Some days it’s harder than others to find inspiration, but for me it’s a lot easier to find good inspiration in summer. Not only can you see people’s outfits (they aren’t hidden under coats), but the outfits are fun and exciting! And the plants are growing and blooming all over the place, the sky is almost painfully blue, and everything’s on sale, double woo-hoo! Here is one of my favorite shots:
To make an inspiration board out of the picture, there are a couple steps to take. First, define what you like about the mood. For example, the things I like in this photo are the cool colors, the straight and striking lines of the logs and trees, and the feeling of calm movement.
Second, and this is the harder part, you have to figure out how to replicate each of those things that you like. Granted, cool colors and straight lines aren’t hard to replicate in a room, but the feeling of “calm movement” is a little bit harder. To translate the feeling of movement into a room you can think of movement through the room (such as in a hallway, between two rooms, or between two areas of a room), movement of the eye in a room (either vertically or horizontally), or the movement of other tangibles/intangibles (like that movement found in windchimes, scent drifting by, the breeze blowing a curtain, or even a desktop water feature).
Third, draw up the inspiration board! Here’s what I came up with for this room:
I can just imagine this in a room with white paned French doors, sparkling white baseboards and molding, and hardwood floors the color of that planter.
So that’s a very basic rundown of making an inspiration board – obviously some come out better than others (not too terribly proud of this one, but it serves a good example purpose). The sources are: West Elm for the couch (which, by the way, is a deal at $600), House to Home magazine for the curtain, Ikea for the tables, Bedding and More for the pillows, and Pottery Barn for the picture frame. Unfortunately, I don’t have sources for the rug or the planter. But if you know where they’re from, let me know!
Have a great day!
