What are you wearing - to stay warm?

We had them in a 30's flat in Richmond in the early years of our marriage in the early 70's. Being in a sheltered position we didn't suffer too much from the elements and our rent at the time, 8 guineas a week, included (wait for it) porterage, constant hot water and central heating!!! Fuel consumption wasn't a big deal then.

The house I grew up in had Crittal windows. My dad maintained them well and painted them green - well, he painted everything green. They weren't unduly draughty, though, as the house was cold at night after the fire went out, we got frost patterns on the outside of the windows.

Crittall lol, of course... The problem with them in our 1920s house, is that they had become distorted, so there were gaps in the metal work! But we could just not bring ourselves to put in UPVC windows- as they looked so nice and not at all greehouse like!!! We did put in secondary windows in the lounge though- and that worked great and was done to best fit in.

Sil and bil had their replaced with custom made double glazed oak windows with leadwork- blimey... the cost was astronomical but anything else would have looked so wrong in their 1920s mock Tudor house.

Soutra, we lived in the upper flat of a Victorian house on Putney Hill in early 70s, opposite the Hospital for Incurables (what a dreadful name)- so we were almost neighbours, lol. No proper heating and a hot water boiler that nearly exploded everytime it came on- a dreadful place

We might well have been on the 37 bus at the same time!

The house we live in now had crittal windows when we bought it 29yrs ago, it's an ex police house. The first thing we did was instal UPVC double glazing. Having been brought up with crittal windows I knew how cold they were. We had ice patterns on the inside some mornings.

Well Soutra and Granjura I feel very downmarket. Our first home in 1970 was a 14th floor tower block flat in Luton. The local authority had a severe teacher shortage and offered council flats to let as a recruitment inducement. Great views though and a balcony you could sun bathe naked on. Not that I ever did of course

LOL, no bus for me Soutra. We lived in the servants quarters with very steep steps- and I could neither go up or down them on my own due to severe car accident- never mind getting on a bus. OH was working 140 hrs a week, night and day- and I was stuck there, freezing, no tv or of course internet- it was a dreadful time.

We definitely had heavy frost on the inside of the crittal windows in winter.
Actually, it is the damp that makes you feel cold, not the low temperature. We have very low temps here in winter, but dry, and I never feel as cold as I did in Midlands damp winters. Give me piles of lovely snow and blue skies anytime to damp grey wet horrible sludgy snow ;)

Forgot to say, after massive storm and downpour yesterday pm- it is now lovely, sunny and warm up here in t'mountains- hurrah.