New Year New Home

Acclaimed designer Sarah Berry advises on how to get your home in order...

"I maintain that a well designed, stylish home can only happen if there are sufficient organisational systems in place," says Sarah. "And with organisation, it is all about the details, that save you time, money and effort, so you can spend more time, money and effort designing your lovely harmonious interiors.

"Some careful thought about how you live and what will help make your life easier will allow you to identify what areas you need to work on. Start a bit at a time, perhaps with one room or cupboard, there really is something wonderfully satisfying about having a good clear out."

Berry's best bits

I love drawer dividers (right)

These will save you lots of precious time in the mornings, where you would normally tear through your drawers frantically searching for matching socks or a non-tangled pair of knickers, these nifty dividers do exactly what they say on the tin; divide your drawers (pun intended). Allocating a few minutes to sort every time you unload your clean laundry will save you lots of valuable morning time which equates to more time in bed - something that cannot be underestimated!

I love cable tidies (below)

Yes, organisation can reach epically nerdy proportions, but I guarantee that when you have started to sort out your home you will reach a heightened level of sophistication with your systems and your life WILL become easier. Use velcro cable tidies to wrap up all of your charger cords and wires and sort into a drawer or container and revel as each time you need something it doesn't come out attached to every other cable you own. Cabledrops are another system for out of control wires, they are self adhesive grips that you can stick to a flat surface to hold a wire in place so that they will no more drop behind your desk the moment you unplug your phone/camera. No more scrabbling around in awkward spaces looking for your wires.

I love label makers (above)

My Dynomaker is an invaluable tool for me, and I admit I will label pretty much anything that will stay still long enough for me to label it. One thing that I insist upon being clearly and accurately labelled is every plug in the house with what it is attached to, that way when you need to restart your printer you don't accidentally defrost your freezer. Trust me, if you do one thing I suggest, do this one.

I love anti-slip drawer liners (right)

These are the perfect thing for your kitchen drawers, they prevent the contents from slipping and sliding every time you open your drawer so that calm can be maintained and you can instantly put your hands on the tin opener/jar of oregano. You simply buy a roll and cut it to size for your drawers, of course they can be used for any drawer and its contents - perfect for your makeup drawer, stationery, tools, plates etc - the options are endless. This stuff is also fantastic for cutting and putting under your phone consoles, bedside radio etc to help them stay put.

I love a well maintained Household Manual (below)

This is an organised binder that contains all the information that pertains to your home. Collate everything from a record of what colours are painted on which walls, to a list of all emergency telephone numbers, an annual cleaning schedule, your checklists for holiday packing, household budget and bills, manuals for house alarms, insurance documents, birthday lists, mortgage papers, anything that will help you run an efficient home. Gather whatever appeals to you and collate in whatever way will work best for you and this will become an invaluable tool to help you manage your household effectively.

Blow the budget

Pay someone else to help you. There are a lot of fantastic services out there where people will come to your home and do all the sorting, organising and setting up of systems for you, from colour co-ordinating and sorting your wardrobe to ruthlessly sorting through your collection of paperbacks, to devising storage for the lego that your children simply won't allow you to get rid of. All you have to do is maintain the order afterwards. This is a really wonderful thing for those who procrastinate, hoard or are just plain lazy or would really like to run 2012 in a calm and organised fashion. You Need A Vicky is my favourite organisational guru www.youneedavicky.com this company of lovely ladies will literally transform your life and there's really no price we can put on that is there?!

For more Sarah Berry advice go to www.sarahberrydesign.com