The hot water bottle- a great British institution!

There are not many British institutions to rival fish and chips, but hot water bottles are surely one. Until it senses the first signs of a chill, it lurks in the corner of some cupboard or box. Then, voila! There it is at the bottom of the bed

Of course this is nonsense, but I just wanted to highlight that for most of us a hot water bottle is an aesthetically-challenged object. i don’t have a clue when was the last time that I actually went into a shop and bought one. I am sure it would have been a last-minute idea for an elderly relative at Christmas.

We as as nation still appear to be ‘tied’ totally to them, especially as this winter appears the coldest in 20 years. In fact we were once lampooned by a Hungarian born author by the name of George Mikes. He is quoted as saying in his book ‘How to be an alien’, “Continental people have sex lives, the English have hot water bottles”. Maybe there was an element of truth about the jibe, especially in the days when the designs were extremely dour and limited. A typical continental person’s view of the English and sex is probably reflected in these words.

Hold on a minute! Much has changed since then. i wouldn’t have believed it, but these things are actually now considered to be ’sexy’? I found a site the other day whilst doing random searches, that had a good selection of different styles and shapes. If it was an unusual gift that I wanted to buy, things that were different from high street shops, I might start at this place. They have everything here, from a buddha statue or two to unusual gifts, and most things in between!

If you are primarily interested in hot water bottles, my favourites are those with a cushion shape, like the ‘Giraffe cushion’. What i saw looked very comfortable and probably had therapeutic values, for those of us who suffer from lower back pain. They are made from 100% recyclable materials, and are guaranteed not to fade - perfect for the environmentally conscious.