5 DIY And Crafts Apps To Keep You Busy

We blame Pinterest for stirring our interest in Mod Podge. Mind you, we’ve never used the stuff; but for some reason, it makes us feel like we could be DIY & Crafts queens in the making. Of course, we’re about a hundred projects short of being proper members of the Do-It-Yourself club – but it doesn’t mean that we don’t want to become experts someday. In fact, we’re planning to start as soon as possible; and we are hoping to become awesome throughout the process with the help of the following apps.

# 1. Craftgawker

We don’t know about you, but for us, the well of inspiration tends to be close to running dry some days. With writing, we pretty much know how to fix things (read: rest for a bit or panic when the deadline’s just an hour away). But for a home DIY decoration project, we don’t think our usual methods will take care of business – which is why we turn to craftgawker, an app slash website that delivers a heavy dose of focused inspiration. Available on the Apple App Store, craftgawker allows users to browse, search, and submit photos as well as links of DIY and craft projects from all over the web.

# 2. My Measures & Dimensions PRO

Need to take measurements around the house? My Measures & Dimensions PRO is an app designed for landscapers, architects, engineers, and carpenters; but any DIYer would find this super easy to use. Simply take a picture, add arrows, texts, and notes, and you’re good to go, which means no more scrambling for pen and paper just to note down measurements. This is also extremely useful for apartment dwellers who need to find a new place and who want to make sure that their furniture will fit. Measurements are customizable – they can be entered in metric, Imperial, Chinese or Japanese standards. But keep in mind that manual input is needed, as the app cannot calculate the distance between two points just from a picture.

# 3. Décor Advisor

Being a lover of makeup, we know how to work the canvas that is our face. We know exactly what type of brushes to use, whether it’s a MAC 187 or a Sigma E40 or a Shu Uemura kolinsky brush 5r. What we’re not so confident using are brushes that are specifically used for house painting. With Décor Advisor, finding the right brush, roller or tool for the job is as easy as swiping, tapping, and flicking the screen of any iOS device that run on iOS 3.0 or later versions. It also comes with a paint calculator so you can estimate how many liters of paint you will need, complete with tips on how to apply said paint “to achieve a professional finish.”

# 4. Springpad

What do you get when you mix Evernote with Pinterest? That’s right, you get Springpad, an app that doesn’t just help user take notes but also makes their organizing easier – or, as the creators put it, “a more visual way to categorize your digital life.” Now you may wonder why we included Springpad here, considering it’s not really a DIY/crafts app per se. Well, if you’re really planning on completing several projects or renovation endeavors, you’ll need a way to organize everything. Lucky for you, this app does just that; but in a more meaningful way – Springpad has note-taking capabilities, which we’ve mentioned already, reminders, checklists, and even a repository for your saved images, audio files, and even barcodes.

# 5. Smart Tools

We know your smartphone can pretty much do anything aside from performing the basic functions (call, text, voicemail, etc). It’s also possible that in the future, such devices will offer complete business phone service functionalities like hosted VoIP PBX (without the need for a VoIP phone on the same line). But for now, we can all agree that smartphones – and phablets too, for that matter – are amazing. With regards to crafting projects, your phone can be equipped with 15 different tools that can “measure angles, widths, heights, and sound” simply by downloading the Smart Tools app from Google Play. Created by Android Boy, Smart Tools gives users access to five different sets of tools including a ruler, two protractors (length and angle), compass, metal detector, and LED light, just to mention a few.