If you follow my Instagram account, @thepavlouhome, you probably know that I am currently up to my eyeballs in tile and paint samples as I plan the renovation of our family bathroom and ensuite. We've lived in our modern townhouse for 11 years and never made anything more than cosmetic changes so... let me tell you, the excitement is real folks!
When designing a space like this, one of the most useful tools you can adopt is a mood board. Whether it's digital or physical, a mood or ideas board is essentially a collage of inspiration which provides you with a visual snapshot of how your space might look. It's a way of refining your ideas and editing the look, bringing together design elements into one cohesive vision before applying it in reality.
When I embark on a new design project, I prefer to start with a digital mood board while I'm still playing with ideas. These days, it couldn't be easier to create one using free graphic design tools such as Canva and since I often get asked how I design mine, I thought I'd offer some tips...
No. 01 | Gather your inspiration
Before starting your mood board, you need to gather your inspiration and ideas. Instagram and Pinterest are great places to begin... simply start saving and pinning images that appeal to your design aesthetic. This might include full room shots, design features like panelling, pieces of furniture, artwork, patterns, accessories - gather it all and then work backwards weeding out as you go so that you're left with a curated collection of inspiration.
No. 02 | Window shop for key pieces
At this stage, you can pop all your images into a Canva project and it's essentially a mood board but... I like to use my gathered inspiration to go a step further and window shop for key components to include on my board (i.e. actual pieces of furniture or fixtures and fittings that are available to purchase rather than simply inspo). You might not end up buying these specific items but they will represent the main 'ingredients' of the room and help create a design that's visually achievable.
We’ve all been guilty of saving a hundred and one images and realising very few are actually relevant. For example, I might save images of vast double vanity units for our bathroom inspiration because ultimately that's what appeals to me but in reality there's barely room to swing a cat in there so it's just not achievable. I guess what I'm saying is, step 1 is 'in an ideal world' and step 2 is 'let's be real here lady!'.
For a bathroom design like mine, this window shopping might include a bath, a vanity unit, a tap... for a living room you might choose a sofa, a coffee table or some cushions. Whatever it might be, actively seek out items from retailer websites and save these images for use on your board alongside the more generic images.
No. 03 | Start designing your mood board
Colour is key in designing a space so is a great place to start when creating your mood board - think about how you want the space to feel or simply lean towards other areas of your home and create a design 'thread' with colour. I've done this in our home by using three very similar wall colours throughout, namely Farrow & Ball Shaded White, Shadow White and School House White, two of which I plan to use in the bathroom.
I like to use my chosen wall colour as the background for my mood board and you can do this by searching online for the HEX code of a paint colour (it should start with a hashtag and contain 6 digits). HEX codes are not strictly accurate but do give you a pretty good idea of a colour. You can find a list of F&B paints and their HEX codes here.
Once you have your code, just pop it into the background colour setting on Canva and ta-dah!
No. 04 | Build a picture
Now you have all your inspiration and images, you can upload them to Canva and start arranging them on your board. I would recommend removing the background of most images in order to eliminate unwanted areas which can be done in Canva if you pay for the Pro version but can also be achieved using numerous online tools such as Adobe Express Background Remover.
Then it's simply a case of switching images in and out and moving them round until you're happy with the look. You're obviously aiming to create a 'mood' or scene so think about what makes up that scene. For example, the floor, the fittings/furniture, the lighting, the fabrics, the artwork... even the smallest accessories can help bring your board to life.
No. 05 | Review and rearrange
Once created, let your mood board 'rest'. Take a step back and trust your gut, if something doesn't feel right simply rearrange but most importantly have fun and don't put pressure on yourself - all creative processes take time!
Mood board product links:
Chatsworth Freestanding Bath - Victorian Plumbing | Milano Elizabeth Bath Mixer Tap - Big Bathroom Shop | Sage Green Towels - H&M | Canada Goose & Swan Prints - Trove Prints (Use code PAVLOU15 for 15% off) | Mini Elbow Bronze Light - Pooky Lights | Bronze Mirror - Perch & Parrow | Washed Oak Vanity Unit - Holly Oak House | Milano Elizabeth Basin Tap - Big Bathroom Shop | Oak Effect Floor Tiles - Porcelain Superstore
Some of the products links may carry a small commission for myself via the use of affiliate marketing. I only receive the commission on products you purchase (not via clicking links) and it's at no extra cost to you. Thank you.
Comments