Planning a new kitchen, bathroom in fact any living space can be an exciting prospect and allow you to get your ‘interior design head’ on. But often it is difficult to know where to start.
This is where mood boards become your friend by collecting magazine cuttings, swatches, colour samples or even an inanimate object, inspiration can be found all around whether it’s the décor in your favourite café or the colour of the flowers you see whilst out walking the dog! There is no right or wrong way to seek out ideas.
A good set of resources to remember for mood boards are:
Print:
Magazines, catalogues, newspapers, and flyers can all be torn up and used as elements on your mood board. For all books and elements that shouldn’t be destroyed or could get damaged, scan and print images.
Online:
Pinterest, this can be downloaded onto your smartphone, tablet or desktop enabling you to find ideas and suggestions pretty much anywhere online, whether it’s on a dedicated home decor/design website or just an inspirational image you come across whilst browsing. Shutterstock is also a great place to scroll through and see what catches your eye.
Landmarks and holiday spots:
Museums, monuments, outdoor trails, and other spots people intentionally visit can open a plethora of new ideas and schemes. Use your phone’s camera so you can capture details big and small.
Familiar territory:
If you’ve visited, say, the pub or local park down the street more times than you can count, approach it with fresh eyes and find a new perspective.
In the home:
Cooking dinner? Check out the packaging, observe the texture, shape and colour of the food you’re preparing. Anything that ignites your imagination just take a photo or draw a sketch if you have the mind and it can all be included in the creation of your mood board.
Visit our Pinterest profile to see our own mood boards and design concepts we like from elsewhere online
Mood boards are a visual experience. If you’re not a professional interior designer it doesn’t need to be polished and pretty. It simply has to be functional. If you choose to create a physical board it could be a whiteboard, a corkboard, or even a piece of thick cardboard – anything you can pin or stick things to.
Then you will be able to collect together your ideas visually and so have a better understanding of what will and won’t work when it comes to colour, shape, texture and finish.
It will also help prevent you making impulse buys, which could cost you time and money in the long run.
