The coldest spot in the house is the one where you sit still

Anyone who works from home knows it: by mid-afternoon the house feels fine everywhere except the chair you've been sitting in since nine. Hands get stiff on the keyboard. Feet go cold under the desk. Someone reaches for the thermostat.

Moving around keeps you warm. Sitting still for hours doesn't, and rooms on the north side, over a garage, or by an old window are often a few degrees colder than the rest of the house. So the room you work or read in can feel chilly even when the rest of the house is comfortable.

You don't need the whole house warmer. You need the three feet around you warmer.

Warm the spot, not the house

That's the idea behind personal heaters: small units that sit on a desk or side table and aim warmth at the person in front of them. They aren't meant to heat a whole room. They're for the place where you spend the most still hours of the day.

Typical spots people use them:

• A home-office desk on cold mornings
• The reading chair or the corner of the couch in the evening
• A craft or hobby table in the basement or garage workshop
• Next to a parent or grandparent who always runs cold

What the Hearth & Haven Heater is

The Hearth & Haven Heater is a freestanding tabletop heater with a rounded cream-and-peach body. The company describes it as "personal warmth for your desk, reading nook, and everyday wind-down." It's small: under 9 inches tall, about the footprint of a hardcover book standing up.

The company also notes this is a new model. An earlier Hearth & Haven heater plugged straight into the wall; this one stands on a table with a cord, so you can put it where you sit instead of wherever the outlet happens to be.

Is it right for you?

Using any space heater safely

Space heaters are a leading cause of home heating fires, so whatever heater you use, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's basics apply:

• Keep it at least 3 feet from anything that can burn: curtains, bedding, paper, furniture.
• Plug it straight into a wall outlet, not an extension cord or power strip.
• Set it on a flat, hard, stable surface where it won't be knocked over.
• Turn it off when you leave the room or go to sleep.
• Keep children and pets away from it.
• Follow the placement rules in the product's manual.

If you rent, live in a dorm, or work in an office, check the building's rules first. Some don't allow space heaters.