How Online 3D Apps Are Revolutionizing Interior Design Possibilities
Shopping for furniture and other interior décor items can be an exciting and fun venture. However, it can also be very confusing and time consuming because you can’t “try these items on” like clothing before you buy them. You never really know if they’ll fit in your home or what they will really look like until they’re actually in your home.
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However, now thanks to modern computer technology, there are online apps available that can allow you to visualize and size things like furniture, flooring, drapes and so on before you buy them. These apps can render a two dimensional (2D) or three dimensional (3D) images of what these items will look like in your home and even if and where they will physically fit. More so, they can help you decide on patterns and colors, because you will be able to see how they go, or don’t go, with each other and already existing décor in your home.
While there have been professional computer design programs for some time now, it is only recently that there have been online ones usable by consumers. Most of them require very little knowledge or experience in design software and they usually have online tutorials available. The use of these apps will allow you to select and buy exactly what items will work for you and your home – no more tape measures or moving around furniture or making crude hand sketches. You can even use these apps to help you “rearrange your furniture” in advance to get a new interior look. The best of these apps are listed below.
SketchUp
This app has been rated as the most comprehensive free 3D design software you can find on the web. The free version of SketchUp is more than adequate enough for consumer use. It is very comprehensive and can help you in the design of a whole home. Yet, it is flexible and intuitive enough for easy and effective use.
Floorplanner
As its name implies, the main power of this app is creating floor plans in an accurate and utilitarian manner. It is excellent when doing interior design of the whole home or just one particular room. You will be able to visually see how and where furniture and other items can go. It’s simple to use and easy to learn, so if you’re after something that doesn’t require a steep learning curve, Floorplanner is a good choice for you.
SmartDraw
This app is truly powerful, useful and versatile. It can be used for people ranging from novice consumer to seasoned design professional. SmartDraw has am almost endless selection of furniture, cars, building materials and thousands of templates and floor plan examples to use, so you’ll be able to explore a huge number of possible designs and layouts. You can fully try out it out for free for seven days before purchasing it.
Planner 5D
With Planner 5D you can begin from scratch or use one of the templates. Start by adjusting the floor shape, size, materials and colors. Then add furniture and accessories, switch to 3D and add windows and doors. A very nice feature is that all aspects of the design can be changed in terms of color and texture and it can be printed out in a photorealistic format. Also, this app is compatible on iOS devices.
HomeByMe
This app is actually a shopping app as well as a design app. The way it works, is that retail brands add their products to the app’s catalogue, which means you’ll be using actual products to furnish and decorate your home. The big benefit of this is that you’ll be able to plan your design through to the very end and have access to the actual furniture and decorations you used to create your interior design plans. Better yet, this app is fully free.
Roomstyler
This is perhaps one of the easiest to use of these types of apps. In addition to being very user friendly and intuitive, RoomStyler has a tutorial video available for almost every feature and question you might have about the app. Many users have reported they were able to create a complete interior design for a given room in just minutes. This app also serves as a shopping app, by allowing you to furnish your space using products from real brands, meaning you’ll be decorating your plans with items you can purchase when you’re ready for your design to materialize.
Ikea and Other Furniture Retailers
There are now many larger furniture and interior décor retailers that have their own online design apps. They are always free to use and very handy in helping you to select the right items for your home. Of course, those items will be limited to what that retailer sells – but if you’re going to buy from them anyway, this is a great way to go.
