As an interior designer and thanks to many Interior Design consultations I give, I get to see dozens of homes, apartments and houses every year! My clients contact me because they either don’t know where to begin or they get stuck along the way when designing their home. As different as these people and their homes may be, they usually have one thing in common: they lack a concept!
Recently, I was approached by the real estate firm Remax Switzerland and was asked to share my knowledge of interior design on their brand new blog. Remax’s goal is not just to sell a property to their customers, but to sell them a home. Interior Design being an integral part of the home, is the reason why they would like to emphasize more on interior design and its importance. Since I truly believe that our home has a great impact on our health and wellbeing, our beliefs and values seem to be aligned and I am therefore delighted to collaborate with them. I suggested to create a mood board and write an article about it, which was recently published on their blog (in German). Now I would like to share the same insights with my readers in English as well!
Eclectic mix of styles
Most people, including myself, like more than one decorating style. Additionally, our tastes change over time. We need variation, crave a new look, different colours or fall in love with a new interior design trend. However, if you don’t have a concept in mind, you will not only end up with more and more stuff, but also with an eclectic mix of styles and nothing matches anymore. Having said this, I do encourage you to mix colours and styles, because it is what makes your space unique and personal, however, too many styles look chaotic and can even cause anxiety. It makes it hard to truly relax and restore your batteries in such an environment. I therefore always recommend choosing one dominant style and adding a few elements of one or two other styles.
Colours are a crucial element of any interior design concept. The colour wheel will help you get started.
The style and colours that suit you best
The most common questions I get from my clients are about choosing colours and style. When I work with my clients on a one-on-one basis, I conduct extensive research mostly through conservation to elaborate which style they truly like, which style best suits the building and most importantly their personality and lifestyle. Thanks to my intuition and many years of experience, I then usually have a concept appear in front of my inner eye. However, sometimes I also need some more time to develop a design concept, in which case I create a mood board.
Mood boards are an essential part of the design process.
What is a mood board
A mood board is a popular tool used by designers in fashion, web and interior design to name a few. I also like to call it a visual GPS. It communicates a ‘mood’ in terms of colours, materials, shapes and style. The mood board not only serves as a basis of the design concept, but also as a communication tool between interior designer and client.
Why a mood board
In this post I will share how you can create your own mood board. It is important that you set aside a few hours, so that you can fully immerse yourself and get the best out of it. I promise you won’t regret it. It will help you find your style and help you get started on the interior design of your home. The process of creating a mood board may even put you in a meditative state of mind. That’s an added bonus!
Tool box: you don’t need much, but I recommend quality tools for the best outcome.
How to create a mood board
First of all you must prepare all your tools. You will need the following:
Tools
- As many magazines as possible (interior design, fashion, beauty, travel)
- Scissors
- Cutter
- Metall ruler
- Cutting board
- A3 or A2 cardboard (2 – 3 mm in thickness)
- Glue stick
Describe your ideal home
First of all, think of 3 keywords that describe your ideal home or space. You will then look for images that represent those keywords in old magazines.
My keywords for the mood board I am presenting in this blog post were: „Sophisticated, Nostalgic, Dramatic“. My mood board should convey a feeling of elegance, nostalgia and glamour.
The colour blue: shades of blue are always a great choice.
The colour blue in its many shades is very popular at the moment. Blue is a cool and calming colour with lots of depth. The darker tones in particular are very elegant and noble. Gold and brass are celebrating a big comeback and create a wonderful contrast against dark blue shades. The colour gold not only represents elegance and luxury, but is also a very warm colour.
Leafing through magazines can be a very relaxing activity. Pay attentions to colours, shapes and forms.
Leafing through magazines and selecting your images
When you first start leafing through magazines, generously rip out any pages that contain images that match your keywords or that caught your attention for some reason. You will sort the images in a next step.
Use a cutter for straight lines and scissors for organic shapes.
Sorting and cutting your images
As soon as you have got sufficient images (you should have at least two dozen images), you can take a closer look at your selection and start combining the various images. Then narrow down your selection and cut your images to the desired size and shape. Use a cutter for all straight lines and scissors for organic and round shapes.
Once you have made your final selection and cut your images to the desired size, you can glue them onto your board.
Layout and glueing down your images
Now place your images on your board and shuffle them around until you are satisfied with the layout. Once you are happy with your composition, you can glue them down. My personal tip is to sleep over it and then look at it again with a fresh pair of eyes the next day and only then glue down your images.
Have fun and good luck with your first mood board! Please feel free to share your experience in the comment section below. Did you face any difficulties? Did you enjoy the process? Are you happy with the result? I look forward to your comments and of course your questions!
Did you just purchase a home and would like to get some professional help with the design? Then I invite you to book a complimentary Discovery Call.
Colourful regards,
Simone xox
Useful links:
Interior Design Consultation Services
Note: This blog post was created in collaboration with Remax Switzerland (advertising).
