Some people are blessed with the ability to perfectly visualize a space and what it will look like when it’s redecorated. Those people generally become the Property Brothers. The rest of us are forced to try our luck at making design choices and often make pricey design mistakes when left to our own devices.
Interior decoration… not that easy. [Source]
Which is why the recent slew of image-based home decor apps are so welcome. Rather than sort through 600 dining room tables, getting overwhelmed and panicking, you can find tables that look like the one you saw on Property Brothers with image search. Or, you can envision what your living room walls would look like if they were all aquamarine instead of relying on paint swatches.
Using the latest image technology, these home decor apps enable us all to be a little more design-savvy with the help of highly advanced computers. The home decor apps’ features drive discovery and decision-making by granting anyone the ability to visualize things like the pros.
6 Amazing Home Decor Apps
Whether you want to do a little DIY home improvement or you are redecorating your entire living room, these home decor apps are for you. Finding colors, furniture, layouts and measurements have never been easier for weekend warriors.
1. Ikea Place Mobile App
If you’ve ever wondered what a piece of IKEA furniture would look like in your space without having to assemble it first, look no further. IKEA’s enhanced reality app uses image technology to let you “place” items from their catalog in your home.
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You simply scan the room you want to see an item in and choose a piece of furniture from the app. Then, you can see it magically appear in any room in your house. For those people who fear commitment, can’t envision furniture layouts or have trouble mixing patterns, being able to visualize the space can be a great way to try before you buy. Oh, and did we mention it’s really fun to play around with?
2. TapMeasure.io
In sewing, the saying is measure twice, cut once. But for DIY interior designers it feels more like measure twice, and then a third time, forget your measurements when you go to the store, run back home to get them, realize you forgot to measure your table, call it a day, put the project off.
Not anymore. TapMeasure calculates space and area using the camera on your phone, helping you plan without the tape measure. Whether you want to figure out how big your coffee table is or see if you can squeeze another dresser into your closet, TapMeasure uses image technology to grab dimensions from your space in no time.
3. Taskers
People who are planning on undertaking a home decor project are bound to seek out inspiration — magazines, Pinterest, Instagram accounts, even home tours on YouTube. And when you spot something you like, you want to be able to find a version in your price range and your country.
Taskers, a British home decor retailer, uses image search on their website to make it happen. Upload any screenshot and immediately see similar options:
This image matching can save home shoppers time and hassle finding items that fit their aesthetic. Trying to do a redecoration or remodel is frustrating enough without having to sort through chair after chair after chair. Taskers is smart to avoid sending shoppers into decision fatigue by letting them narrow their search to items that they know they’ll like — give it a try on their website.
4. Canvas by Occipital
If you want professional utility from your image technology for your home decor project, Canvas is the way to go. Its mobile scanning turns even the most tape measure-averse into a design genius by creating a 3D model. With an iPad attachment and a few minutes, users can re-create their home digitally, including accurate measurements of every part of their space.
This is some seriously impressive stuff. Anyone who is making major changes to their space can see the value of having every nook and cranny ready to be analyzed at a moment’s notice.
5. Hutch
Hutch is a design-your-own-space app that lets you see combinations of different items together to unleash your inner designer with no consequences or heavy lifting. This is a great tool if you have trouble imagining what a whole room pulled together looks like or if you just want to have a little fun and try out a new style.
Hutch lets you shop within the app, so you can purchase the items you put together. Although they offer a designer-curated selection and free shipping and returns, what really sets them apart is their focus on using images to make shopping and designing easy for anyone — every store can have a curated selection of merchandise.
They’ve announced plans to allow users to upload and design based on their own spaces soon, and we’re looking forward to giving that feature a test drive when it comes out.
6. Home Depot
Home Depot sells, well, everything home decor related. So it’s no surprise they’re turning to image technology to help their shoppers. Not only do they have an image search like Taskers, they also have a feature in their app that lets you see what your stuff would look like painted a different color using your own photos so you can see the colors with the rest of what you own:
Even the savviest weekend warrior can have a hard time translating in-store paint chips to their actual spaces. What will this look like in different lighting? Will it work with my bedspread? Will I even like my dresser if I paint it green, or will it be a huge waste of time?
The features of Home Depot’s home decor app let buyers qualify themselves for their purchases. When they decide they actually do want to redo their kitchen cabinets, they’re more likely to start based off of what they’ve actually seen with the app than a random picture or sample. And when they come into the store, they already have a basic understanding of what they’re looking for.
Put your space together
If you’re on a design journey, we hope these apps have helped you envision your space in a whole new way. Short of hiring an expert, these apps will help prepare you to make those big purchases and design decisions as you re-create your home.
If you’re a retailer and you’re interested in how Syte can help your business get image search on your website to help customers on their home decor journey, contact us today.