Pages

Thursday, January 22, 2015

How to Rock a Pinterest Project



Are your pinterest boards full of artsy DIYs and handmade awesomeness that never actually become reality? Do your attempts to sew that lace dress you pinned end up as a major fail? Is your closet full of craft supplies from half-finished projects or, even worse, projects you never even started?

If so, that's perfectly ok.

I'm here today to tell you that you can actually complete a pinterest project without having that major fairy dust that some people seem to have. You know that girl who shows up at a party with homemade cookies wearing handcrafted earrings and a skirt she whipped up under 30 minutes. If you follow my advice below, you can be her.

Well, maybe not completely.

Let's not get carried away.

Try one project first, and then move on from there.


Steps to Rocking a Pinterest Project


1. Choose your project with care. This first step is one of the most important parts of completing a project. Don't set yourself up to fail before you start. Take the following things into consideration.
    • How simple or difficult does the craft seem to be? Don't try to start with a complicated project if you don't feel sure of your skills.
    • How much time will the project take? Are you capable of dedicating that much time to working on it?
    • Do you actually want to complete the project yourself? If all you want is the finished product, you might be better off buying something similar.
    • Are the materials difficult to find/buy? And, will your budget allow you to buy everything that you need?
    • If the project is on a blog, check the comments below. People may have suggestions or comments about what worked or didn't work for them with the project.
2. Clear a time to make the project.
    • Block off time on your calendar for your project.
    • Allow yourself some extra time to finish the project. It may take longer than you think, and you don't want to have to rush the process.
3. Buy/gather the materials needed for the project.
    • Notice that this step comes after you decide the time that you are going to dedicate to making the project. You want to prevent supplies from unmade projects from gathering in your storage where all they will do is make you feel bad for never even beginning your project.
    • If you plan on substituting different materials than the ones the project calls for, be aware that it may change some of the steps you need to take while making the project. Don't let that stop you from being creative though. After all, that's why you're doing this.
4. Double check that you have everything you need.
    • There is nothing worse than running out of supplies in the middle of a project. It will throw off your groove. And, everyone who's seen The Emperor's New Groove knows that bad things happen when something throws off your groove.
5. Reread/Possibly print the directions.
    • Do you actually know how to do everything that the directions tell you to do? If not, this is the time to turn to youtube. A video of someone sewing a ruffle may be more helpful than just a description.
    • Keep the directions in front of you as you work. Especially if your project is complicated. You don't want to accidentally skip step number 2 and have to start over again when you find the problem at step number 15.
6. Enjoy the process.
    • Making your project should be fun. Yes, some parts may be difficult, but if you repeatedly get frustrated, it may be time for a break.
    • Consider listening to music or a podcast during repetitive tasks. Because you need something to do if you have to cut 100 petals out of an old map.
    • Maybe invite a buddy over to chat while you both work on projects.
7. Enjoy your finished project.
    • Congratulations, you have successfully finished a project. Even if it isn't perfect, you made it, and that's great!
    • Use it. Show it off!
    • If you like the finished project so much that you want to make another, think about what you would want to do differently next time. Maybe make a note about the tricky parts so that you remember later.

So, there it is. Hopefully, these tips will give you some aid while attempting your pinterest project.

Need some inspiration? Try one of our DIYs.

Take a quick look through our pinterest for some ideas and follow to see more added regularly. Now, stop just pinning things on pinterest and start making them.

14 comments:

  1. I pin so many things to Pinterest that will never see the light of day in my apartment. Half of this is because we've spent the past few years traveling too much to settle in one place, half is totally my fault! I think I have a strange, irrational fear of doing DIY from pinterest projects and not having the same results!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You should still try them anyway. I'm sure that even if they are a little different from the pin, they will still be good.

      Delete
  2. I have a series on my blog called "Hit or Miss" and I try different Pinterest projects and share the results. I've had mostly hits, but an occasional miss (homemade lip balm- yuck) and I'm sure it was all my fault. Great tips.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great tips! I have a billion things on pinterest that I'd really like to try doing, but haven't yet (more so for recipes than for the projects, because I have an astronomical amount of recipes I want to try making). Someday, I hope to start tackling them!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks for the great tips! Organization is key!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great tips! I started a project yesterday and was getting frustrated, so I stepped away and (hopefully) will have better success today :) #SITSBlogging

    ReplyDelete
  6. Fab tips. Really helpful. Thanks for sharing.

    over from #sitsblogging

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have a few projects that I start and realize I can't do, it amazes me what people can create, great post thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
  8. I just found out today the importance of using Pinterest to increase my blog traffic. Thank you for coming to the Inspire Me Monday Linky party!

    ReplyDelete
  9. These are decent ideas and I need to put some of them into practice. I find that I've got so many pins there that I just haven't gotten to and a lot of it is procrastination because, for the most part, I've only pinned ones that I know I can do.
    This post has reminded me to be a bit more productive.
    Thanks for joining the Monday Mash Up!! :)

    ReplyDelete