This was one big project, but every day another house is ruined by double glazing. A third of our housing stock was put up before the First World War and so still has (or once had) quality windows.  Please do your best to save what we can of our heritage.  For the sake of our planet, resist the fashion for “disposable” windows.

As Britain’s best known designer and typographer, William Morris said, “If I were asked to say what is at once the most important production of Art and the thing most to be longed for, I should answer; A beautiful house.” 

So, please go through your local yellow pages and find carpenters to restore your windows.  Everything is possible.  I know that Restoration windows in Brentford west London on 020-8560 1264 always use reclaimed wood, rather than poorer-quality modern timber that has been dried artificially in kilns. 

Thornton Kay at the salvage specialists, Salvo http://www.salvo.co.uk/ can salvage useful old window sections. 

The world’s expert on how to restore beautiful windows is Charles Brooking, who has salvaged thousands of windows.   Mr Brooking lives in Cranleigh, Surrey and runs the Brooking Collection, which is housed at Greenwich University.

Dominique Clothier, July 2006

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