Hush, can you hear it?
The rustling in the grass,
Bringing you the welcome news that
Winter’s day is past.
Soft, can you feel it?
The warm caressing breeze,
Telling you the sticky buds
Are bursting on the trees.
Look, can you see them?
The primrose in the lane.
Now you must believe it –
Spring is here again.
“What good is the warmth of summer without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” (John Steinbeck)
Profound words, but when it comes to trying to regulate the temperature of our conservatories during the changing seasons, then we don’t really want to feel cold just to appreciate the warmth or visa versa!
So if this is how your conservatory tends to be – cold in winter, hot in summer then maybe it’s time to consider a change.
That doesn’t always mean replacing the entire room, you can achieve a great deal by simply changing the roof.
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“January opens
The box of the year
And brings out days
That are bright and clear
And brings out days
That are cold and grey
And shouts “come see
What I brought today!”
– Leland B. Jacobs, January
January, the beginning of a brand new year. The weather is fairly typical for this time of year and we look forward to the first signs of spring in our gardens and the environment around us. January is also a time when many of us (or not!) resolve to change ourselves and our lives even though it is well documented that most New Year’s resolutions fail! Yet we keep making them, so where has this custom come from?
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“We have had a long love affair with glass. It inspires us with its beauty, surprises us with its versatility, challenges us with its complex physical properties, and transforms our lives with its unique technical capabilities” (Wendell Weeks, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, Corning Incorporated)
Glass is all around us in our everyday lives, so much so that we perhaps often take it for granted. Yet this natural material is used in the most delicate processes – from intricate Lalique glass sculpting to complex engineering constructions such as the amazing glass bottomed skywalk above the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon in Central China. So who discovered glass in the first place?
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Winter’s Coming
(Author Unknown)
Two little birds one Autumn day
Sat on a tree together.
They fluttered about from bough to bough
Talking about the weather.
“The wind is blowing cold,” said they,
“It chills us as we sing.”
So away they flew to the sunny South,
And there they’ll stay till Spring.
It’s easy for birds to escape the Autumn chill, they just fly off to warmer places! What about us people? Unless you’re one of the lucky ones finding a few days in the sun on a far-flung holiday, your thoughts are likely to be about switching the heating on!
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You may be one of the many households up and down the country finding that your home has become a bit of a squeeze. Maybe growing children are filling the house with their friends, toys and noise or, as is happening more and more often these days with the difficulties of home ownership and high rental costs, your adult children have come back home to live, sometimes with their own families. Or perhaps you run a business from home and have decided it’s time to move off the kitchen table and have some office space! There are loads of reasons why we find ourselves needing more space, which then poses the question …. to move or improve the situation by extending?
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• Will they exceed the most stringent energy efficiency targets and help minimise ongoing heating bills?
• Will the style be sympathetic to the overall design of your home?
• Will they provide the highest levels of safety and security?
• Are they available in a wide range of styles and colour choice?
• Is there a range of matching doors, roofs and other products available?
• Will they be guaranteed?
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These days, lots of things we used to purchase in shops have been superseded by online technology – clothes, books, music etc are just a few examples of how our buying habits have changed.
It’s pretty straightforward to buy some products online, you know what you want, click on the ‘buy’ button and input your payment details and it’s delivered to you.
However, what about the more major purchases in life? For example, would you ever buy a car online without seeing or trying it out first? Probably not. If it’s from a car dealer, you’d most likely visit the showroom and take it for a test drive before making a decision.
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Historical? Pre-War? Post-War? 60s/70s? Ultra modern? No, we’re not talking about you personally, we’re talking about your home!
The following statement really sums it up …
“Across history, buildings have been pushed, pulled, poured and stretched into all sorts of shapes and styles. Whether in response to new technologies, anticipation of the future or an interest in the past, architecture is a living reminder of our ever-shifting tastes and concerns.” (www.architecture.com)
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Spring flowers are emerging from soggy ground, there are mild days, then Storm Doris days …. pretty much the norm for March in the UK!
What else? Well it’s also coming up to spring cleaning time …. where on earth did that idea come from, I hear you ask? The cynics might think it‘s a commercial ploy to get us to buy more rubber gloves, mops and dusters but in fact, it has its roots in some age-old beliefs and customs.
For example, in Jewish custom, Passover is also a time of thorough house cleaning as a way of ensuring that any crumbs of leavened bread are not overlooked, which would be considered an insult to God during this period of time [source: History Channel].
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“As of October 2016 the average house price in the UK is £216,674, and the index stands at 113.64. Property prices have risen by 0.1% compared to the previous month, and risen by 6.9% compared to the previous year” (Source: www.landregistry.data.gov.uk)
Despite wide variations across the country, in general property has always been considered a pretty safe investment. After all, people will always need somewhere to live and with an ever-increasing population, more and more demand for housing is an inevitable consequence. Read more
How much do you know about the history of Milton Keynes? Take the MK50 quiz and find out. https://lovemk.uk
Well, he does have to land on quite a few every year so he’s probably seen more roofs than the rest of us put together! That said he’s had to cope with a lot of changes over the years and most roofs these days don’t provide the soft landing he and his reindeer would hope for!
So where did it all begin? Well, there has always been a need for shelter and protection from the elements and throughout time, roofs have been made from the resources available. Cavemen covered their structures with sod roofs made from earth and plants which, in fact, were pretty good when it came to insulation but not for keeping out water and vermin!
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November. Goodbye to the ghouls and witches of Halloween and hello to Guy Fawkes and Christmas! Lots to look forward to but on the other hand, there are a few months ahead of shorter days meaning less daylight hours which can make some people feel sleepy and depressed. On the positive side, exposure to light reverses the process due to increased production of the natural chemical serotonin, so this is why it’s really important that our homes are well lit!
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If you are thinking about adding more light to a room, but also would like it to be a functioning door, with access to your garden you’ll probably end up looking at patio doors and bi fold doors, but how are they different?
What are Patio Doors?
Patio doors are very similar to French doors, with two nearly full length sealed units, however patio doors tend to slide across each other. With French doors you need room to fully open them, whereas patio doors don’t take up much space, so with this in mind sliding patio doors are the ideal next option. Read more
Of course you wouldn’t, but that’s exactly what could be happening in your home if heat is being lost through old and ill-fitting windows and doors.
According to The Energy Trust www.energytrust.co.uk, depending on the type of property you have, you could save up to £160 every year by taking out those old rattly windows and replacing them with double glazing. Read more
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