Hot Stuff! Vix's Guide To Staying Warm When Its Freezing

I woke this morning to the sound of the neighbour scraping the ice off their car, the cats refused to leave the house and even the postman had abandoned his shorts. What's a girl to do when she can't afford to turn on the central heating for more than a few hours a day, polar fleece is against her religion and the very thought of chunky knitwear makes her come over all peculiar?



Easy! Every morning I leap out of bed (yep, I do, I'm an annoying sod to live with) and head straight to my Wii Fit for a workout, starting with a step session with alternate days of yoga & muscle-building. By the time I've worked up a sweat, showered and dressed, Jon's got a pot of banana porridge on the go.

Ganesh pendant (handmade by the fabularse Helga!)

Walk round town and you'd be forgiven for thinking that warm weather gear only comes in two shades, grey or black. Wrong! Layer up and there's no reason on earth why you can't wear a vintage summer dress all year long (or a '70s nightie, in my case). Synthetics are fabulously warm and, when you're battling with non-stop torrential rain, they dry in next to no time, too.

Recycled wrapper bangle (the always inspirational Senora Allnut), zip bangle (made by me) and the rest from the market. Sinful Colors nail paint from my gorgeous mate, Em.

Those of a beige disposition, look away now...

Faux suede ankle boots (Off the market, £5)

Best thing about a maxi dress? You can get away with sticking anything on underneath it - Kiss Me Kitty psychedelic spandex leggings, insane socks (thanks, Krista), hideous baby blue thermal underwear and vests a granny would shudder at (which I'm not sharing).
I'm linking my you-can't-bloody-miss-me style over at Patti's Visible Monday & also Shoe Shine over at Bella's.

1970s nightdress (from those Sweet Squirrels) worn with blue fake fur jacket (Catalogue clearance shop, £7, 2012), 1970s St Michael bag (the wonderful Clare)

Of course, the best thing for keeping warm is by consuming masses of spicy, homemade Indian food.

On a trip to Kerala a couple of years ago the lady of the house we stayed at (see HERE) shared her basic curry gravy recipe. I make this once a week and keep it in the fridge in an airtight container.

You'll need:

200gms red onions

100gms chopped or tinned tomatoes

6 cloves of garlic

10gms fresh ginger, peeled

1 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp chilli powder

8 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsps veg oil

1 cup of water 

Finely slice the onions, tomatoes, garlic and ginger, pop into a food mixer (with the water) and blend to a smooth paste.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large saucepan, then add the paste.

Add the chilli, coriander, garam masala and salt & gently cook over a low heat for 5 minutes, stirring continuously.

Remove from heat & cool before refrigerating. It'll keep in an airtight container for up to a week.

We buy cheap, seasonal veg from the market, roughly chop it, cook until al dente (I hate soggy veg!), stick it in a pan (allowing approx. 4oz of veg per person) with 6 tsp of the gravy, half a tin of tomatoes, 1/2 a cup of water and a few curry leaves. We simmer until thoroughly reheated and serve with basmati rice, chapatis or a wholemeal roti (or chips, if Jon gets his way!)

Try it and I bet you'll never buy another jar of curry paste or pre-made sauce again!

Hope you had a bostin' weekend. We had a blast at the vintage fair, sold lots of stuff and met friends old and new. A special mention to Tina, the lovely lady in the gorgeous 1960s dress who reads my blog, thanks for coming along! Your kind words made both Jon & I a bit emotional.

There's another Indian travel post scheduled for later this week and, hopefully, some more vintage finds to share with you, too.

See you soon!