With the gas price rises, what are the best (cheap) fleece suits to wear inside??

[flintstonewall]

On benefits due to poor health. There is no way I can afford these rises that are about to happen. Struggling as it is.

I have a small, small buffer of savings which I have figured is better to use on some very warm clothing for me and 2 others in the household. that could last us a couple of years, whereas with the new gas prices wouldn't stretch even nearly that. We are all quite small in size.

Everything I can find is designed for outdoors or just too thin.

Any recommendations?? Stuff that will actually keep us warm, wash ok, and last..

Why do you want a fleece suit ? (not even sure what that is)

You need to wear layers to keep warm, and make sure your clothes tuck in / overlap so you don't have gaps between your tops and trousers / trousers and shoes etc.

Get some tights under your trousers. Wear a snood or a scarf round your neck. Wear a vest., then a t-shirt, then a jumpers or sweatshirt and you can put a bigger hoodie or a body warmer on top of that.
Just mooch about in a charity shop for some slightly bigger jumpers to wear on top of your normal size.

Do you mean cheap onesie type things? If so I would go to primark/asda/matalan etc. They may reduce them further in the sales as it comes closer to summer. If you get plainer ones they will look less like nightwear compared to patterned ones. I also saw an electric jumper/Dressing gown (like an electric blanket but clothing) which would be amazing for wfh or if you're sitting down for a long period of time (although you'd have to remember to unplug yourself whenever you needed to move!)

Oh primark also do fleece lined leggings which are really thick and warm, think maybe six quid each? Better than full onesies for going to the loo and you can wear them outside too

I was just trying to think of a way we could all keep warm, preferably in one or two easy garments each.

I will try charity shops for layers.

Thanks @thevassal. Yeah I meant fleece pjs that are designed for cold weather or camping (ie tapered seams) , but that don't look completely like pjs.

I could never get along with onesies.

Hot water bottles are your friend! Make sure you get one with a nice thick cover and it will stay warm for hours, for the cost of 1 x boiling the kettle.

I've found the following useful.

Microwaveable slippers.
Poncho that I can just throw over the top of all my other layers.
Head-covering: hoodie or cap.
Scarf to stop the breeze down my neck.
Long socks or leg warmers.
Long skirt worn over trousers.

I’ve got a fleece onesie from M&S thst I bought when our house didn’t have a central heating system. They don’t sell them any more but it’s really warm. This looks similar.

www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-partners-pom-pom-fleece-onesie/grey/p4751614

Worth PJs underneath and socks with slippers it is plenty warm enough.

Uniqlo heattech clothes are great. A thermal top and leggings under a tracksuit would keep you toasty.

Electric throws for the sofa are fantastic and very cheap to run.

Invest in a heated throw for everyone.

They were recommended in the energy section on the Moneysaving Expert forum.

I bought one and wished that I had got one years ago instead of relying on my hot water bottle. The heated throw cost pennies to run and save on having the central heating on or I'm able to have a lower temperature than I would normally have when I'm working at home or sitting on the sofa in the evenings.

@HollowTalk

Electric throws for the sofa are fantastic and very cheap to run.

You beat me to it.

@thevassal

Do you mean cheap onesie type things? If so I would go to primark/asda/matalan etc. They may reduce them further in the sales as it comes closer to summer. If you get plainer ones they will look less like nightwear compared to patterned ones. I also saw an electric jumper/Dressing gown (like an electric blanket but clothing) which would be amazing for wfh or if you're sitting down for a long period of time (although you'd have to remember to unplug yourself whenever you needed to move!)

I think the point is that she is trying to avoid using the electricity, rather than plugging her onesie in, but maybe they don't use much? When camping I find wearing a hat really does help. Also there's a brand of gloves called thermoskin that are very good. Fleecy tights under clothing and lightweight thermals (underarmour) are great. Hoping things pick up for you somehow.

I often marvelled at Asian men wearing cotton suits in winter. Then discovered that the local Asian shops sell - fleece undersuits!

Thanks everyone.

