Why You Need to Use Pinterest for Remodeling
How to Use Pinterest to Create Your Dream Home
Table of Contents
Start with a Fresh Board
How much time will this take?
Beginner’s Tutorial Video
Register for a New Account
How to get the most out of Pinterest
Research Pins
Stay Focused
Pinterest Search Suggestions for Home Decorating/Remodeling
Additional Places to Find Home Decor Inspiration to Pin
Add Pins from your own boards
Narrow Down Your Favorite Pins
Create an Archived Board
For the DIYer
Create Sections
How to Make Your Pinterest Board Private
Whether It’s A Remodeling Project, A Makeover, or a Room Refresh, Here’s How To Get Your Project Started On Pinterest
Pinterest started in 2010, so it’s very likely that you already use the site to gather and catalogue your favorite ideas by now.
Pinterest’s popularity is it’s ease of use, as well, as the multitude of visual inspiration for any topic you can imagine.
While you may already have a Pinterest board started for your home ideas, this article will discuss how to organize a Pinterest board to best help you while undergoing a home remodeling, renovation, makeover, or room refresh project.
You’ll be organized like a pro and making your #homegoals dreams come true using the following strategies, whether you are new to Pinterest or have been using it for years.
I’ll teach you how to register for an account, start organizing a renovation board, how to add a description and category, how to research pins, search suggestions, where to go for inspiration, how to narrow down your pins, and how to make your board a private group board for just you and your designer.
How Much Time Will This Take?
Set aside two hours in a block of time, or set aside several half-hour blocks or 45—minute blocks. See the section below about Staying Focused.
Start With A Fresh Board
Whether you are new to Pinterest or are a seasoned user, for your new home project, begin with a new board and title it appropriately. Some suggested titles are:
Closet Remodel
Bedroom Makeover
Bathroom Update
Living Room Refresh
Beginner’s Tutorial Video
If you are brand new to Pinterest, you’ll have to register to open an account.
You may use your email and a password, or sign up with Facebook.
Pinterest will run you through some prompts to find out your interests to get you started.
Select 5 or more topics to start discovering new ideas. These are just topics for Pinterest to feel your home-feed with.
Pins are links saved from around the web.
How to get the most out of Pinterest:
Click on a Pin you like
Save it for later
Visit the link it’s from
Start a New Board
New Users: To start a new board, find a pin that you love, and click save.
For this example, we’ll name this board “Kitchen Remodel 2021.”
Click on the board to open it.
Click on the pencil icon in order to edit the board information.
Give it a description such as: This Pinterest board is for gathering ideas for our upcoming kitchen remodel. Ideas will include dream kitchen ideas, new kitchen ideas, (insert type of style), kitchen trends, cabinets, countertops, flooring, backsplash, sink, faucet, hardware, paint, organization, windows, pantry, and other inspiration.
Assign a category: Home Decor
These actions help Pinterest catalogue your board, and others to find your board as well.
How to use Pinterest for your home Renovation or interior re-fresh.
“a quick video showing you how to set up your Pinterest account, how to start pinning, how to search for your interior style and also some designers to follow”
Video by Melinda McQueen
Research Pins
Start searching for pins for your project. Make a list of topics that you want to look up that is relevant to your project.
Stay Focused
You’ll want to be focused when using Pinterest!
It is very easy to fall down a rabbit hole, and lose hours following a tangent that sparks your curiosity off-topic.
See my list of topics below as a guide to stay focused, or create your own list.
Set a timer to limit yourself to blocks of time for each task when using Pinterest.
Either take a break, or come back another day to this task, again setting a timer for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or an hour per task so you are not lost in the rabbit hole. After a few sessions on Pinterest, you will start to see a pattern of what you are drawn to, for example, you might end up pinning a pattern of kitchen ideas that all have rustic style, without realizing it.
If you are unable to see a pattern, ask your interior designer to help make the connection.
