Let's talk Mood Boards

Lots of my friends have asked me to help them find their design style.  There are plenty of good quizes out there that will help you get an idea of what your personal style is (some of my favorites are the HomeGoods style quiz, BHG Color Personality quiz, Sproost personal style quiz, and Stylish Home Style Maker quiz), but nothing compares to actually looking at a collection of pictures that help inspire you to find YOU.  The best way to do this is by creating a Mood Board.  A place for you to gather all your ideas together, so you can define your own personal style.  It can be virtual (on a computer program, a website, or in a digital photo album) like these:

1. Digital/Photoshop mood board from Chalk+Dot  2. Online mood board from Olioboard  3. Digital/Photoshop mood board from Little Nudge  4.  Photo Album style, interactive iPad/iPhone mood board from Moodboard Pro

Or they can be physical, like these:

1. Wall mood board from Sitt  2. File Folder mood board from Coochicoos 3. Collage mood board from Flourish Studios  4.  Cork Board from Lorenz Studios

"Why should I make a mood board?"  

A mood board can help you see whether or not your color choices/fabric patterns will work well together, if your furniture is to scale, or if your style is cohesive before you commit to a purchase.  It can save you a lot of time and money.

"So how do I make a mood board of my own?"

It's easy!  I recommend the following:

• First, set up a Pinterest account.  You need to gather all your ideas in one place.  Somewhere you can look at all the pictures together to find the similarities.  This is an excellent website that will easily facilitate this.  I would recommend creating a  virtual "Inspiration Board" for each room.  When you find a room that you love, Pin It!  Don't give this step too much thought.  Go with your initial reaction.  You can always delete it later.  The whole idea here it to just gather as much inspiration as possible.  When you get enough rooms together, look at the whole board and ask yourself, "What do they all have in common?"  After a while, you will start to see what you "like" and add those elements to your own rooms.
• Find your inspiration.  There are LOTS of places where you can find things to Pin.  My favorite resources are: Apartment Therapy, HOUZZ, and DecorPad.  All of these websites have photos of great, inspirational design and you can even narrow your search down to see specific rooms or styles.  They are my "go to" resources.
• Create your personal mood board.  The final step in the process is to design your room!  Once you have narrowed down your "style", look for items that fit.  Cut them out of magazines, use one of the many online resources (such as Pinterest or Olioboard), or take pictures of them in the store and add them to a "Mood Board" photo album (keep a list of the resources so you can find the things later).  Whatever you do, make sure they are all in the same place so you can look at them together.  Gather as much stuff as you can!!  Then, edit the board to make your final design plan.  Some things will get the heave-ho and others will stay until you have a mood board that reflects your personal style.  Then, go shopping!!  

You may find that your personal style will make many transformations, as ours did.  In the past year, I've played around with my mood boards.  Changing ideas.  Creating "new" looks.  And just getting a better idea of my own personal design "style." That's the best part about this whole process!  You get to "try" without buying, "live" in a room without committing, and finally fall in "love" with your dream room.

What I've Learned from the Blogosphere

For the past 8 years I've struggled to balance my desire for a "magazine" house and my duties as a stay-at-home Mommy.  With only one income I decided that I would have to give-up on the idea of having a "design plan" for my house and "make do" with what I had.  While I was thankful for a place to put my bottom and rest my head, I still struggled with feelings of discontent.  I longed for the days when I could buy what I wanted and make my house look like the pages of Pottery Barn.

When my husband and I got married, we decided that it would be best for me to quit working and  stay home with our young son.  The budget I had to work on decorating was now non-existent.  I long ago resigned myself to the fact that it would probably be years before I was ever again able to make my home into something beautiful.  Then I found Young House Love, Sherri & John taught me that I didn't need a million bucks to make my house look like a million bucks.  I was inspired to transform my house into a home, and I wanted to do it in one year on a budget of about $75 per month.  With lessons learned from the blogosphere of home improvement DIYers, this is how I plan to do it:

1. Rome wasn't built in a day - While the homes on the internet look stunning, they are almost always a lesson in patience.  Most bloggers have been steadily chipping away at decorating their homes over a process of several years.  I'm usually an all or nothing person, so if I didn't have the money to "completely" transform a room I would give up.  The internet taught me that even if I have to take 10 steps to get it done, it's better than not even starting.
2. You need a plan - Most all home decorating bloggers started with a plan.  Some of them made mood boards, and others just had pictures from magazines that inspired them.  My Dad always used to say, "If you don't know where your going, you'll never get there."  It's kind of like that with my house too.  Start with a "big picture" idea and then look for specific pieces that can make that dream a reality.
3. Mistakes are bound to happen - I used to feel like I must have done something terribly wrong when my design ideas went awry.  Thanks to the wonderful bloggers willing to embarrass expose themselves to the world, I've learned that I'm definitely not alone.  

Armed with my new-found knowledge, I birthed the Hevel House Project: the complete transformation of my house from shab to chic in one year on a meager budget of $75 per month.  You are invited to follow along and watch as we attempt the impossible achieve our goals.  I will show you the exciting before & afters and do a budget breakdown, so you can be inspired too!