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Mood boards

Brooklyn

Veteran

Hi all

I am increasingly relying on mood boards to guide my style choices. I think this is a development of my focus on style “themes”.

I used to use Pinterest but now I just take photos of things that interest me and keep them on my phone in different albums. I use them for both fashion and home decorating purposes (I am currently re-decorating).

For fashion, my mood boards tend to fall into the following categories:
*colour combinations
*theme or vibe (which I’ve talked about before)
*specific fashion looks or ideas that I find interesting (eg I have one for jewellery ideas).

I find the colour based boards particularly helpful as I am colour mix challenged. Colour combination ideas do not come to me naturally. I use the colour based boards mostly for outfit creation purposes.

To demonstrate I thought I’d share some of the pics from my “blues” mood board. It’s based on one of my current colour interests - combining blue, green and gold. Suntiger suggested I call it my “peacock” mood board I’ve shared some of the photos before. I really study the inspiration pics and use them to put outfits together. I can’t tell you how helpful I’ve found it.

If I’m thinking about buying something, I generally take a photo of it and see how (and if) it fits into my various mood boards. It’s a great filtering tool.

Do you use mood boards for style purposes? If not, is there some other tool you use for inspiration or are you strictly intuitive?

How do you find the images that inspire you?

Pics 1-2 some of my current mood boards
Pics 3-17 part of my “blues” mood board.

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Armani Collezioni Handbag

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Y.A.S geo printed midi skirt

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Lauren Ralph Lauren Geometric-Print Sweater

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Carven 3/4 length skirt

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27 replies

Latest reply was from Angie

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I really like the way you use these visual and organizational methods for your inspirations.

I don’t do anything like this in a formal way when it comes to wardrobe (I do a more of this when it comes to interior design). As an artist, I think I do it by habit in my head. This is why, for the most part, I’m good at choosing things while shopping that integrate nicely into my existing wardrobe. But I miss sometimes when I simply *like* a pattern or color scheme and engage in a little wishful thinking. I’ve gotten better at realizing when something is better off admired in a store or on someone else and not on me personally.

Mirjana

Veteran

I like your way of inspiration. Great outfits, as always Brooklyn. I don't do anything like this, mostly I am intuitive, or some color inspired me , as I like the colors.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Janet, yes, I am working on that too. Particularly the like something on someone else thing. Also, I am trying to be a lot more disciplined about introducing new colours. You see I have a “dusky pink” album with all of 4 inspiration photos in it. I am finding myself very attracted to dusky pink lately but I’m determined to have a lot more workable/attractive-to-me colour combinations in my visual inspiration album before I even think about buying something in that colour.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Thanks MJ. I knew you’d be intuitive. You’re a natural at this.

Cardiff girl

Veteran

I have lots of Pinterest boards on which I pin things that I like.Recently I have been through them and marked down any common and reoccurring themes.l have found this useful because although I pick things our intuitively ,it’s also a good idea to be able to articulate in ones own mind what You like.l find that this helps when I m attracted to things that don’t really fit with my overall aspirations for my wardrobe.
I love your inspiration photos,a lot of fashion designers do this when planning a new collection so it seems eminently sensible for you to do it when planning your wardrobe.

Anonymous

OMG! I love mood boards. There is no better way, in my opinion, to coalesce a style.

Your style is always so well defined. Your mood boards certainly work for you.

Anonymous

Fascinating to see the inspirations and outfits side by side. I tend to get not much farther than color and maybe proportions myself, which is fine for my lifestyle but I admire your lovely, polished appearance. I can see that using images can influence more subtle decisions, like wether you integrate print, and the ratio of dark to light. I can be a little too intent on reinventing the wheel sometimes but I can see that your methodical thinking is assisting your creativity. It was really generous of you to share this.

Runcarla

Veteran

I used to cut pictures out of magazines and paste them into a notebook that I would bring with me when I went shopping. If an SA asked to help me, I could flip open the book, show the image, and ask: "do you have anything like this?" So many of my favourite magazines have gone out of print. I miss them.

I keep several Pinterest boards, however they and my phone pictures skew heavily to flowers and garden design! To support my fashion voyage I have boards for HAIR and STYLE that I edit regularly and keep to around 50 images. My inspiration is probably a little more literal, though. I have a board called COPY THIS for outfit inspiration and one for FANTASY FASHION which itches the scratch for things that aren't practical but are gorgeous to look at (mostly period costume, sari, kimono, red carpet.).

I do love the 1920's and am playing with a 'Lady Edith does 2020' concept to see if I can evolve my style.

The blue/peacock colour story is a brilliant evolution for your fashion journey. It also seems a little more 'hopeful/optimistic'' (?) than
capsules based on black. I think the colours suit your colouring and actually make your hair look like one of the golden elements.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I loved seeing the peacock inspiration best of all Brooklyn, and you've dressed the inspirations beautifully as always. I love the glitz and shine of your jewellery. I can't pick a fave! You have KILLER style, full stop.

