The First Step to Style: A Personal Mood Board
Last weekend, I had the privilege of giving a talk and leading a Q & A at the Catholic Moms Summit, Find Lasting Peace, Balance and Joy, virtually hosted November 13-15 by Holy Cross Family Ministries and featuring dozens of Catholic Mom contributors, plus more than 80 presentations from all ages and stages of motherhood. It was a fantastic time and I especially enjoyed taking questions from the attendees.
One of my favorite questions (and something I address in my book coming out soon) was… How do you begin to understand your own style?
Great question!!
If you look at your wardrobe and feel underwhelmed or stressed, this post is for you.
The first step to uncovering your style is creating a Personal Mood Board. Try any of these three formats:
Pinterest
A Google Slide Doc with Screenshots
Printed photos/clippings taped to paper
I find having a Pinterest account is the easiest and most efficient way to do this and they’ll also provide your feed with similar photos that you’re pinning. However, for a more in-depth Mood Board, you may want to start with a Google Slides presentation, which is something I choose as a resource when working with my clients.
Here are a few examples of Mood Boards:
This is part of my own Mood Board I curate on Pinterest.
This is a slide from a client’s Mood Board showing her the types of silhouettes and styles I recommend
This is a group of inspiration photos to provide the right ‘vibe’
This is another slide for a client showing the silhouettes and styles and how it works for different aspects of her life.
Another slide from my Mood Board. i can’t recommend using Pinterest enough!
So.. what exactly goes into a Mood Board?
You’ll want to divide your photos into two sections: first, practical photos whose outfits you can actually replicate (the “silhouette” of a garment and style) and secondly, inspirational photos.
I cannot emphasize how crucial it is to see examples of your style right in front of you. Even now, after seven years of professional styling, I still hop on Pinterest to curate my own mood board and have it in one place to review.
It’s best to build your Mood Board over the course of a month. During this construction period do NOT buy anything else. Wait until your board has evolved and you can begin to recognize patterns and consistent choices that you should be adding to your Board.
Over time, this board will aesthetically work into your style habits and it should be a fun process! If it feels frustrating, take a step back, slow down and put it back into perspective.
Once you’ve built your Board over the course of a month, move towards making a prioritized shopping list.
Want more advice on how to search for images for your Board and how to curate it more specifically? You can read more in my book! If you’d like to get an email notification once it’s available for order, please email me at meghan.ashley.styling@gmail.com.
Have fun getting started with your Personal Mood Board!