At the end of the day… Anya Hindmarch

When I walk through the door, the first thing I do is go to the fridge for a glass of cold water and to see what supper might be. Then I shout to see who’s home. I have five kids and we come together in the kitchen, but you never quite know who’s there. My problem is that I normally get home, then run out again: I’m always go, go, go. And I can’t cook at all; I’m useless. My husband [ James Seymour, Anya’s joint CEO] is a good cook, and my kids are too, out of need.

Lockdown has been quite eye-opening. It’s given me a chance to take the noise out of life and focus on what’s important. I’m happier with some of the smaller and simpler things and that’s really lovely to learn. It turns out I don’t miss the fashion parties or the madness.

I worked pretty hard in lockdown. I was keeping the business going with all the collections, selling and appointments. I was writing my book, planning The Village [Anya’s new retail concept], and we did a few projects with the NHS. So we were really busy! I like doing things and I get easily bored. I’m tidy as hell, but I’m ill-disciplined when it comes to a work/life balance. I’m not proud of it – because I think it’s unhealthy – but I never really stop working. But I love my work and, as I work with my husband, it’s part of our family life.

I sound really sad, but to be creative you have to be organised. I like a clean and tidy house: the children will come in and throw their coats on a chair or leave their shoes on the floor, and I find that visual mess quite frustrating. I’m a bit neurotic about things like that. In my home, I love having fun pieces that tell stories. I believe your home has to be things that you’ve gathered and collected, or inherited: it should be a story that you build up over time.

I’m a bit dyslexic, so I don’t read loads. But my book collates advice I’ve taken from other books, from people I’ve spoken to, and from my own journey: bits that I’ve failed on (which is quite a lot of things) or things I’ve found that have helped me manage as a mum, as a stepmum and as a woman in business. The advice really seems to resonate with the women I’ve spoken to, so I wanted to get it written down.

If I need to decompress, I’ll have a bath or a massage, or do some guided meditation, just to recalibrate. And walking is my saviour. I hit the streets every morning at 7.30 and that makes me feel good all day. Breathing, which seems obvious, is really important. It’s amazing how that can calm you down: a big exhale is the first thing you do when you lie down.

I’m a great believer in a hot shower washing the day away. It’s slightly cathartic, and means you put your phone down. I write a diary before bed, which I’ve done since I was 12 in the same format, every day of my life: not how I felt, but what I did, so you can go back and find the date when you met a person. It’s a nice ritual.

I’m a shadow of myself without sleep, but at bedtime I’m still frantically sending emails and dealing with New York and Japan. So I’m really a work in progress.

Anya’s book, ‘If In Doubt, Wash Your Hair’, is out now. The Village is open on Pont Street, London SW1