Barbeque season is a distant memory and pretty soon you’ll defrosting your car every morning with a cup of tea in your hand that you were too late to make because you couldn’t bring yourself to leave the sacred warmth of your duvet. The cold nights are rolling in fast. Whilst some of us are already getting prepared early with Christmas decorations, many of us forget that we also have to prepare for the climate. This means giving in to central heating, putting those deck chairs on the patio away before a gale sends them hurtling next door and buying additions to the house to make it more winter-friendly.

Thick Curtains

Blinds are sash curtains are great for the summer as they continue to let the cool breeze in during the night. But that breeze is now a gust. Make the step to insulate your windows with thick, cosy curtains and stay warm during the night. During the day make sure to pull these back – letting the sunlight in even on a cold day can help warm up your house and minimise the need to switch the heating on.

Cover bare floorboards

Having to tip-toe across those icy floorboards in the morning to get to the bathroom isn’t anyone’s idea of fun. For those who don’t like slippers and winter socks and prefer to roam the house barefoot, throw down some rugs to keep your toes from going numb. Thick fur varieties are best. Don’t worry about installing carpets as this can be costly.

Fireplace

There’s something undeniably cosy about sitting around a fireplace in the winter, warming your feet and hands whilst telling each other stories. If you don’t have the time or energy to insert a real one (or don’t want to deal with the mess) you can always try a gas fireplace. Many give off heat the same way a natural fireplace does and by running off the gas you can easily regulate them, instead of having to throw in lumps of wood and coal. 

Double glazing

Windows can lose a lot of heat from your house (although having them is definitely better than a hole in the wall!). Get them double-glazed to help save costs on your energy bill. Most modern houses will already have these, but older Victorian properties most likely won’t. Houses on hills or overlooking fields that are regularly battered by gale force winds may consider even going the extra mile and installing triple glazing. 

Draft excluders

Another common place where heat can escape the house is the gaps between your door and door frame. Drafts in the winter may also cause closed doors to creak open and slam and make a racket, which can be annoying if anything else. Installing draft excluders on all your doors can solve this issue. DIY shops should sell the materials you need but you can also improvise if you need to newspapers and rolled up tights. This article on The Guardian offers more information on DIY draft prevention.