Great iPhone Apps for Interior Designers

By Linda Merrill

Some of us remember when a tiny hand held calculator was an amazing thing. Today, that’s just an afterthought. Our smart phones now are hand held wonders of technology and productivity*. I held off getting an iPhone for quite a long time, waiting for the price to come down and my current contract to expire. Since I’ve had one of these little wonders, I’ve been happily trying out all sorts of apps to see which are beneficial and which are merely window dressing. Here is a list of some of my favorite apps for iPhone. I’m sure many have other smart phone equivalents as well.

Productivity

Google Maps/GPS (built-in) Getting lost on the way to client’s homes was always a concern for me. Either the client was new to their neighborhood and couldn’t give good directions, or I thought I knew where I was going and suddenly nothing looked familiar. No one likes arriving late and frazzled to an initial meeting! Since I’ve started using this handy GPS feature, I’ve been much more consistently on-time to these crucial first appointments.

TimeLogger ($4.99) This app lets me track all the time I spend on everything I do, from client meetings, to desk work, writing, break time. You simply tap in the start time, pause as needed, and tap out the end time. If you forget, simply back track the dates and times. You can enter the detail by client name, project, type of work, etc. There is room for notes and also a voice-recording feature. Finally, you can email yourself a report, sorted however you wish. Great for tracking your own time vs. income and that of staff.  There is a free version that holds data for up to 60 days only.

Teux Deux ($2.99) If you’re a list maker, this is a handy app that is also linked to a nifty web based product as well. I am not a very good list maker and I find this to be a useful tool to keeping track of all the varying tasks I need to keep on top of. It’s elegantly designed and easy to use. Simply type in your “to do” on the date you need to do it and then tick off as it’s complete. Unfinished items will automatically move forward to the next day. This app and site are not tied to a calendar or other workflow trackers, but is an excellent stand-alone product.

Photography

Pro HDR ($1.99) Smart phone cameras can vary widely in the quality of photograph. I love the idea of being able to snap photos quickly without worrying about always carrying my camera, but I’m also a bit of a photo snob. HDR (High Dynamic Range imaging) is a type of photography that takes a photo at many different light levels to capture the true level of luminosity at many different light levels. For laymen, this means that there are no deep shadows or bright spots in an image. The App version takes two images of the same photo, one light and one dark, and then merges them together to create a more even photograph, which is a nice feature for phones without flash.

Photo Wizard –Editor ($.99) I love the ability to edit a photo once it has been taken and this is an easy app to do just that. If I want to send a client a photo of a fabric or piece of furniture, or even if it’s just for my own library, I want it to be accurate. This gives me the ability to crop and adjust the color of the image while still looking at the original.

Design

All the major paint brands (Benjamin Moore, Sherwin Williams, Behr) offer free apps that allow you to snap a photo of an object or color and color match it to their closes paint option. While none are 100% accurate, they can get you in the right ballpark when you’re looking to find a specific paint. 

iHandy Level (free) offers a free level app in case you find yourself hanging a piece of art on the fly. It’s handy and accurate.

iHandy Carpenter ($1.99) For a small price, you can download the iHandy Carpenter app that includes the level, plus a plumb bob, protractor and a ruler. These tools are all so handy when working on a design ideas away from your work space. 

Units from The Mac Box (free) which has many options for converting meters to yards, inches to feet, calculating volume and converting currencies. Very helpful when working with out of country dealers.

As with the paint companies, many design brands such as Kravet and Rose Tarlow are creating apps that let you check on fabrics, pricing and even availability of products. I find the Kravet app particularly useful to be able to check stock and pricing right at a client’s house. I’ve also used it in the Kravet showroom so I’ll know pricing and availability immediately.

Mark On Call Interior Designer ($2.99) is an offshoot of interior designer Mark Lewison’s book “What Would You Do With This Room”. The app features a fairly robust floor plan/layout tool that is very useful for on-the-fly planning. Imagine being able to quickly show a client a floor plan while meeting with them – all in the palm of your hand. While not a replacement for desktop computer software, it is a nifty tool nonetheless. The floor plans can be emailed when completed as well, as can shopping lists including budgets and product pricing.

*Angry Birds notwithstanding!

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Linda Merrill is a residential interior decorator based in Massachusetts. Linda's design style can be described as "comfortable luxury" and she believes in working closely with clients throughout the entire design process. Her clients are mainly located between metro-Boston and Cape Cod and the Islands. Linda writes a nationally regarded design blog called ::Surroundings:: and is the host of the design podcast series The Skirted Roundtable.