Colin Chee used a digital mood board to guide the renovation and design of his Melbourne studio apartment, keeping his vision clear and purchases intentional.
Start with the right tool—then ignore the rules
Chee created his mood board using Milanote, attracted by its drag-and-drop simplicity and a browser extension that clipped inspiration from websites in a single click. The platform itself wasn’t the focus. Pinterest and Canva offer similar functions. What mattered was whether the tool suited his way of thinking.
He started with one image: a modular shelving system from El Camarín, a design he’d seen on NTS. From there, the board expanded—textures, colors, and furniture pieces—until it mapped out the entire renovation.
Details over decor
Chee’s mood board didn’t feature dream rooms. It focused on specifics: the grain of bamboo matting, the translucency of a rice-paper light shade, the exact shade of a blue dining chair he later found on Facebook Marketplace.
To avoid visual clutter, he sourced images with plain or transparent backgrounds. This made it easier to see how elements would combine in his space. A white concrete floor, for instance, required the contrast of bamboo’s texture. The mood board let him test that pairing before making purchases.
Initially, Chee didn’t prioritize harmony. He included anything that appealed to him—vintage pieces, modern fixtures, even existing items he planned to keep. Stepping back, he saw how much actually did.
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A living document, not a deadline
The mood board changed over time. Chee added notes, color swatches, and arrows to clarify his ideas. He removed duplicates and anything that no longer fit, but he didn’t discard items just because they seemed impractical. A three-seater sofa he loved remained on the board, even though his space was too small.
This adaptability proved essential. Each addition was deliberate, guided by the mood board’s visual cues.
For Chee, the board served as more than an aesthetic guide. It prevented impulse buys. The mood board made the answer clear when considering whether a piece fit the vision.
It also helped him integrate old and new elements. A mid-century dining table he’d owned for years stayed in the plan, its warm wood tones balancing the brighter, modern pieces around it. The combination gave the space character without requiring a complete redesign.
The finished home feels both purposeful and comfortable. Sunlight filters through the rice-paper shade, casting soft patterns on the bamboo matting. The blue chair stands out against the neutral palette, a deliberate choice.
His method succeeds because it simplifies the process: gather what you love, refine as needed, and let the vision develop naturally. The mood board isn’t a rigid plan. It’s an ongoing dialogue with the space.
