Thinking about redecorating? Before you start moving furniture and collecting paint chips, use one of the online decorating sites to experiment with floor plans and colors.

At DesignMyRoom you can try different furniture arrangements, appliances, colors and styles in 3-D perspective. Save your plans online at the website, and share them with others. ("Mom, what do you think of these purple walls and orange countertops?") There are also professionally designed prototypes that you can adapt to your own home.

FloorPlanner.com shows only 2-dimensional, flat drawings, but it has a nice, clean interface, easy to navigate.

Better Homes & Gardens offers a variety of interactive decorating tools. All the ads are distracting though. Make sure your browser's popup blocker is enabled.

For decorating ideas check out the websites of home and architectural magazines, home improvement stores, and appliance and furniture manufacturers.

Most of the decorating websites hope to sell you the furniture, flooring and appliances that you use in your virtual floorplans. You're not obligated to buy them there - in fact you can probably find a deal that is almost as good in your local brick-and-mortar stores. (You can view their weekly specials at their websites.)


Pauline
teachmeinternet.com