Let’s talk mood boards. You may have spotted some of my work across my blog and social media, whether that’s for my own brand or for client work, and I believe that they are an essential tool when creating consistency and cohesiveness within a brand. If you’re wondering what mood board or inspiration board actually is, it is a carefully curated collection of visuals that aim to reflect your brand identity. Ultimately, it should showcase a distinctive aesthetic and cohesive theme. 

EXAMPLE: JENNIFER LOUISE WEDDINGS MOOD BOARD

CREDITS: Table & flowers: Taylor & Porter, Ruby & The Wolf | Bride: Artiese Studios | Fabric: KT Merry | Floral arrangement: Rhiannon Bosse | Shoes: Emmy London

The various elements that make up a mood board can consist of:

• Colour swatches
• Typography & fonts
• Texture & patterns
• Photography 
• Graphics

Mood boards are time-consuming, and they’re not just thrown together, but the benefits are endless. As a luxury graphic designer and brand stylist, I use such inspiration boards to take a client’s vision and transform it into something tangible. Sometimes words just aren’t enough, and you need visuals to translate your ideas. As a business owner, it’s building the connection between the vision you have in your head and how you are able to present that, and a mood board really allows for the creativity to do that. It also offers both the client and graphic designer clarity on the brand’s personality and the feeling you want to evoke from that. 

EXAMPLE: HANNAH MCCLUNE PHOTOGRAPHY

A mood board instantly sets the tone of your brand, summed in up a selection of images, graphics and colours. If you get the completely wrong vibe from it, you may want to look down the route of opting for something different This is where you’ll find that a mood board offers you direction for your branding and business going forward. For my clients, it’s always exciting seeing their reactions to their mood boards as they really discover their visual identity.  It also provides you with a starting point for your brand.  

EXAMPLE: LUXE & BLOOM

Although an inspiration board creates visual direction from the very beginning of the brand process, it doesn’t end there. Throughout the branding process, we often refer back to the mood board using it as a constant reference point. Whether that’s to inspire or simply to ensure the design is still cohesive with that of the mood board. As a web designer, I use it as a guide when creating the rest of the branding collateral to ensure all visuals are consistent and cohesive, which is key. There’s plenty of ways to monitor this too. For instance, consider if your mood board align with your Instagram feed. If it doesn’t, you may be heading in the wrong direction. 

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If you’d like to find out more about creating a mood board for your brand or business, drop me a note and say hello. I’d love to hear from you!

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