Planning a new kitchen is exciting! Visions of sparkling appliances, bright lighting, the perfect colors, and clean countertops dance in your head.

Before those visions become reality, you need to transform your ideas into an actual design. This is where your professional designer comes in. 

Create a concept board as a useful tool in communicating your vision to the designer. Your kitchen designer can use this design inspiration to create professional renders so you can see your vision more clearly.  

These simple tips to create your own kitchen concept board will help you organize your design vision. 

What is a Concept Board?

A concept board is also referred to as a mood board, inspiration board, or design board. It’s a tool for visually communicating design concepts and ideas. 

Put simply, a concept board is a collection of things you like and that inspire you. This collection can be either physical or digital, and include patterns, colors, textures and images.

5 Benefits of a Kitchen Concept Board

Why would you want a kitchen concept board? Is it worth the time it takes to create one? Here are 5 benefits of a kitchen concept board:

1. Discover your own sense of style – As your collection comes together, you begin to notice a theme and patterns in what you like.
2. Gain clarity and confidence in your vision and selections – Know with certainty that all the components you’re choosing fit together and match the mood and look you’re going for.
3. Help others understand your ideas – Visuals communicate in a clearer way than words when it comes to design. For example, if you told your designer or spouse, “I want my kitchen to look inviting,” your vision of “inviting” might not be the same as their vision of “inviting”. 
4. Experiment without spending a dime – Combining elements on your concept board helps you decide if your choices work well together. It’s a lot safer than “winging it” and hoping it all fits together in the end!
5. Freedom to try anything – Your concept board is a sort of “try-before-you-buy” exercise. You can see if something fits without having to pay for it first. You have the freedom to try combinations you might not have considered if you were out physically shopping in the stores.

How to Create Your Kitchen Concept Board

If those benefits have convinced you that you need a kitchen concept board, your next question is: How?. 

There are two main types of concept board:

1. Physical, or 
2. Digital.

A physical concept board can be a simple scrapbook or cardboard collage with magazine clippings. More extravagant concept boards include fabric swatches, paint chips, and carefully selected photos to show textures and other design components. 

Naturally, a physical concept board can be more work to create than a digital one, and it’s not necessarily as easy to share with others. But if you’re the crafty type, it might be your preference.

For this post, we’ll focus on creating a digital kitchen concept board for several reasons:

• Greater creative freedom with the ability to easily change and move pieces around
• Ease of sharing with others (and more portable, too)
• Ability to include direct links to sources
• Quicker to create by simple copy and paste functions
• Create it on the go using any mobile device
• Collaboration is simpler by sharing digital access

Choose Your Digital Concept Board Software

Before you create your digital concept, you need to select the software you’ll use. There are many options, such as Canva, Microsoft PowerPoint or Paint or Word, Houzz and Pinterest. Choose the one you’re most comfortable using. 

You may want to use a combination of software. For example, create collections of images you love in Pinterest, but create your final kitchen concept board in a separate format, like a Word document or a Canva creation.

Create Your Concept Board Collection

Once you’ve decided on software, it’s time to build your collection. 

Before looking for new images, start with items you already have or will definitely have in your new kitchen. This might include furniture, flooring, or wall colors you know will not be changed. Architectural details that need to be designed around should also be included, such as a fireplace.

Now comes the fun part! Browse the internet, Houzz, and Pinterest and save pictures you love and that inspire you.. 

If you’re using Pinterest, you might want to create a Board called “Kitchen Concept Board”. Or, if you want to get more organized, create a separate board for different aspects of your kitchen. For example, create separate boards for Countertops, Storage Ideas, Cabinetry, Flooring, Backsplash, Colors, etc. 

Begin by saving any picture you like. You can make the process easier by making note of what you like about each picture. 

If you save an image of a complete kitchen, for example, make notes about why you like it. Maybe you love the door style, the kitchen island, and the lighting. Or maybe you like the open concept and how bright the room looks. 

If you save an image of a specific component – a kitchen sink, for example – it might be more obvious why you like it. Over time, you may notice similarities between all the kitchen sink images you save. This is how creating a concept board helps you to define your style.

Finalize Your Kitchen Concept Board