Tech of the Week: Home Decor Edition

As September approaches, we can’t help but think if all the fun ways we might update our living spaces in the fall. New curtains perhaps? A bright wall of paint in the kitchen? Plants that take care of themselves and actually flower? If you’re not quite ready to take on a professional interior designer, even in the form of an online one via Tastemaker, here are 10 of our favorite mobile tools for giving your home the makeover it deserves.

Houzz

If you don’t really know where to begin and just want to look at beautiful pictures of homes of all styles, Houzz is your dream come true. Browse photos by style, room, and location, and save them to your virtual idea book, just like an analog bulletin board, mood board, or scrapbook. (Free on iPhone/iPad)

Dwell

For more inspiration, check out the mobile version of lauded interior design magazine, Dwell. Swoon over beautiful interiors from all over the world, and read about the ideas behind each and every color, object, and textile in a given space. (Free on iPhone/iPad)

Benjamin Moore Color Capture

Now that you’ve got your inspiration, it’s time to come up with a color palette for each room. This app from Benjamin Moore lets you take a photo and pull colors out of it that match up with Benjamin Moore paint chips. (Free on iPhone and Android) See also: Behr, Sherwin Williams.

Palettes

For a colorful app that’s a little more tricked out, Palettes lets you create a maintain color palettes using colors from a photo, website, or colors from their pre-existing color models. Store as many palettes as you like (if you go pro) and share with friends, co-workers, and anyone you like. This could be really fun to use for personal style as well! :) (Free on iPhone/iPad)

Home Decorator

Now, what about testing out those colors? What stands out about this app is the ability to take a photo of a room and virtually paint the walls. Reviews on this one are spotty at best, and there doesn’t seem to be one that’s much better… yet. ($0.99 on iPhone)

Fab

Next, it’s time for some treasure hunting. Though not technically an app for decorating, Fab’s mobile app is a great place to check in on a daily basis for new and interesting accents for your home. They pride themselves on high design, quirky finds, and tons of color. Careful. It’s addictive. (Free on iPhone/iPad)

Yard Sale Mapper

Perhaps online treasure hunting isn’t quite enough? If you love finding the best yard sale steals, Yard Sale Mapper is a good place to start. It claims to map yard sales every weekend across the country! Sure, some of those stoop sales will be missing, but this one’s sure to take you on a little bit of an adventure for your Sunday afternoon. (Free on iPhone)

The Home Depot

So you’ve got all the colors picked out, pictures framed, and furniture purchased. Now how are you going to put it together? This simple app lets you research over 300,000 products, chef store inventory and aisle location, and it’s easy to scan QR and UPC codes in the store if you want to remember something. Plus you can buy on the app and pick up in store. Love it. (Free on iPhone and Android)

iHandy Carpenter

You’ve likely seen an app or two that acts as a level, but this includes a ruler, protractor, plumb bob, bubble leveler, and surface leveler all in the palm of your hand. ($1.99 on iPhone/iPad)

Eden Garden Designer

It’s likely that your garden could use some redecorating as well. Finish off your home update with new greenery in whatever size patch of grass or patio you’ve got. This lets you create a virtual garden, serves up tons of info about the best places for certain plants to thrive, and even has an online community of fellow budding gardeners. ($1.99 on iPhone)