Home Redecoration : Useful Tools

Use technology to your advantage before you start your house improvement project. There are several free and easy to use tools available for your tablet or computer which will make the job a lot easier. Mr. Karan Bajaj sifts through the rubble to bring you some of the best options

Remodelling is never easy. You may choose to involve architects & interior designers to get the look you are after, but there's often a lot of guesswork involved.

What colour will look best on the walls, what kind of furniture you can fit into an existing space &  which walls should be moved around could be just some of the questions you have. Seeing how it looks like virtually before making any changes will help you make up your mind, reduce the time spent on guesswork and also reduce costs in the long run.

Now, thanks to innovative software, you can do just that and without spending a single Rupee either. Play around with various combinations, layouts and once finalised, you can save a hi res image or PDF file, making it easy to explain  what you want.

www.mydeco.com

To create your layout here, you can choose to start from scratch & add everything individually or pick up an existing layout using the wizard to get a layout ready quickly.

The web site then shows you a 2D layout that is rendered in 3D in the sidebar in a smaller window. The 3D render is refreshed in real time as you add furniture & decorate it using items from the website’s exhaustive collection.

To save the layout as an image, you need to sign-up for a free account.

www.homestyler.com

Apart from creating a new design / using a predesigned layout, Autodesk’s Homestyler also lets you upload an existing floor plan &  then trace it for use online. They offer a vast collection of furniture and fittings from multiple international brands to decorate your layout.

You can switch between 2D or 3D layouts with a single click and after completion, you can export images, take high resolution screenshots or save a 360 degree panorama of the design Free signup required.

www.floorplanner.com

Floorplanner requires a one time free signup where one project with 3 floor levels can be created. The interface initially shows a 2D layout where furniture and other elements can be placed and moved using drag & drop.

Then, you can choose to view your layout in 3D. Once finished, your layout can be saved as an A 3 size image, PDF / or shared on Facebook & Twitter. Floorplanner is also available as an iOS app & Google Chrome browser extension.

http://sketchup.google.com

Google Sketchup

Available for Windows and Mac OS X, this free Google software lets you create 3D models with 3D terrain images from Google Earth.

You can either create a layout from scratch or simply download a layout model from the Sketchup 3D Warehouse. The 3D Warehouse is constantly updated with models of buildings, furniture and so on - all created by other users & shared online.

A paid version called Sketchup Pro ( US $ 495) adds numerous features for advanced detailing, rendering and high resolution output.

Get it from: http://sketchup.google.com

APPS - Home Decorator..!

This free iOS app allows you to see what a different wall colour will look like in your existing room. Just take a photograph of the room from within the app, choose the colour you want & tap the wall to replace the colour with the new one.

The app automatically excludes furniture, lights and any other fittings on and around the wall. In case the app colours something by mistake, you can use the eraser tool to remove excess paint. If the app missed a spot on the wall, tap on the area you want painted.

MagicPlan.!

If you need a floorplan with exact measurements of your rooms, give MagicPlan for iOS a try. It uses the camera and gyroscope built into your iOS device to measure the distance from one point to another - and it does this simply by taking photographs.

It then creates a floorplan using the photos, which can be saved as a PDF file, image, html or in the AutoCad design format.

Houzz Interior Design Ideas..!

The Houzz app takes a different approach - it presents stunning images of interiors and exteriors from across the world, right on your iOS device. You can view photos by style, by room or by a type of product. You can even view designs done by professional architects and then share anything you see on social networks or email. Any image you save automatically gets added to your 'Ideabook' - a sort of digital scrapbook with easy access to your favourite designs.

Design Dimensions..!

This free Android app is useful for referencing - it includes a constantly updated catalog of common items placed in a house or office like chairs, speakers, microwaves, refrigerators and even construction materials like bricks).

It shows a 3D illustrations of each item along with average dimensions - this makes it easy to find out if you have enough space to accommodate a new piece of furniture.

Src: ET

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