Staying Warm During a Cold Snap

What do I do when it's cold? Make stuff to keep warm, of course!

Is the weather a common topic of conversation where you live?

I am more likely to greet someone I see on a regular basis with a comment about the weather than I am to ask "how are you?"

Two reasons why that is. First, I've always found the how are you greeting annoyingly trite... unless I know for a fact that the person has recently been going through something out of the ordinary. Second, the weather is ever changing where I live and on most days, it plays a significant role in what we do and whether we enjoy what we do.

In short, it is a much more interesting topic with which to launch a conversation than the tiresome how are you.

Today's blog post, as you may have surmised, is about cold weather. When it gets cold — and particularly during a pandemic when we are not supposed to go anywhere (else) indoors — we are mostly confined to our homes and must find ways to keep ourselves from developing cabin fever. Under the circumstances, it's common for a conversation opener to be along the lines of what are you doing to stay warm during this cold snap?

How cold am I talking? Last week, I said that January had mostly passed without our "normal" winter temperatures. As we shifted into February, however, things changed up drastically.

As in, how about a week of mornings like this? And no, I don't live in New York, London or Tokyo. (And for those who do live in New York, a reminder that those are Celsius degrees.)

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A couple of days into this cold snap, my way of coping was to ensure that I had enough accessories to stay warm.

Headband and fingerless gloves set made out of my Luminescent Ocean Dreams minky...

I was at my computer typing when I literally said out loud, "My fingers are cold!"

Initially reaching for my Pride & Prejudice crafting gloves, I quickly decided to make a pair more appropriate for winter. Reason being that after making this Warren bear as a baby gift for new parents in our extended family, I had quite a bit of my Luminescent Ocean Dreams minky fabric left over. (I had already sewn up the headband shown above.)

What better use for some of the remaining material than to make a set of fingerless gloves?

One of the pieces I had left measured about 18" long by about 10" wide. I sliced off 2" along the length and then cut the remainder in half to get two pieces measuring 8" wide by 9". I followed my own instructions from making the P&P crafting gloves to wind up with a pair that's essentially the same, only shorter. (Given that I'm typically wearing long sleeves under the current circumstances, the shorter length is fine.)

A simple sewing job...

As with my P&P version of the gloves, I can roll the top seam underneath to expose more of my fingers if needed (like for the greater range of movement needed when typing).

You might think that cold fingers would not get any reprieve from fingerless gloves, but that's not the case; they do help.

This time, I sewed down the seam around the thumb opening...

Despite the circular seams at both ends that are small and somewhat fiddly, it's a simple sewing job. I had this done within a half hour. (If you have a fleece sweatshirt that's ready to be tossed, I'd suggest using the sleeves to make a pair.)

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Then it was on to a different way of staying warm: making cookies... yum!

I had been doing my share of baking even before the pandemic, but this past year has been a busy one for my oven.

One of my new fave recipes...

When I picked up a bag of lemons at the grocery store last week, I knew I'd be making these soft lemon cookies again. (And FYI for those who prefer oranges: yes, they work also.)

Emma's Goodies is a YouTube channel that popped up in my feed last year. (I tell ya, if she can't entice you to bake, no one can.) The recipe for these cookies was posted in April 2017 if you'd like to try something soft and lemony.

A delicious hot drink that's also good for you!

Or how about something hot and lemony?

This recipe for honey elixir with ginger, lemon and turmeric appeared in my local newspaper a few weeks ago. Given the ingredients, it's an anti-inflammatory immune booster, so very good for you. However, I mention it because it tastes great and is a distinct change from hot chocolate, coffee or plain tea when you want something warm to drink. (It's why I originally bought the bag of lemons.)

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Finally, as I enjoyed my drink and a fresh cookie, my focus turned to contemplating what I would need to make chicken and lentil soup for dinner. Soup, of course, is the ultimate cold weather remedy.

But in the meantime, I had a couple of hours to relax and luxuriate in the warmth of my creations. The sun shone brightly and the great outdoors beckoned, but the temperature wasn't budging much, so inside we stayed.

At least now my hands were warm and I felt reasonably toasty.

By the way, if we were to go out for a walk or something in these kinds of temperatures, it would be with a double layer of pants (leggings or exercise wear under jeans works well for me), double layer of mitts, a good coat (with layers underneath), and probably a balaclava-style hood. Oh, and winter boots with thermal socks. That's how I cope with outside cold. 

What's the routine for your definition of extreme weather?

'Til next...