How to Create a Mood Board

Mood boards, also called design, sample, or presentation boards, are based on the boards interior designers use to make presentations to their clients. Creating your own is a good way to get inspired, keep track of ideas, and visualize how your room will look.

Things You'll Need

• Poster board
• Decorating magazines and books
• Scissors
• Fabric swatches
• Paint swatches or samples
• Removable tape or glue
• Paper
• Colored pencils

Instructions

1. Collect pictures of items and swatches of colors that you like. Use pieces from your wardrobe or anything that makes you feel happy or invokes a mood that you would like to incorporate into the room. Look for textures, colors and shapes that appeal to you.

2. Browse online decorating sites, decorating magazines and books, and even advertisements for furniture and home improvement items. Clip photographs of rooms that you like. Cut out pictures of individual items like furniture pieces, lamps, vases and other accessories that represent the style that you like.

3. Make a sketch of what you'd like the finished room to look like. Use colored pencils to capture some of the colors you'd like in the room.

4. Get small swatches of fabric from items like upholstery, curtains, and pillows. Cut small pieces from inconspicuous places of items you own. If this is not possible, go to a fabric store to purchase similar pieces of fabric. Ask retailers or manufacturers for swatches of other items that you may want to purchase. Some online stores and mail order catalogues offer swatches for a small cost.

5. Find paint samples of colors that you like in home improvement stores and paint stores. Attach swatches on your board as the background, or purchase a small amount of paint and cover the board with it.

6. Apply the items and pictures to the board. Use removable tape or glue so that you can add or remove items. Place the items in the general order of the room, with flooring at the bottom and window ideas near the top.

7. Keep your board in a place where you can look at it in different lighting and when you're in different moods.