Lost my internet this morning for some stupid reason so trying to catch up now. Talking kids and heights, my grands here are absolutely racing skyward at the moment. I'm 5'6" but all my daughters are taller than me - 5'8 - 5'9". My 15 year old grandson took great delight when they visited on Saturday to come straight in and stand over me. Said he had had a growth spurt that last week and he is now a full head taller than me. Then my 12 year old granddaughter had to join in as she is now 5'8". The 10 year old boy then had to give me a hug and he is almost looking me in the eye. DD reckons I'm shrinking. The 9 year old girl is pretty much a 9 year old but my daughter's partner's kids came too, his son is the same age and height as my 15 year old but his daughter at 8 is almost at eye level with me too. They so fill the house when they are here. At least is isn't as bad as when my mum was alive, she was only about 4'10" and everyone used to crowd around her and pat her on the head like the family dog. I don't have to try very hard to be fave grandparent, the others are hopeless, particularly the mother. She is very much a business woman and just isn't on kid level at all and very tight with money. I was just chasing curtain rods and fittings today - boring stuff - and found a pretty cushion that is done in a soft taffeta and absolutely covered in flowers of the same fabric. I can get it in red and navy - of course didn't have the pillow slip with me - so will have to go back and check it out. I really have a thing for the flowers. I haven't got to the fabric shop yet, can't remember what happened the day I was going to go, I'm really trying to get as much as possible organised for hubby to do before he leaves next week and then I have 2 blissful months to do what I want to do....... even better spend what money I like, heehee. It has turned so hot here again and really steamy making it even harder to get into things. Anyway back to your problem - 1 - did you try the chairs in front of the window as joan suggested? 2 - fireplace - I'm now going back three weeks ago to when we had the lounge in front of it so you could look out the front window and the TV in the front corner Why didn't we like that??? This is now true decorating, we are going round in circles. Just have to show you this too, while I was shopping today I happened on a fabulous table lamp I reckon I'm definitely getting for my lounge room to go beside the new entertainment unit (when I buy it) and beside the new TV (when I buy that too) http://www.freedom.com.au/homewares/lighting/table-lights/23355415/twisted-table-lamp-60cm-natural-finish/ It has a matching floor lamp too - the colour in the shade is more accurate. I'm having a bit of a beachy theme happening too and I just love the rough natural look of them. http://www.freedom.com.au/homewares/lighting/floor-lights/23355408/twisted-floor-lamp-150cm-natural-finish/

chanti1, my grandparents used to have massive condensation problems with their double glazing as it was added as an afterthought, it had about a 4 inch gap and was not sealed so they would have to keep cloths in the gap to mop it all up. In my parents house there were a couple of windows prone to this problem between the panes - caused when the seal on the double glazed units failed. Because you can't get to it the result is eventually mould. The units had to be changed which to my mind seems drastic and wasteful. There should be a way of removing, cleaning and resealing units on site. Of course condensation happens with single glazing all the time. Where I live now we get condensation on the outside of the window at night. Air conditioning indoors and extreme humidity outside with night time temperatures still in the high twenties centigrade does that.

As an experienced architectural designer my answer deals with your specific problems, but also contains general advice which could be useful to other readers, so please don't be offended or take what I write personally... I'm just trying to help people. I notice your house has a massive external surface area with which to lose heat, plus lots of windows so it will not be an easy house to keep warm! It would be very sensible to check out your whole house internally and externally with an infra-red thermometer as this will show up the worst heat loss spots. They could be around window frames, doors, skirting, ceilings and these are the places to target your heat loss fighting energy and finance. Your problem could be caused by a whole range of issues. Do you have a suspended timber floor which is ventilated? Just like your open chimney, the wind will rob any heat from the room unless you stop it doing so. This would involve insulating the floor in some way, and if you were taking up the floorboards you would be wise to treat the joists (especially the ends) and check for evidence of mice, which can play havoc in cavity wall insulation. Taking up the floor is a very disruptive job, which is why it has not been done in my house. Untreated timber could rot if ventilation is restricted by close-fitting insulation. If you have an unventilated floor, it may not have any or enough insulation. Also, beware of internal insulation as a solution, as this makes your outside walls colder/damper and usually leads to later problems with damp/mould/rot and expensive remedial work, even structural failure. Make sure you follow the advice of a competent person who understands how complex building physics can be. (Building services engineer). Bay windows are usually really poor bits of construction... If your double glazing has a large gap between the panes of around 20mm, it may not be the real problem. If the spacers (between the glass) are shiny aluminium, this is not good, so if you ever replace the glazing, don't settle for anything less than Edgetech Superspacer or Truplas, the very best warm edge spacers available. I live in a 1930's ex council house and I have blocked the only remaining chimney with a massive bag of loft insulation. The floor was already overlaid with a cheap laminate floor, so the floor gets cold when the winter winds roar. Reflective blinds (checkout Reflex Rol) can be used, but with a bay window, fitting will be complex and heat will still escape around the edges of the blind. Reflective foil is able to bounce radiant energy away from itself, but there should always be an airspace on each side of the foil or the energy just conducts through to the cold side. If the window faces south, then blinds could make the room even colder, unless you always remember to raise them early each morning - the same goes for thermal shutters. My house in Somerset has a gas combi boiler which has hardly needed to come on at all so far this winter. My gas and electricity comes from EBICO, as they have no standing charges. I have insulated the house externally with 50mm of Celotex, covered with treated battens and Marley Cedral weatherboard (which does not rot) and only adds around 80mm to the wall thickness, plus Cedral is perfect for eaves boards and soffits. (You can paint it whatever colour you like). This, plus a porch outside the front door has made a massive difference to my warmth as I am 70 and now live on my own. The attic has been properly insulated and boarded to become an unofficial room. I am lucky to have two unshaded windows that face south and they bring in lots of free energy. I am not stupid and I'm often in and out to my garden, so in winter I wear a vest under my T shirt, as well as a fleece and longjohns under my trousers (get them at Lidl) which is also a good place to buy LED lights. Always start with energy conservation and insulation rather than things that burn timber or fossils fuels and ignore the real problem. I would avoid burning wood, given the state our atmosphere and lungs are in. We are not cave men anymore and should be evolving. New energy efficient houses sometimes feature large south-facing PV roofs which directly heat a central water tank or can feed electric underfloor heated zones - and just like my 1970's experimental solar house, these super-insulated dwellings do not have a 'normal heating system'. I can't stand curtains, they look a mess, often block out solar radiation / light and have to be washed. I like close-fitting wooden floors which you can simply sweep with a brush and run over with an upright vac-cleaner. Tiles are a pain to keep clean and can break your hip as well as things you drop. We can save lots of money and energy by not buying things that need to be washed and dried, as well as things we really don't need!

Here's the same version, but with Colourhappy's suggestion, Pigeon, which is probably a bit warmer and definitely lighter and brighter. Colours will be different in real life, but it'll give you sort of an idea of how it will look. I was thinking that although blue is a cold colour, your floor and furniture are warm coloured, so it would be levelled out, so to speak. And I don't mind dark colours for bedrooms, but it's a personal preference. I also think that you might want to try a different ceiling light, before installing recessed spotlights. I think your current one is small and only lets out light on the top and bottom? A larger shade that is more transparent and perhaps a brighter bulb, will make a lot of difference. You can add lighting inside the closets (if you don't have that already). There are battery operated LED strips that react to movement, so as soon as you open the door they will light up.