Stay focused on Pinterest by creating a list of topics that you want to search for your home project
Set a timer for each task to avoid going down a rabbit hole
Make connections among the pins you have saved
Search Suggestions For Your Board
For our example on kitchen renovations, our search suggestions are taken from our description as well as the following:
Additional Places to Find Home Decor Inspiration to Pin
Add Pins from Your Own Boards
For seasoned users of Pinterest, you might already have started collecting your favorite ideas to a board.
Find your favorites, and save them to your new Kitchen Remodel 2021 board.
If you receive a warning from Pinterest that this pin has already been saved to this board, check to make sure you are saving it to the new board.
Narrow Down Your Favorite Pins
The next step is to decide which of these pins in each category are your top 10, if you have more than 10.
Move the others to the Archive board.
Create an Archive Board
(See: How to Add Sections)
To do so, click on the Edit Pin button, select the Kitchen Renovation 2021 board, then the Archive section.
Do this in case you need to refer to this pin in the future, and don’t have to hunt it down later. You never know if you or your significant other changes their mind, or needs a piece of information that was on the website that the pin led to. You can always delete the Archive long after your project is completed.
For the D.I.Y.-er
Those going the D.I.Y route, and bypassing a designer/contractor, will want to continue researching after the design schematics have been completed.
When you start to make material and finish selections, you’ll want to have sections in this board for each of those categories.
If you feel confident in being able to pull all the details together, you’ll want to start with looking at whatever item will have the most pattern in it.
This might be the backsplash, the floor tile, or perhaps wallpaper. Then you can pull a color out of that for the color of your cabinets, walls, etc.
Add Sections
With your new board open, click on the + to add a section. (see image below)
Add sections to your Kitchen Remodel 2021 Pinterest Board
For example, let’s say we know we want a bold-patterned tile for the floor. The following is the order that I suggest you make your selections after all your research has been finished. This order allows for ease of design workflow.
Bold Floor Tile Patterns
Backsplash
Countertop
Islands
Stools
Appliances
Faucet
Hardware
Window Treatment
Paint Color (LAST!)
By picking the item with the most pattern first, it determines the color of everything else. Choosing paint color last allows you to look at the undertones in all of your selections, and then match the paint color undertone. Always end with paint color. Always end with paint color. I can’t say it enough: Pick your paint color last. All the above choices will determine the undertone in your paint color.
Making Your Board Private Yet Sharing with Others
For those of you that are using the aid of an interior designer or online interior designer, you can keep your board private if you wish, and still share it with anyone you wish to see.
Note that persons you invite to your board will be able to add pins to your board as you are now making it essentially a group board, just not public.
You can invite your significant other, your designer, your contractor, etc. I would keep it to the bare minimum of essential people because you don’t need your best friend and all your neighbors weighing in on your home when they are not the ones living in it. Remember, as long as you like it, it fills you with joy, and it works for your needs, then that’s all that matters.
To Make Your Board Private aka Secret
Click on the pencil icon above the title of your board when it is open.
Go to Visibility, and check Keep This Board Secret.
You can now have as many secret boards as you like. This changed from the past where you were limited to two secret boards.
You can also change this back to public at any time by unchecking the box.
Inviting Others
Your designer is going to ask to see your inspiration boards from Pinterest, and you can send her/him an invite.
There are two ways to do this.
Send a URL link. Copy and paste the URL of your board. This only works if your board is public.
Above the title of your board, when it is open, there is an invite button. Click on copy link and send it to your designer. This now makes it a Group Board. This method works for both public and secret boards.
Don’t forget to download your free Checklist above.
Want more reading?
A guide to using Pinterest for home decor ideas by Goodhousekeeping Homes
How to Use Pinterest for Interior Design Inspiration by Kathryn Cherne
Want To Decorate Your Home? Follow These 15 Pinterest Account By Chanel Parks
The Biggest Pinterest Home Trends for 2019 By Cynthia Bowman
Pinterest Predicts the Top 20 Home Decor Trends for 2020 by Laura Grande
35+ Pinterest Tips from Basics to Beyond by Amy Lynn Andrews