We will be moving around like doing housework etc, so ideally something to wear.

Yes, the really thick fleecey pjs are what I mean. The ones that make you look 2 dress sizes bigger!! Most of the 'warm' pjs I can find are not warm enough for an old badly insulated flat in Scotland where putting the heating on will be rare after next month.

@ClariceQuiff

Hot water bottles are your friend! Make sure you get one with a nice thick cover and it will stay warm for hours, for the cost of 1 x boiling the kettle.

Apparently boiling a kettle uses a lot of energy.

Also, when filling my hot water bottle I've scalded myself a couple of times resulting in trips to the minor injuries unit.

Since I discovered the joys of my heated throw, there's no going back to the hot water bottle.

a few thin layers will keep you warmer that one big fleecy layer. it's all about trapping layers of warm air close to your body.

What about something similar to the Oodie? The actual branded ones are quite pricey but I’m sure they must have cheaper versions in primark etc? theoodie.co.uk/

Pure wool or silk items from charity shops keep you warm

A few things I'd recommend in addition to the above.

See if you can find cheap fleece blankets in charity shops or fleece sold by the meter on market stalls/discount fabric shops, you can usually find it for £2-3 a meter if you're not fussy about the print/colour.

Use this to line your curtains, and create door curtains for any draughty doors/windows. It makes a big difference in keeping the heat in. You don't need to make anything fancy, fleece doesn't fray so you don't need to hem it. It can be as simple as making some holes along the top edge and then screwing some hooks into the top of your door frame to hang them on.

You can also put a fleece blanket under your fitted sheet on the beds, it makes the bed so warm and cosy.

As above, layers are better than one thick item of clothing. Lots of sales are starting up now to make way for spring season stuff. Look for thermal base layers in places like decathlon,bonus points if you find anything with a decent Merino wool content as they'll be lovely and warm.

I made DD a load of snoods and wristwarmers/fingerless gloves from old fleece PJs she'd outgrown. She wears these in class when they have the windows wide open. I have fleece wristwarmers too and they are great for keeping your hands warm.

Primark do knock off Oodies for £19 which are great too.

Apparently boiling a kettle uses a lot of energy.

You can combine it with making a cup of tea/coffee to minimise this.

Also, when filling my hot water bottle I've scalded myself a couple of times resulting in trips to the minor injuries unit.

Whatever are you doing? I'm nearly fifty and have been filling hot water bottles since I was about 10 - never once scalded myself. You should wait till the water has gone off the boil to avoid perishing the rubber.

Since I discovered the joys of my heated throw, there's no going back to the hot water bottle

I too have a heated throw, but I'm always conscious of it ticking up my electricity bill, so I prefer the good old hottie!

Recommend these, give me very toasty feet. Not too bad on Amazon etc heatholders.co.uk/

I’m in Scotland and used to live in a cold granite tenement with only electric heating which cost a million pounds to run - and that was before any price hikes - so I know how you feel!

Things that worked for me (I lived alone so this might not be useful):

I bought a couple of big oil filled radiators which were initially expensive but very cheap to run. Initially I had one which was on wheels and I could move about the flat. Mine had timers which was really useful.

Had really heavy curtains and closed them as soon as it started to get dark

Those Totes Toastie socks then sheepskin type slippers

Brushed cotton bed linen

Blankets/big scarves (charity shop) rolled up and tied at all the doors. I got a wee bit crafty with this and bought some nice broad ribbon from Hobbycraft so they looked cute, but string would do the job.

Charity shop big men’s wool jumpers that I could wear over pjs in the evening. I had a couple of big fleeces I got from work but found them really static-y and not nearly as warm.

Agree with pp re No Gaps! Tuck everything in.

@ClariceQuiff

Hot water bottles.

I don't have hot drinks, so not an option.

I was clumsy. After the second scalding, I'm more careful now.

Heated throw costs pennies per day. Plus it's not always switched on. Just having it wrapped around me keeps me so much warmer than the hot water bottle did.

The shops are full of fluffy warm PJs at the moment.

Where have you been looking, OP?