What we did in LOCKDOWN

In tough and trying times, some days it’s the little things that make us smile the most, as these women show

- GILLIAN HARVEY

‘I got clever with colour’

Irina Pehkonen, 36, is an analyst living in London. As I look at the colourful, organized books, I can’t help but smile. After a few evenings spent colour coding, I’ve turned a messy bookshelf into a piece of functional rainbow art. It’s lovely to use my creative side – my working life is all about facts and figures, so I don’t often get the chance.

Although many people have time on their hands in lockdown, for me life is more hectic than ever! My husband David, 36, and I are working from home, plus caring for our children, Aija, one, and Aili, six. At the same time, being at home has made me really aware of jobs I want to do.

Those who know me from work would probably think I’d alphabetise my books, but I’m not great at remembering authors’ names. My memory is more aesthetic – I focus on shape, size and colour. Plus, with the bookshelf in our living room, it had to look pretty – and colour-coding seemed a great way forward.

The only wobble I had was when I needed to split two novels by Harper Lee. One was orange and the other white, and it felt strange.

I have over 500 books in the house in total. There’s another shelf I’ll tackle shortly in the home office, plus children’s books in the kids’ rooms. It takes a while to do, but it’s surprisingly satisfying.

‘I created a balloon tribute to the NHS’