Mood Boards

Mood Boards are a kind of 'scrap book' page made from pictures and /or samples of fabrics, small objects, scraps from magazines, wrappers, paint samples, etc. Mood Boards are capable of doing many different jobs, eg:

help a designer investigate a colour or set of colours for use as ideas when designing a new look for a room
show different fabrics and textures for use in a new line of clothing
be a collection of images to do with a particular culture or era, eg for a film costume designer or set designer
be a collection of useful factual information, eg for an illustrator
simply be a wealth of visual material to kick-start the process of creativity

Below are different types of Mood Board.

A fashion designer's investigation regarding variations on a colour range.

A woman's mood board from her blog. She made it to help us understand an 'atmosphere' or 'mood' she was trying to convey.

This is a collection of images to do with going to a pop concert. You can imagine it being useful as a visual aid while illustrating a magazine article.

This was put to gether by someone who was trying to decide how her outfit was going to look for a certain occasion.

This was put together as an investigation into the 'look' of the 1960s.

Visual information collected about a Native American tribe .

By a designer who wanted to use a sacred place as a starting point for ideas.

This person wanted to use nature to help convey a feeling of calm and meditation.

This designer was inspired by the idea of a 'retro' or 'old-fashioned' look.

Another 'retro' spread, this time to do with adventure and exploration. You can imagine this being useful to a film designer.

Visual information to do with Surf Culture. This would, for example, be useful to a designer working on fitting out a surf shop or a cafe or bar with a surfing or beach theme.