Q I’ve stopped using the tumble-drier, but how can I dry clothes over winter?

A Full marks for ditching the drier. Given that the Energy Saving Trust estimates that a year of not using one will save you about £75, it’s worth keeping up the good work over the winter. On the days that your clothes are unlikely to get dry if you hang them outside, however, you’ll have to employ indoor drying techniques, the success of which is generally dependent on space and equipment.

I lack both in my London flat, which is a cause of considerable domestic unrest. I end up draping my bed linen over doors and radiators, where it picks up enough dirt and dust to merit another cycle in the machine. But I soldier on, turning desks into drying racks and leaning heavily on the warmth of the airing cupboard to finish off damp undies. I would love to invest in one of the space-saving solutions offered on ecowashinglines.co.uk . There’s a nifty D-Rack hanging device (£32.45) that attaches to the wall and a ceiling mounted clothes airer (£54.50) designed for frustrated rural wannabes like myself.

You could also try lakeland.co.uk for the practical, if not very pretty, airers that hang off radiators (£9.99).

Q Is it acceptable to buy possum fur?

A Round these parts, you’ll have a job getting hold of much possum, dead or alive. There’s a UK company called Soul Furs that imports rugs and cushion covers from New Zealand, shipping rather than flying them in. But expect to pay for your possum: it takes three to make a cushion cover, which costs from £150 ( soulfur.com ). And while there’s always a few fur jackets claiming to be possum knocking around on eBay, for a full range of products, which includes nipple warmers, you’ll be pleased to hear, you have to order online or make a trip to New Zealand – and I’m sure you can imagine what I think about flying across the world for the sake of warm nipples.

Then there’s the question of whether this is an ethical material to be tracking down in the first place, which depends on whether your sympathies lie with the New Zealand branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature. It says you would be doing its country a favour – so long as the possum originated there, not from Australia, where it is a protected species. Considered a pest, there are 18 times as many possums as people in New Zealand. They threaten its native trees and wildlife by munching through vegetation. So much so that anything made from possum is dubbed eco-fur. “Buy a possum and save a forest” is the slogan of one company, Possum New Zealand ( possumnz.co.nz ).

Personally, I don’t think there is anything wrong with having it in for certain creatures, even if you count yourself as a planet-friendly individual. Take grey squirrels. I don’t have a nice word to say about them since they vandalised my apple tree, leaving my plans for an autumn of crumbles in smithereens. Would I be prepared to don the skin of a small possum in the name of fashion? Probably.

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