My 11-year old daughter JuJu allowed me to post this photo she took this morning in sunny but frigid St. Louis. She woke up to find this pattern of ice on her bedroom window:
She had actually taken a series of photos, all of the ice formations on her window. Here’s another (click for higher resolution):
In Holland we call those ice flowers and everybody had them in winter until the dawn of double glazing and efficient heating (and increased temperatures in winter). I'd rush down in the morning to discover what new beauty would have crystallized on the big living room window before heating went up and melted it away.
Good point. Maybe there is a storm window needing to be closed, or the need for a new more efficient window. This is the only window in our house where we've seen such patterns.
You can also leave it as it is an enjoy the yearly show; I know the ice flowers instilled an everlasting interest in growing crystals in me ;-).
I have memories of frost forming on the windows in an old farmhouse where I lived for a while as a child. My sister and I found out that we could melt the white frost on the glass by getting very close to the frost and blowing on it. Our warm breath would melt the frost and then we would step back and watch the feathery fern-like crystals form before us.