As a busy mum, finding time to so much as brush my hair before the school run is a tough ask. My two children (at 3 & 5) are simply too young to be trusted to dress themselves, pack their school bags or operate the toaster - so you’ll often see me in a half-run dragging my children to school by their coat sleeves monday to friday.

Despite time management clearly being an issue for me in the mornings, I refuse to be one of those mums that slip behind their wheel of their SUVs in a onesie and wave goodbye to their children outside the school gates. Instead I’ll simply fake that I’m ready for the day by dressing, and slipping on some dark sunglasses and a heavy necklace to disguise the fact that yesterday’s eyeliner is halfway down my cheeks. It totally works - trust me.

In fact jewellery is a big part of my mummy wardrobe. Not only does it glam up an otherwise practical-to-the-point-of-nausea outfit, I also find that looking down at a pretty bracelet calms me when I’m about to lose it with the urchins.

If, like me, you have a bulging disordered jewellery box that both pleases and displeases you in equal measure - here are some top hacks for restoring a sense of calm to your collection, and making a feature out of them to boot:

For the jewellery hoarder…

For those of you with HUGE collections stuffed into boxes under your bed, you might want to think about modifying some furniture to house it all. For more modest collections this can be as simple as taking an old picture frame, gutting it of picture and glass and applying a felt coverlet to the picture board. So long as your collection is fairly harmonious colour-wise, this can create a subtle statement in dressing rooms or teenage bedrooms, whilst remaining totally accessible if you’re in a rush to dress.

Otherwise, you might want to remodel an old armoire with glass doors to house all your favourite things. Just make sure you pick up one with drawers to hide all the pieces that are otherwise tricky to display. You’ll also want to ensure your contents insurance is up to date too, as (sadly) it would probably be the first place a burglar would raid upon entering your home. Perhaps a more subtle way of hiding your valuables would be inside a full length mirror, or behind a hinged piece of art. This might look like an expensive project, but I’ve seen these mirrors at around the £70 mark on Amazon.

Upcycled storage

For a more bohemian feel, you might want to source some weathered bottles and hang bracelets from the necks, or (again) remodel some hobby drawers to house remodelled picture frame trays - go bold with your frame inserts to add further interest.

Other easy upcycling ideas include rescuing an old drawer or farm crate and hanging it vertically on your wall. Simply screw in hooks or old drawer handles inside the base of the drawer to hang necklaces, bracelets and earrings that might otherwise get tangled within traditional jewellery boxes. Stud earrings can be attached to old decorative buttons to keep them paired together, then tucked away neatly in smaller boxes within the natural shelf of the drawer.

I hope I’ve inspired you to do something creative as regards jewellery storage in your home. Do let me know if you come across any other ideas.