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Speaking of Pinterest...

Staysfit

Veteran

I know some people find Pinterest to be a very helpful tool when thinking about their style and planning their wardrobe. I have yet to master use of Pinterest. In fact I am sometimes amused and often annoyed by what the algorithm pulls up for me to view. After seeing the beautiful pins from Carter, and Lisap's post, I wondered what tips people might have for searching on Pinterest? Are there particular search terms you find helpful? Ways you organize your pins? Webs or blogs you like to look at for inspiration that are pin friendly?

I am trying to master this because I think this is going to be the next step for me in refining my wardrobe even further. I want to play around with some ideas but trying to figure out how to get to them is maddening!

General

23 replies

Latest reply was from Staysfit

Sally

Veteran

I put in style descriptors like grunge or weekend casual or the other thing I do is type in an item of clothes with the word outfit ..eg joggers outfit.
You can put in two items eg black jeans and sneakers
I organise my pins in boards ...like weekend casual or work outfits

Style Fan

Veteran

Staysfit I have never thought of myself as brilliant when it comes to using the computer. I have yet to figure out how to use finds! (Hangs head in shame). I love Pinterest. I search for all kinds of things. I have pins and boards for work. I have pins for home decor and cooking.
For fashion, hair and make up I search in the search bar of pinterest. I might be looking for ways to style my trench coat. So I search for Burberry Trench Coat Outfits. Viola. Pins show up. Then I make a board. I look for the pins that work with my style and wardrobe. I also did this with BF jeans and wide flared jeans.
I have a pin board for wish list items. I date this. Spring 2016. Etc.
I have a board for celebrities whose style I like. Jennifer Aniston. Jean Shrimpton.
I have a board for hair. One for hair styles. One for up dos.
I find pins on other blogs and sites that I read.
I pin YLF advice on a board. I also have a board for YLF ensembles that I want to try.

I find pinning quite useful. I am also very visual. Diagrams help.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I'm far from a Pinterest expert and I do find it frustrating. I stopped using it entirely for about two years but recently revived my use.

I find that if you "follow" the boards of people whose collections interest you, you get more things coming up that are relevant. I also tell them that I don't want ads, or when I don't enjoy what comes up in the feed.

There are some Pinterest threads on here where people give their Pinterest handles and you can then follow their specific boards if you wish.

You can also click on pins that you do like and follow the boards they came from if you wish. That often leads to good stuff showing up later on.

njw

Is there a way to find where a certain piece of clothing or i.e. a necklace you like is from on a Pinterest board? I understand its mainly for ideas but what if I absolutely love an item and want to see if its avail for purchase? How do I do that?

Astrid

Veteran

I've pretty much stopped looking and spending time on Pinterest. It's a black hole. I think back when I used it more I didn't try to find certain pins, but tried to find boards or users that matched my likes instead. It was easier to find nice pics this way. Now I only pin things I come across myself on the Internet, very rarely at that. I also use it to keep pics of the items I shop online.

Runs With Scissors

Veteran

njw, You can't purchase from Pinterest yet, but the company appears to be working toward shopping tie-ins: they have been acquiring tech startups doing related work over the past six months. So likely this feature is coming!

I have never made much use of Pinterest myself, perhaps because I have a more targeted "hit and run" approach to the Internet. I am far more likely to use the Finds here at YLF because this is one of the few places I make time for!

Anonymous

I rarely search for things on Pinterest, unless it's for something with a clear definition like "zucchini noodles recipes". Instead, I use it as a feed of preselected Pinners which I occasionally add to (usually from a blog or website I'm looking it where the writer has a Pinterest page too) . I scroll through the pictures and pin onto my own boards things that I like and this alone keeps me entertained for hours My current problem is having too many boards now which are starting to be versions of one another - and I need to do a big cull and merge session.

Pretty much every blog and website I read for fashion , food, and home decor is pin-friendly.

Re: the picked for you pins.....you can delete them and then click on the "I don't want to see these" option and the number of preselected pins will drop dramatically for awhile.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Personally, I find Pinterest a "time-suck" for lack of a better word. It's like hoarding to me, and the results are not very useful. And what do you do with all your pins? I use Pinterest occasionally because I have to as a fashion professional - but that is it.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Angie, some people seem to have "inspiration" boards. I started one called "Towards a signature style" only pinning those outfits or items that feel truly aspirational (not just stuff I like) but I haven't got very far with it. I also have one for hair -- that can be useful at the hairdresser. I have a YLF board for ensembles -- I could look one up quickly that way (though honestly, I'm more likely to look while I'm on here), and one for 70s glam and 60s mod -- since I like those looks. But mostly I use it the way I use Facebook. In other words -- I binge for a day or two and then draw back from it for months at a time and never visit. Unlike YLF which I visit daily (or some might argue, constantly...lol).

annagybe

(website)

Veteran

I use it mostly for saving outfits etc that I've seen elsewhere on the internet. Honestly searching within Pinterest often leads to outfits that are often more than a few years old. Or twenty million ways to wear skinny jeans and a giant scarf.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Actually, Suz - your way of using Pinterest sounds familiar. I'm inclined to use it that way too.

