Make Home Plans While You’re Sheltering in Place
In the span of a week, the United States has changed totally. The invisible virus we’d been watching ravage Asia and Europe is suddenly upon us and we’ve been asked to be responsible citizens, to stay at home and to eliminate all non-essential activities for at least two weeks.
Although it may seem impossible, life will eventually return to normal, albeit a “new normal.” In the meantime, the onus is on us to stay indoors and minimize the spread of the virus.
My advice? It’s the perfect time to plan a future design project online.
From free to a small fee, here are my four favorite web-based sites where you can collect interior design concepts, create rooms and collaborate with others.
Pinterest — Free
Pinterest is social media network that allows users to share images associated with project, goods, and services. You can think of Pinterest like a online pinboard or bulletin board — but with greater organizational functionality. I love it because it’s a great way for me to get a sense of a client’s personal style in a few seconds. You can build boards by room and even further, by item type such as sofas, paint colors, area rugs etc. It’s also great because once the program gets a sense of your style, it starts to make recommendations of similar images. You can also share a board and collaborate with a spouse or significant other.
Houzz — Free
Like Pinterest boards, Houzz has Ideabooks. Ideabooks are a place where you can store ideas for future projects. You can save everything you see on Houzz in your Ideabooks, including inspirational spaces, furnishings and more. I like Houzz because you can shop by keyword or aesthetic.
Morpholio Board — Paid
Morpholio is an App that takes Pinterest boards and Houzz ideabooks a step further. Morpholio allows users to create mood boards using actual furnishings available in the marketplace. Designers and architects create projects in 3D so that clients can see what the space will look like upon completion, but tech-savvy homeowners using it would benefit from it as well.
A design board done in DesignFIles.
Design Files — Paid
DesignFiles was built to provide interior designers with e-design platforms, but if you like online collaging, you might enjoy it as well. I use Design Files because it’s simple to use and you can manipulate items to make them to scale and give them perspective. An example of a room done in DesignFiles is featured on this post.
