Planning a Kitchen Remodel? Start with a Mood Board
When it comes to kitchen remodels, the options are virtually endless, with plenty of styles and designs to choose from. This also means there are many things you have to decide on, from layout and furnishings to appliances, fixtures, colours, finishes, textures and so on. You also have to make sure all the elements you plan to integrate into your new kitchen work seamlessly together to help you create a unified space that is uniquely yours.
So, what is supposed to be an exciting process can quickly turn into a complicated and exhausting endeavour as you’re trying to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and achieve the perfect look for your kitchen. But not if you do things the right way and start your kitchen remodel project with a design mood board.
What is a kitchen mood board?
Since kitchen remodels are a big undertaking with plenty of factors to consider and a hefty price tag attached to them, they require thorough planning. Therefore, you have to explore your options and decide what you want to accomplish before you break ground, so you can avoid costly mistakes or alterations as the project progresses. That’s exactly what mood boards are for.
Mood boards are planning tools, be they in physical or digital format, that combine various design elements and ideas into one single place to help you display your kitchen inspiration and define your vision. They usually comprise images, colour palettes, paint swatches, samples of materials, fabrics and accessories and other visual elements that are representative of the design concepts and ideas you have in mind.
Mood boards provide a great way to stay organised, while also allowing you to experiment with all sorts of design features and ideas and see how they would integrate into your vision. They’re also extremely useful for communicating your vision to other people working on the project such as suppliers, designers or contractors.
Creating an inspiring mood board for your kitchen remodel
Making a mood board for your kitchen remodel is indeed a clever way to visualise your ideas and define your design direction. But even if it sounds like a fun and simple task, you might not know exactly where to start. So, here’s a short guide that can clear things up.
Choose a suitable medium
Before you start daydreaming about how you want your future kitchen to look, you have to decide what type of mood board you’re going to use for your project, as they both have pros and cons. You can use online programs and apps to create a digital mood board if you are comfortable using these types of tools. Digital mood boards make it easy for you to combine and switch up different elements, so they’re great if you want to experiment with multiple options.
On the other hand, you can opt for a large canvas or a piece of foam to create a physical mood board. This allows you to collect and compare tangible samples and items and see how they work side by side. Physical mood boards might be a bit more difficult to put together due to their scale, but they will keep your project grounded in reality.
Search for inspiration
Next comes the fun part: researching and gathering ideas and inspiration for your kitchen design. You’ll have a great time flipping through interior design magazines and catalogues, reading online blogs, or following creative Instagram accounts for design inspiration.
Doing that will help you to find clever solutions for your design dilemmas and also decide how much money and effort you can afford to allocate for your kitchen remodel. For example, if you’re planning on using your current furniture but would like to update it a bit, you can find plenty of ideas on how to do that, from painting it to installing kitchen replacement doors, changing the hardware or refacing cabinets.
Decide on a central element
The best way to start a mood board is to choose an item that will play a central role in the design of the room and then build around it. That can be any element that you want to include in your kitchen, be it a countertop, a classic hardwood floor, or accent tiles. After deciding on the items that will serve as the focal point, you can move on to other design elements that would pair well with it.
Colour schemes and textures
Colour plays a key role in interior design as it helps create a specific look and atmosphere. So, you should include a colour palette on your mood board with all the hues and nuances you find suitable for the design you want to achieve. You might also want to experiment with textures as they are perfect for adding warmth and depth to your space.
Decorations and accessories
Don’t forget about the finishing touches that complete the room and bring everything together. This is where you get to express your creativity and choose decorations and accessories such as hardware, cushions, vases, towels, lighting fixtures, and even artwork. You should never underestimate the impact that these details can make when creating a certain aesthetic.
Gather images and samples
After all the research and decision-making, it’s time to gather images and representations of all the design elements you’ve considered so far. This means collecting pictures and product samples and putting them on your mood board. Once you’ve put all these items side by side, you’ll be able to see how your vision takes shape and make any changes you find necessary.
Wrapping up
Taking on a kitchen remodel project requires a bit of courage and a generous budget to go along with it, so any solution that can make the process smoother is welcome. No matter what plans you have in mind for your kitchen, starting your project with a mood board is always a smart idea.
