Let's talk interior design! Everyone is inspired one way or another by home design. Even when we have clients who don’t think they care about design, or say they don’t have a style, they totally do! When we show them mood boards of their space, they all of sudden are able to convey what they like with a “yes or no”.
It’s hard to lock down your design style because not everyone fits into the same box. That's the fun part about design! Using visuals with our clients helps us hone in on their true design taste that fits them. It is a great way to communicate what you want your space to look like when you can't find the words. Even though there are a million reasons why we think you should use mood boards, we have broken down our top 5 reasons you should use them when designing your next space.
1. Visualize Ideas:
Putting ideas and creative designs into words can be hard. What certain words or descriptions mean to one person, doesn’t always mean the same to another. For example; if someone says “I love modern design”, that could mean just about anything. Getting it into images and mood boards can help the designer truly understand what their client means by “modern”.
Visualizing ideas is also a low-risk way to design a room. Putting ideas into a mood board helps the designer show what the space could look like without actually executing the design. It also helps customers to be open to the designer's unique ideas without committing to anything. This way, if there is something the client absolutely doesn’t like (for example, a gold fixture, and they prefer chrome) it is easy to replace anything on a mood board instantly. You can have a little fun and be creative until you find the right look for them.
This also helps the client establish trust with the designer. If you can talk over the mood boards and make changes right away, the client can physically see their plan come to life. They know their project is going in the right direction and they feel heard.
2. A mood board is a great place to house all your ideas in one space:
When working with builders and construction crews during your build or renovation, the details they need for a job are very different than what a homeowner wants to see. The documents behind the scenes deal with product numbers, install instructions, quantities, etc. But that is a hard way to visualize all the fun things you have selected as a client. A mood board is an easier way to see everything all on one page and it is a visual way to see if everything works well together.
I remember as a kid, my mom worked with an interior designer on her main floor living room. The designer had a list of items she recommended for the space, but it wasn't laid out visually for my mom to see all together. She ended up not moving forward with that designer because she didn't feel like she understood her design style at all. Looking back, that designer probably had an amazing room planned out, but the client couldn't visualize it.
3. It creates a more efficient process:
Mood boards allow for more collaboration with clients. As I said before, when everything is housed in one place, it is easy for the client to get a feel of the space. It is so much easier for them to say "yes or no" to something right away. It puts the designer and the client on the same page from the beginning of the project. It also means fewer revisions or changes throughout the building or renovation process. The designer knows the client’s expectations for the design, which makes for a smoother experience.
At Style & Structure, we use 2 different kinds of mood boards. First, we start out with digital mood boards so we can change things around instantly. Next, when we narrow everything down, we use lay flat. A lay flat is a large tray with actual samples of the products, like the metal finishes, floor samples, tile samples, paint samples, wallpaper, and more! It is so important to be able to touch and feel what is going into your home and we are able to get samples of just about anything.
4. It's a great reference tool:
Going back to the mood boards happens more than you think. Even when everything is documented in the notes for the installers; like the direction of the tile being laid, where to put lighting fixtures, or a certain paint color, we still like to triple-check if something is being installed correctly. We can always go back to the mood board to confirm our original design inspiration. It has brought clarity to many projects when the mood boards are attached to the plans.
5. Mood boards can be a great way for clients to show off a project to their friends and family, and also for your own branding and media accounts:
Building a home or renovating is exciting! Clients love to look at their plans and design selections. It is exciting for them to show their friends and family. This way they can have a little piece of their project to look at during the long construction phase.
Have you heard the saying “Everything is content”? Well, it’s true! When you have a social media account, people love to see the process of the design. Creating mood boards for clients can also be used to post for future clients as well. HGTV is popular for a reason. People love design, and it’s fun for them to see other projects to inspire their own design.
We recently talked all about mood boards on our podcast "If Walls Could Talk" Ep. 4: Design Mood Boards w/ Lindsey. Listen now!
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