Establishing a design style will help you to gain clarity on what you want your brand visuals to look like. Your designer will bring your vision to life but it’s always helpful to have a few adjectives in mind that describe your design style. This will make a great jumping off point for your next design project!

 

Do Some Research + Gather Inspiration

My favorite place to start gathering inspiration is Pinterest. It’s so simple to search for specific things or browse around their predefined categories. Start by creating a secret board for your brand and pin things that represent your business. You can also look for inspiration on Instagram, blogs, books, magazines, or simply just by going outside into the real world.

If you’re working on finding a design style for your brand identity then consider creating a moodboard to get a clear picture of what your audience likes. I recently wrote a blog post all about this topic, so make sure to check that out right here. Thinking about the style of your brand through another person’s eyes is challenging since you need to push beyond your own aesthetic preferences. Don’t be afraid to reach out to a designer for help if you need it!

 

Take a Good Look

Now that you’ve gathered some inspiration pieces and maybe even made a moodboard, it’s time to look for similarities. Do you see any common color themes throughout your photos or graphics? For instance, if you gathered a bunch of hot pink and lime green things than your design style is likely very bright and vibrant.

Now take a look at the typography or fonts that you’ve gathered. Are you drawn to more script or handwritten fonts? In that case, maybe your style is more feminine or artistic. Or, perhaps you prefer typography that is more simplistic like a serif or sans serif font.

Lastly, what kinds of design accents do you see throughout your inspiration pieces? Do you like icons, patterns, textures, or illustrations? What were you drawn to and how would you describe it? Often times your design style can be pulled from the adjectives that you would use to describe your inspiration pieces.

 

Look to Your Personal Style & Home Decor

You can find out a lot about your own style by taking a clue from your fashion and interior design tastes. How would you describe your home decor and personal style? If you love ruffles, pastel colors, and rose gold everything then you might have a more feminine style. These preferences are likely to apply to your graphic design tastes as well.

For me, this works out perfectly. My decor style is kind of a blend between a modern farmhouse and mid-century modern. I like furniture that has clean lines and I hate clutter. But, I always like to have at least one colorful piece in each room.

My fashion taste is very similar. I like to have a mainly minimalist wardrobe with lots of neutral colors. But, I also like to have a few statement pieces or just pretty things that I can wear when I feel like dressing up. Across the board, my style is minimalist and feminine.

 

Take This Quiz!

I created this quiz to help you discover what your design style is! This short 5 question quiz will help you determine your design style so that you can articulate it to your designer. And, just for fun, you’ll also learn your top 3 personality traits based on your answer.

Are you ready to get started? Click the button below to find out what your design style says about your personality.