When looking to decorate a new home or re-do an old space, coming up with an actual plan for your design can be easier said than done. Pinterest has proven to be a popular and useful tool to help people pull ideas together, but having a tangible “pinboard” can also be helpful.

How to Create an Inspiration Board.

Start by going through some of your favorite design magazines and cut out patterns, furniture, and other design elements that catch your eye. You can even go through some of your pinterest boards or favorite blogs and print out items you like.

Once you feel you have enough items, spread them all out on a table in front of you and start putting them together in whatever way makes the most sense to you. You can either make one general collage as shown, or you can split your inspiration board into categories such as furniture, colors and patterns, wall art, and more. You can even label different items or different design elements that continue coming up throughout your collage.

Then just tape or mod podge your items together and either hang the collage on your wall or just keep it in a safe place so that you can refer to it later.

Why Create an Inspiration Board?

The purpose of having a tangible inspiration board is so you can gather all of your design thoughts in one central location and view them as one. This can help you flush out your choices. For example, the inspiration board pictured shows a lot of bright colors, mixed patterns, and a few vintage inspired pieces. If you go into a redecorating project without a clear idea of what you’re looking to do, simply picking out things that catch your eye and putting them together in one collage can give you a much clearer look at the types of things you like.

In contrast, you might know exactly what types of things you like, but not really know how well those things go together. If you like exposed brick but also bright colors and you’re not sure they would really fit in your space, putting them together on an inspiration board is a perfect way to see how they mesh.

So the next time you’re trying to decorate a space, the first step should be to gather ideas and get organized. Then you’ll have a clear idea of what you really want from your room and your home décor.