What’s all the Interest with Pinterest?

Last summer, I noticed a steady stream of friends taking the Pinterest plunge, leaving status updates such as “I see what all the buzz is about. Pinterest is amazing!” and “Where did the day go? Oh, yes… I was on Pinterest.”

With so many things vying for my time and attention as a busy mom, I met Pinterest with some resistance. What exactly is it? Would it be as potentially time-consuming as other forms of social media? What makes it so great? It wasn’t until a few months later that I decided to dip my toe in and see what the buzz was all about.

I was pleasantly surprised. After requesting an invite and gaining acceptance (yes, it’s as though you are inducted into a club!), it took me only a few minutes to figure out how to navigate the inner workings of Pinterest. It’s simple: as a Pinterest user, you hold the key to visually bookmark online anything you desire, categorize it as you please and have it available for the world to see.

While at first glance Pinterest might seem to offer an odd combination of operations, it’s really very useful. Its primary users at this point are female and the prime focus is creativity. Think of it as an idea catalog. As the old adage goes, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Pinterest lets you take great ideas from the internet and gather them in the palm of your hand to do with them what you will.

While you have the ability to “pin” (attach/bookmark) anything online, I’ve found that the easiest way to get great ideas is from other Pinterest users. Let someone else do the legwork for you and simply re-pin their links for wonderful recipes, crafts and tutorials. I much prefer viewing pictures of my bookmarks, than filtering through an endless sea of links. Plus, because all I need is an internet connection, I’m not limited to using just my home computer to access all of my pins.

While you certainly could spend an eternity using this resource, I’ve found that one of its perks is that it doesn’t typically take long to develop a rather large arsenal of great concepts. For instance, as I’m planning an upcoming birthday party for our soon-to-be 2-year-old, I simply type “themed birthday parties” into the Pinterest search engine and my eyes are met with a plethora of pictures that link me directly to their websites with a click. Done! I now have dozens of different ideas and tutorials on how to create my own inventive party and I didn’t have to spend hours poring over different blogs and websites to determine whether the site was really relevant to my search. Thank you, Pinterest!

• Find other friends who are using Pinterest. With your permission, Pinterest can search through your e-mail and Facebook accounts to find other Pinterest users that you may know. As you see what your friends pin on their pages, you get an inside look at what their tastes and styles are (also making it a great gift idea resource!).
• Have extra stuff lying around your house that you don’t know what to do with? Search through a multitude of repurposing ideas. During one such session, I was inspired to drill holes into the lids of two empty plastic laundry detergent containers. Then, after screwing them back on, my boys instantly had their own watering cans to help out in our garden. 
• Pinterest is an excellent tool for educators, moms’ groups and arts and crafts directors. Browse through a myriad of different teaching blog links and discover free printables and craft ideas.

TIP: You can follow

KC Parent on Pinterest also!

Lauren Greenlee lives with her husband and two young sons in Olathe.