A letter from a reader

At 62, my feet were cold from October to March

I have never written to a shop before, and I did not expect my first letter to be about a pair of boots.

Every year, round about now, my feet go cold and they do not warm up again until spring. Two pairs of socks, a hot water bottle at my feet in the evening, and still they were like ice by the time I got back from the shops. Standing at the bus stop was the worst. I would stamp about like a soldier on guard duty and count the minutes.

I had started measuring the winter by how long it was since I had last felt my toes.

So I did what everyone does. I put up with it, and went out a bit less.

Then I saw them on a friend at the bus stop

Pauline was waiting for the number 9 in a pair of bright red ankle boots with soft grey fleece peeping out round the top, and she was not stamping about at all. I asked her how she was not frozen, and she lifted a foot and said, "Fleece. All the way round." She told me they were the Siofra, from Nottingham Boutique, a little boutique that has been quietly looking after women our age for a few years now. I ordered mine that evening.

What happened at the farmers' market

On Saturday I spent the best part of an hour at the farmers' market on a properly cold morning, standing about choosing apples and chatting. My feet were warm the whole time. Three different women asked me about my boots, and my friend Sue told me I looked like I had made an effort, which I have decided to take as a compliment. She has asked me to write the name down for her.

It is a small thing, warm feet. I had forgotten how much more I want to go out when I am not dreading the cold.

Three things I have learned since

One. The fleece goes all the way round. They are lined with a soft, thick fleece that you can see round the top, and they are windproof, so the cold simply does not get in.

Two. They grip. The sole is chunky and grippy, made for wet and icy paths, and it is cushioned underneath, so I feel steady and my feet do not ache after a long walk.

Three. They just slip on. There is a stretchy panel at the side, so there are no laces to fumble with and no zips, and they suit narrow or wider feet without squeezing.

About the price

I had assumed boots this warm would cost a fortune.

The Siofra is £39.95. It was £80.

There is no catch. They have their winter sale on and delivery is free. Mine are the red, and they also come in black, blue, green and beige, from a UK 2 up to a UK 8.5.

I did go and read the reviews before I ordered. Just over three hundred of them, sitting at 4.2 stars. Not the suspiciously perfect five you see on some sites, which if I am honest made me trust it more. One woman had written, "I have had cold feet every winter for twenty years. Not this one. I put them on and forget about my feet completely." That was the one that decided it for me.

What I would tell you if we were friends

If you came round and we sat by the fire with a cup of tea, this is what I would tell you.

If your feet are cold from October to March, do not just pile on more socks and stay in. Get a pair of boots that keeps the cold out properly, and go out.

They do not look like they were made for somebody half my age, and they do not look like I have given up either.

Caroline