Pinterest Board Organization

Hello!

Like everybody else, I have a love affair with Pinterest.  Lately I've been thinking quite a bit about whether or not I properly credit original sources because, honestly, I want to do the right thing. In the beginning it was something I never considered.  That was before I'd let anybody see my blog.  Pinning was just visual therapy and I pinned things I liked that made me happy. 

Now people (about three) visit my blog and I do pin images from it and it means something different to me.  Everybody pins their images but not everybody gets proper credit for their images that are often re-posted on other blogs or even Etsy sites (and sometimes claimed as their own product--seriously), or used in artwork, you  name it. Sometimes people don't care if we use their images, but how would we know?  That's more about the legality of the whole practice of pinning but there's more to it.  What if the content connected to the image is missing or false so I can't give proper credit? 

Happily, a few weeks ago I found this interesting article by Emily over at The Graphics Fairy Creative & Crafty Projects blog that got me thinking even more and made me feel more settled about my own boards, worrier that I am.  Here's the quote that really got my interest and made good sense:

"If you just use Pinterest to collect images to look at, or you'll never want to read the content that goes along with an image, then you are probably fine, though it's nice to give credit to the image sources. For crafters, DIYers, and makers like us, you need to be organized and you need good content."

That is the other side of it.  The way I use Pinterest has changed in the year I started using it and pinning for pleasure. I actually want to use the content attached to the pins so I ought to make sure I can!  Emily shares simple advice for better pinning that I've only summarized here:  

1. Don't pin anything until you've verified the content.  Sure, it'll take a little more time, but will likely prove to be a good move down the road. 
2. Clean up your pins.  Again, it's a time issue, but why not tackle one board at a time and start fresh?  
3. Label craft/DIY pins accordingly.  I have plenty of pins with the descriptions "." and "<3" that Emily mentions.  I'm going to go back and make sure those are only on pins I'm collecting to just look at, otherwise I'll try to do #4.
4. Always add the content or image's source. It's the right thing to do.
5. Use multiple boards and separate by content purpose.  A Facebook friend announced she was finally joining Pinterest and did anyone have any advice?  Advice, I thought?  Just go have some fun.  Well, no.  She was told to decide what she wanted her boards to be before she ever started pinning.  #5 here will come in handy for that.
6. Create multiple boards for each craft/DIY medium.  The more I pin, the more sense this makes.
7. Rearrange your boards.  At least I do this one from time to time but could probably tidy up a little more.

I enjoy Pinterest and I'd like to keep enjoying it.  Luckily for me, I only have 41 boards and 1,419 pins (as of this post) unlike Emily who has 71 boards with 2,788 pins (as of this post).  If she can take the time to "fix up and relabel" her pins for a better experience and good Karma, I can at least give it a try too.