I HAVE to pin my ensembles because they are the most pinned items on YLF.
I also use Pinterest twice a year to pin runway looks from the major seasonal shows (just because I am a fashion professional and need to keep my thoughts focused as I sort out the trends in my head).

always trying

Veteran

On my computer I just type in what I want to find like doing google searches. On my Ipad I use the app, and it does not work as well. One thing I find about all the fashions on pinterest is there are no dates, and if you find something you may want to find the site to purchase it is either not easy to find or if you do find it the item is no longer available.

I find pinterest easier and more fun for other things like decorating projects than fashion though. If you follow some boards you can get e-mails a few times a week with the boards, and also boards of your interests. DH just searched pinterest for stained glass ideas (his hobby) and now gets weekly e-mails for them.

Minnie

I use Pinterest to collect possibles I'm considering buying.
My last was a board "Black Dress" where I pinned potential dresses from different websites.
Being able to see all my choices together makes it easier for me to narrow down which one I like best/which one fits my lifestyle best.
The Black Dress Board ended up with two finalists: A Balmain dress for almost $2000 (gulp) and an Autumn Cashmere dress for $275. After looking at them over and over, I did the sensible thing and bought the Autumn Cashmere one.
This also helps me to avoid impulse buys, which I'm prone to.

catgirl

Veteran

I use Pinterest to keep me from obsessing. I find that pinning something does exactly what it would in real life - puts a pin in it so I don't have to remember it for later. I rarely go back and "need" a pin, but it clears up my head space. The only ones I use immediately are recipes.

RobinF

Veteran

That's a great question, I have wondered the same thing. I like that I can save things to look at more closely later but rarely actually do that. I have not gotten into using it consistently.

Jenn

(website)

Veteran

I tend to go on my Pinterest feed and command-click on any image that even slightly appeals to me. After a bit, I'll end up with ten or so tabs open, and I'll scroll through each, looking at the related pins from the ones in my initial feed. You can do that pretty much until you look up and realize that you've thrown half your day into an internet abyss. It really does me hone in on what I'm really looking for. though...and the more you pin, the better the algorithm gets. It also helps to caption your pins with what it was about them that appealed to you (i.e.: "love this striped shirt for a casual weekend look") as those keywords will also play into what's chosen for you.

Desmo April

(website)

Veteran

Pinterest can be both a time suck and useful. It is a great stash for recipes and I'm not afraid to delete pins.

As far as fashion goes, here are my boards:

Shopping list: This is where I stash real world things that I I'm considering buying, the top that I just ordered or the jacket that I'm saving money for. Saves me time searching when the time comes to order. If it disappears before I can purchase or I change my mind it gets deleted. Almost exclusively the pins come from outside of pinterest. If I buy it and I'm happy with it then it moves to my next board.

My Closet: Everything on this board is something I have. I've been surprised how useful this is especially for things like travel capsules.

My Style: This one is becoming less important, I feel I have a pretty good grasp on my personal style. I do try to keep it in the real world and pin only plus size looks. I find many looks beautiful/stunning/inspirational but I only pin things here that I would actually wear.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I've been getting into Instagram but I'm new at it. Polyvore is my main way of doing fashion searches, though.

Runcarla

Veteran

My Pinterest fashion boards are for hair, aspirational style, and outfit ideas. I periodically edit them down to my favourite 50 pins to keep them manageable, and I hope current and relevent. I have a fantasy fashion board that I do not edit with historical garments, kimono, sari, and couture. I also have a garden board that I do not limit. There are a few smaller boards with sports stuff, jokes, home decor ideas.

I am currently pondering my fashion boards and asking myself 1. Why don't my outfit ideas look more like my aspirational style pics? This needs more analysis (like what Belle Demimondaine did on Carters style moniker post.). And 2. What is it that draws me to pin the looks I do for fantasy fashion? and 3. Is there a way to incorporate this into my RL outfits?

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Staysfit

Veteran

There are some great thoughts here, now I need to read through again and really think about this before I go further.

I have never used polyvore, but I see many ensembles posted to Pinterest. I have been tempted to look but worry that maybe I should master one thing at a time. The same goes for Instagram. I have limited time, so I need to pick and choose what I tackle.

Anonymous

Carla - I wonder the same thing when I look at my Copy This Look and Looks I Like boards on Pinterest. There is a major disconnect between what is in my closet and how I would like to dress. I chalk a lot of it up to not having those options available at retail here, but still.....

I was just thinking about this the other day in fact, as I continue to be totally unsatisfied with what I own and how I dress. Grrr. Now you've got me going on nit again

btw - I love Instagram !

Anonymous

*SF*: You can also try the "Pin it" button for Google chrome. After you install it, a Pin button gets added to the top right of the Google Chrome browser. You can then do google image searches and Pin from there.

*lisap* and *Angie*: , there is a big disconnect for me between the looks I like to Pin and looks I want to wear. I like to pin monochromatic, sophisticated looks with lots of black but I don't like to wear black that much and I certainly don't feel sophisticated.

I've given up on Pinterest because it's led me astray, I feel.

Staysfit

Veteran

Maybe Instagram is more worth my limited time and energy than Pinterest?