To keep my feet warm I often wear two pairs of socks, a thin pair and a thicker pair (because two thick pairs = feet too big for shoes). Does it make any difference to heat retention which pair I put on first, thick or thin?

Bob, Twickenham, England

• I would suggest thin one first; as this will create 2 layers of air (created by the layers of sock) closer to the skin and provide a thicker layer of insulating material on the outside. Thus your body heat will warm up the trapped air faster, and the layers of air are further from the cold outside. Theoretically thin first should get warmer quicker and stay warmer, but you probably wont notice the difference so I'd stick with the softest sock first.

  Matthew, York UK

• If you are wearing two pairs of socks, make sure that the thinner layer goes next to the feet and that it is made of a synthetic material like Coolmax. Dry feet are warm feet because water (perspiration) transfers heat away from the body at a rate several times faster than will air. Being Canadian, I can tell you for a fact that wearing a tuque (woolen hat) will also help to keep your feet warmer. Imagine, Mom really was right all those years ago.

  Angela, Ottawa, Canada

• There is scope for an easy experiment here. Put the thin one on the outside on one foot and on the inside on the other. Then you could let us know.

  Angus Dobbie, Leeds, Uk

• Yes I think it does. My experience is that if you put thin socks on thick socks they become one thick non-protecting layer. If you however, put them the other way around, thick on thin you, are more likely to contain your heat. This is because the thin and tight layer around your feet can still actively breath and shelter your feet but will be protected by the second layer of socks. More importantly, this way the chances of air getting stored in between the two layers of socks is much greater than the other way around. Air what you need in order to contain warmth or heat as it is one of the best isolation methods, just think of double-glazing.

  Florian , London, UK