At SCAD, I learned how to create a mood board. Since SCAD, I’ve done it maybe… once? I have Pinterest boards that could be considered mood boards, packed with sections for floor plans, colors, and fonts that have nothing relating them. I’ll do cursory searches and see fancy vision boards that people create. But in my day-to-day designing, I don’t craft mood boards.
It’s not that I dislike mood boards or find them useless. I just feel like it’s a lot of effort for something that won’t be publicized. Granted, some people display their mood boards and I’ve come across companies that give me a mood board. These moments are helpful, but I didn’t consider my usage of mood boards until I was asked to create one for a concept. I like to think I’m not the only one, so I hope you enjoy my journey of figuring out whether to mood board or not mood board.
The Purpose
The basic idea is defining the tone and direction of your brand/project. Whatever goes onto the board has to relate to your primary theme.
This throws me off because I’m inspired by everything. The way a line cuts across an image, the sparkle in someone’s eye, the serrated edge of a leaf. I kid you not, my Pinterest boards are massive because I just find things that look intriguing and throw them in. I’m an idea hoarder.
And hoarding doesn’t work for mood boards. There’s precision and focus that needs to be implemented in a vision. One clear direction, one specific vision. No tangents allowed. Why do you think everything has to fit on one board? Because it’s reducing your direction to a few ideas that relate directly to your concept. My brain is very disjointed, relating different ideas in different ways.
However, it is easier to think with a mood board. I know where I’m going, what comes next, what doesn’t fit. It condenses my sketching to very specific motifs rather than to every whim I entertain. So then my problem becomes what I include.
The Content
Mood boards can contain whatever you wish. If you look up examples, you’ll find a lot of photography. This doesn’t limit you though. Fonts, colors, textures. Digital boards will be more restricted, but if you’ve got a physical board or wall, then sky’s the limit.
Which brings me to problem 2: how do I pick? If I have a specific idea in mind, then nothing I find online fits that premise. If I don’t have an initial direction, then everything looks awesome. Not to mention the fact that when I do find suitable content, I’ll throw it out because it throws off the overall layout of my mood board. I sound high-maintenance, but I’m honestly not. I’m good with anything at specific moments of the day, meaning I’ll work at my desk one minute and be on the floor in the next.
Condensing my content is the hardest thing to do, but it does help me narrow down an obscure idea or expand a narrow thought. Once I get over myself, it’s simply a matter of relating back to the main idea. What needs to be created? What elements currently exist? And, most importanly, what does this item bring to the table?
Each image, font, color, and doodle needs to have some element or tone that relates back to what you want. It could be the curves, the photography style, the angled strokes, whatever. If it doesn’t relate to your purpose, then toss it. Doesn’t matter if it looks really cool; keep it for a rainy day. Solidifying the content, while I dislike it, makes the application easier.
The Application
Here’s where I’m totally on board with mood boards. I went to work with a company as a freelancer. While I had access to their site and could glean an understanding of their palette and tone, they had a mood board with all the information plus key words that describe the theme.
It made life so much easier. I could sketch based on their ideas, immediately nix thoughts that didn’t align, and so on. Thinking about that process now makes me want to work on a mood board for my personal brand. I probably need it; if you haven’t noticed, I try just about everything on my site.
Mood boards are a visual way to describe your company to an outsider. This works for investors, freelancers, and other such individuals. Whether these are sent out or given to you, they provide a quick summary. Beyond that, I would say a mood board is primarily maintenance. You set new ideas against the mood board and see if it fits or doesn’t.
Which provokes the question if a mood board can evolve. Not completely would be my answer. If a mood board decribes the mission of the company, it can’t change. That makes for an inconsistent brand. If the mood board focuses on the design direction, I think those elements can evolve. As time passes, you learn what speaks to your audience and what doesn’t. Tones can shift, but the primary objective can’t.
Final Thoughts: Will I Use Mood Boards?
Umm… probably not. I get the concept, I agree with the purpose, but mood boards… They aggravate my perfectionist side. Even if I’m the only one who sees it, my mind needs it to be perfect.
That said, I will probably delve into mood folders: file folders stuffed with images and filters that speak to my concept. And that’s fine. Some people live for boards, others need index cards. I’ll be using file folders and you might try small booklets. Whatever the format, the content and purpose is the same. To give a general idea of your design direction.
Some companies will probably want a mood board, and when it comes to brands, I do think a mood board or small brand guide is necessary. At that point, I’ll suffer through my need to organize everything and craft a decent mood board for people to look at. I suggest the same to you, but don’t confine your thinking to a board. Find the format that lets your imagination roam.
Just refrain from idea hoarder boards.
