Oooooh I'm not a happy chicken. Today the Met office has issued a Severe Weather Warning, and overnight I will be facing my very worst fear.. the scrunchy white joy that is snow. Oh my...

Now for normal people, snow offers the opportunity to ram a bobble hat over unruly curls and roll yourself a snowman, but for me, snow spells H.I.B.E.R.N.A.T.I.O.N in a month when the chill factor already has me shuffling my way under a velvet trimmed blanket at every opportunity.

While I love my house as much as the next woman, even I know that days on end puttering my way through air polluted by central heating, and windows darkened by Winter weight curtains means that all too soon my skin WILL shrivel up, and the house will start developing the fairy lit festive equivalent of S.A.D, with all the fragrance of a mouldy sock.

This will never do. And so my first weapon in the battle against the glitteryfied Winter blues is fresh air. It should be clear to all an sundry that I am refusing to leave the house and so instead, first thing in the morning, I layer on lots and lots of clothes, Eskimo style and run around opening all the windows while I complete my morning routine. It isn't pleasant. A bitter chill  fills the house almost instantly and the curtains waft around the room in a violent fashion. But here's the thing: when I close them again a little while later, making certain to push the curtains as far back as possible in order to maximise what little light there is, the whole house feels fresher, warmer and indeed cosier. But it no longer feels stuffy and keeping warm during the morning chill means that I have kept moving, got my circulation going and got the chores done twice as fast as I do on gorgeous Summer mornings.

Next in the battle against December misery is humidifying the house to offset the damage central heating does. This is a simple matter of adding moisture to the air and vintage housekeepers like us do it the old fashioned way, by foregoing the tumble dryer and using drying racks around the house instead, placing little bowls of aromatherapy oil scented water near radiators, opening the dishwasher before the drying programme begins, keeping a pan of spiced water simmering on the stove and for a very quick way of humidifying and freshening the house quickly, dipping tea-towel into fabric conditioned or oil scented water and allowing them to dry on the piping hot radiators.

Finally I can relax...and begin to make the most of my squirrel like tendencies on slushy days... making use of online grocery delivery services, completing my online Christmas shopping, taking steamy morning baths in a bathroom where I have pine oil burning on the fragrance burner, the bathroom window wide open (I'm a glutton for punishment!), and skin tingling from ten minutes of vigorous body brushing and later half an hour of bliss re-arranging my sock drawer wearing an eccentric combination of holey cardigans and yoga pants....

Happy Hibernating Housekeepers!