To answer our question: I used to pin so called inspiration pics years ago, but did nothing with my pins. I completely get how it can be of value to someone else, though.

When you're in the Rag Trade, you're inspired all the time, so it's hard to pinpoint where the stimuli starts and finishes, IYKWIM.

Generally, my style is inspired by four main things:

my feelings and emotions
street style in my favourite cities
things that are real like people, settings, circumstances
very, very occasionally, a colour combination in a catalogue or show

Bonnie

Veteran

I love your outfits and really liked reading about your method of making style choices. I usually try to use the colors in a painting I like and use as my palette inspiration. Your method goes beyond colors and includes mood.

I made an actual mood board with my photos and magazine pictures that I liked last year. It was not fashion themed but goals for 2018. It's surprising how many of them were realized including a move to the coast. I hung it up in my closet and saw it daily. Maybe I should make a fashion themed board. I have Pinterest boards but they don't seem to inspire me as much as the board I made did. Maybe it's that when you have a limited space you make better choices.

nemosmom

Veteran

Ooh, what a neat idea to include color inspiration, too. I am certainly NOT intuitive when it comes to creating successful combinations....

I save outfit photos in an inspiration folder on my phone, and I have a pinterest board for house remodel stuff, but it never occurred to me to do include inspiration derived from non-fashion resources. Thank you for sharing your methodology, Brooklyn! Your looks are always SUPER cool.

Anonymous

I loved, LOVED this post. Your images were icing on the cake.

Barbara Diane

Veteran

What a beautiful inspiration and execution.
I tend to cut out jewelry and occasionally outfit inspiration pictures.

Sal

Veteran

What a good idea. Those paint or oil splatter photos are gorgeous. I can see the execution in your outfits. I think you have a good eye for colour - it is subtle and unexpected but always elegant.

Love the teal skirt too - I am loving skirts this year and have five skirts in total now!!!

I do have pinterest boards and use them sporadically. I get inspiration from blogs, advertising, the forum and street style occasionally. Not so much around here - more when away for the weekend.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

Hi Brooklyn, these are great! I don’t do this, no. I used to get excited about themes from fashion magazines (I particularly remember 2015 when 70s-inspired looks filled them) but when I bought in those themes, feeling all happy and excited, I found I wasn’t wearing the heavily themed items enough. I still have some of those 2015 purchases and am struggling to get my wears out of them. I intend to edit some out soon probably. I think I have tempered what sings to me since then. It has to shout loudly not just sing! I am more cautious which does lose a little of the fun, but if the fun also gave a lot of bad feelings afterwards like waste of both money and the environmental impact of making the garment, then it wasn’t worth it to me emotionally.
I suppose my large Styletread wish list does this in a small way just in the area of shoes, my favourite thing. I like the fact this gives you a plan.

Anonymous

Love your peacock mood board-outfits! I do mine in Word-"dark autumn inspirations" with my color schemes, then have some for my novel characters and settings too.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Thanks Jenni. I am trying to balance plan with emotion. I think this gives me some of both. I use the boards as much for outfit creation as for purchasing so I don’t feel like it’s resulted in any mistakes (yet!)

Thanks Sally. The paint spatter pictures are photos I am thinking about purchasing for our home. So my mood boards are doing double duty, ha ha. Glad you are enjoying skirts. I find them much more versatile (and an easier fit) than dresses. I’ve gone off Pinterest for reasons similar to Angie but I think it’s a similar idea.

Barbara Diane, I did that when I renovated my former house - kept a scrap book of images I took from magazines. I’m too lazy to do that now! Much easier to collect internet images. But it can lead to image overload.

Sterling, YAY! Thanks for the enthusiasm

Nemosmom, for colour combinations I find non-fashion pictures more helpful because I can focus just on the colours. In fashion pics there is so much more to take in than the colours - the silhouette, the fit, the textures, the shoes, the bag, the model’s colouring, even the surrounds.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Thanks Suntiger - and for suggesting peacocks. Now googling “dark autumn”

Bonnie, I think that’s right for me too. When I collect images on Pinterest I tend to just hoard them. It’s an effort to delete and move them to another board. When I use my phone it’s no effort at all. I think the more curated the mood board is, the more useful it is.

Angie, that makes sense. You are a natural at this too! I want my wardrobe to be as curated and carefully planned as yours. I think I’m on my way but I’ve got a way to go yet.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

The combination of your mood pictures and actual outfits is an absolute visual delight to see. I am very inspired by your sense of clarity with your style and your stunning use of color.
When I see an outfit I like I pin it on my pinterest board, and I love pinning favorite looks from fashion week but it is more like taking notes in school - the act of pinning is more useful than the board itself, at least for me. I do like looking when I am feeling particularly confused about who I am at the moment though!

