5 Resources for Designing Your Dream Home
Designing a home, whether from the ground up or as a renovation project, can be an intimidating undertaking. Deciding on a design, keeping it within your budget, and bringing it to fruition each present unique challenges. And it can be hard to know which design resources are worth your time! We’ve done the legwork for you and compiled a list of valuable resources and how they best can be used. Keep reading for a list of our top five favorite home design resources!
1. HomePlay by Royal
Useful for: Exterior design visualization
Royal Building Products offers a virtual design tool called HomePlay. It allows you to mix and match different siding profiles, colors, trim and more to see how it would look on a home. You can use one of their example homes or upload a rendering of your home to be mapped. It’s especially great for new builds!
2. Pinterest
Useful for: Exterior and interior design inspiration
You’re probably already using Pinterest for home design inspiration, but are you using it as efficiently as you could be? When you begin the design process, create fresh Boards dedicated to specific rooms and the exact design elements you envision in them. Then take a look at the “More Ideas” tab for each new Board. The Pinterest algorithm will give you very tailored ideas using the exact colors and styles you’re interested in!
3. Houzz
Useful for: Exterior and interior design inspiration, finding reputable industry professionals and brands, shopping for home decor and hardware
Houzz is a great all-in-one resource for people in the process of designing or redecorating their home. It can be a little overwhelming to use because there’s so much packed into one site, so to start we recommend following brands you’re interested in. You’ll see how they suggest using their products and what reviewers have to say about their quality and service.
4. Instagram
Useful for: Exterior and interior design inspiration
Are you following us on Instagram yet? We’re a hub for the best in home design inspiration! In addition to following us, we recommend following home design hashtags that are relevant to your specific project. For example, #contemporaryhome will give you more helpful and tailored content than #homedesign.
5. Open Houses
Useful for: Exterior and interior design inspiration
Attending open houses in your area is a great way to get inspired and get a feel for exactly how design elements function in a space. You can take photos to add to your Pinterest Boards and jog your memory later. Just be sure to make the listing agent aware that you aren’t interested in buying the home, so they can focus their attention on potential buyers.