am happy with the chance and hope, but I have learnt from the weathergeeks never to be confident of snow “until it lands on your head” aka “nowcasting” aka “open the window and lean out”!!!)

ET22

I think I will look at the websites but also stand on the balcony to see if it fits my expectations.

I love the snow, it’s fab and although I understand life can be more difficult in this country with only a few inches of snow, i think it’s still worth any hassle