Brooklyn

Veteran

Thanks Shevia. I also pin some runway looks. Then I try to analyse specifically what attracts me to them. That was really helpful in developing my themes.

Runcarla, thanks! I am very conscious that my colour preferences are out of sync with most forum members. But dark colours do make me happy The 1920s theme board sounds like a lot of fun. I think it goes well with the current trend for pleated skirts, yes? You could combine a pleated skirt with long semi fitted top for a drop waisted look. Already I am seeing that mood board in my head! And I have used my decor (but not fashion) mood boards exactly the way you describe ie have you got something like this? Unfortunately the answer here in small market Australia is usually “no”.

Isabel, thanks! It’s interesting that you mention colour proportions and dark vs light. We talk a lot about outfit proportions here (in terms of figure flattery) but not so much about colour proportions (in terms of pleasing to the eye). I suspect that there are some rules around pleasing colour proportions that are similar to the golden ratio in architecture. For myself I’ve discovered:
* 3 colours are definitely better than 2.
* because I prefer darker colours it lifts the look if the third colour adds some element of lightness and contrast - white, tan, cognac, gold, silver are ideal.
*patterns and jewellery are a good way to add the third (light) colour because (generally) I like a smaller proportion of “light” in my outfit.

Cardiff girl, thanks! It’s great to feel in control of the style evolution process isn’t it? Maybe we should all share our mood boards!

Gigi

Veteran

Love the pics in the blues mood board! Nice blues are really tough to find, IMO. I rarely see anything in an eye-catching shade of blue.

I am a big fan of mood boards. I try to do them at least a couple of times per year. They help me focus my shopping so that I don't get distracted. I am on a pretty tight budget, so I want to buy things that will give me the most use.

I use a photos program that came with my desktop computer, and I divide the albums up into several different categories (silhouette, color, pattern, texture, etc.). I then look through each album to see what shows up multiple times, and then I focus on buying those items, colors, etc.

Doing a mood board helps me not get sidetracked when I'm having a hard time finding the right iteration of a particular item. For instance, I'm really wanting a pair of wide-leg, high-waisted cream cropped jeans, but after trying on several pairs, I still haven't found one that fits properly. Since I did a mood board, I know that this type of item is very important to me, so I will continue looking and not let myself get sidetracked buying something else that is easier to fit.

rachylou

Veteran

I like to clip pics and save things to Pinterest. I look back at my clippings, but admittedly not my Pinterest boards. If I really want to buy something, I do have a Pin board for that... but otherwise it’s more an exercise in choosing this or that, seeing what’s out there, training my mind and eye, an in the moment thing. If something really strikes me, it will stick in my mind.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Rachy, I had a feeling that you would be mostly intuitive. Your style is striking and unique.

Gigi, that sounds really thorough. I am intrigued by a “texture” mood board. That’s got me thinking too! I use my mood boards in the same way as you - to keep me on the straight and narrow. A few years ago I had no real plan at all. I think I’m making fewer mistakes now that I have one.

Style Fan

Veteran

Brooklyn, your mood boards are beautiful to look at. I love the peacock one. They sound like great tools. I am fascinated by how you see something that you like and then create outfits from that.
I have Pinterest boards but don`t really use them except to collect pictures. I am probably an intuitive organized type. I just know what colours work best for me. I am the same with home décor. For the use of space and proportions, I have formulas in my head that I use. For example, the number 3 is better than the number 2 for arranging objects and creating outfits . I do this with gardening too. That formula came from the golden mean. I don't consciously think about this but I sometimes break it down when it isn't working the way I want.

lyn67

Veteran

Love this post as all yours, Brooklyn! To answer our question-(as Angie): I used (and still do) to pin inspiration pics but then-but eventually did nothing with my pins....:-((. I continuously get distracted by so many visual inspiration that I cannot focus on only one thing... Still, my choices are mostly orbiting around neutral and comfy but flattering work outfits and some hectic casuals....

I admire your boards and their perfect implementation so will come back and try to learn how you do it.

Brooklyn

Veteran

Thanks Lyn! I think the trick is to keep the boards under review and curated. None of mine have more than 50 photos and I am always editing and adding. It’s my fantasy wardrobe

SF, it doesn’t surprise me that you are mostly intuitive. You have such a focussed style. I have read that about using 3 not 2 (and odd numbers not even). So much commonality between interior design and fashion. The idea of repeating colours for instance to make a room/outfit look attractive to the eye. And varying textures. I find that all really interesting.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Sweet Brooklyn, your wardrobe is carefully thought out and beautifully curated ALREADY