Have you heard of Pinterest andwondered what it is all about? Have younoticed other homeowners and interior designersusing it to inspire and plan design schemes?Pinterest has become the fastest growing socialmedia platform with over 12 million active usersand one of its most popular categories is homedécor. Imagine a veritable treasure trove of eyecandy - hundreds of pictures at your fingertips,from blogs, websites, online magazines, shops andbrands to stunning homes. You name it, you’ll findit on Pinterest.

Social media expert Lorna Sixsmith explains winning ways with pinning as sheexplores the many applications of Pinterest in aiding your interior design projects

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Pinboard PleasuresWhat is Pinterest? Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. In the past, you may have cut pictures from magazinesand pinned them to a notice board to provide you with inspiration for decorating a room. You can now do that online bycreating a pinboard for each room or each style and pinning pictures you like to each pinboard. A pin is the name given to apicture found online and ‘pinned’ to Pinterest.

Thinking of creating a red dining room - just search for red dining rooms and you’ll find plenty of pictures to repin for yourinspiration board. This will help you decide if a red dining room is right for your home or not! The same goes for any style orcolour of décor you might be contemplating for your home - do the visual research on Pinterest first. Pins and boards areshareable, hence you can browse other people’s boards,search amongst various categories or use a search terme.g. animal wallpaper, to find pins you like.

How to get started? Go topinterest.com and sign up for an account. Create aboutfive boards to get started e.g. My Dream Kitchen, BoysBedrooms, Dining Rooms, Painted Furniture andBathrooms. Pinterest will prompt you during the initialstages.

How to Pin Once you have set up someboards, you are ready to start pinning. Some websiteswill have a little ‘pin it’ button beside their productwhich makes it very easy. Alternatively you can positionthe little ‘pin it’ bookmarklet button on your bookmarksbar of your browser and every time you see a pictureyou would like to pin, simply click ‘pin it’ when thatwebpage is open, select your board and write yourdescription.

1. Create a veritable treasure trove of eye candy in your own boards by repinning other people's photos 2. Some websites will have a 'pin it'button beside their products, making it even easier to pin and share their beautiful pictures.

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In the past, you mayhave cut picturesfrom magazines andpinned them to anotice board toprovide you withinspiration fordecorating a room.You can now do thatonline by creating apinboard for each roomor each style andpinning pictures youlike to each pinboard.

3. Pin moodboards ofaccessories and styles toinform your own decoratingchoices AND as they arelinked to their source, you'llknow where to buy them!4. Once you install the 'pinit' button on your bookmarksbar, it is easy to pin anypicture you like (unless thewebsite has a no-pin code).5. Each board can holdnumerous pins and can be awonderful way to storeinspiration for your particularinterests 6. To findinspiration for bookcases,search in the top left box for'bookcases', then select'boards' to filter the searchand find numerous boardson that topic.

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How to Repin A repin is when you pin an existing pin on Pinterest. Overeach picture (when you hover the cursor over it) are three little boxes - comment, likeand repin. Click on the repin button, select the board you would like to pin it to (usingthe drop down menu), alter the description if you wish and click ‘pin it’.

Use Pinterest To Find:* Inspiration for a decorating scheme

* Decorating Ideas

* Beautiful Interiors

* Products for your home

* Gift Ideas

* ‘How to’ tutorials e.g How to wallpaper

* DIY project ideas

* Crafty Ideas

Finding the Source Sometimes it canbe difficult to find a pictured product. The beauty ofPinterest is the pin is always linked to the original source soif it was pinned from an online shop, you will be brought tothe source when you click on the picture and can then buythe product.

Pinterest and Copyright Thesuccess of Pinterest is people can share pictures that don‘tnecessarily belong to them. Do you have to be worriedabout copyright? Pinterest has provided a code thatwebsite owners can use if they don’t want their images tobe pinned. Some businesses (e.g photographers) are addinga watermark to their photos in order to ensure they aretraceable. Do not pin images from Google images, alwayspin from the original website so that the pin carries thenamed source. If the website doesn’t have a ‘no pin’ codeand you can pin the images using the bookmarklet tool ortheir ‘pin it‘ button, then you are pretty safe to pin away.

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Lorna Sixsmith runs Garrendenny Lane(garrendennylane.com), an online home accessories store.Following her long term, successful application of social mediachannels, she has also set up Write on Track, a social mediatraining business with online and offline training facilities, Sheblogs at http://write-on-track.com and has written numerousarticles on social media platforms.

7. To find inspiration for your own dream kitchen,search in the top left box for 'kitchens', then select'boards' to filter the search and find numerousboards on that topic. 8. Each pin will display theoriginal source from where it was pinned. Once thepin is clicked, it will bring you to the website pagewhere you can find more information or purchasethe product. 9. Looking for some painting tipsparticularly for using Annie Sloan paints? Check outthe multitude of Annie Sloan boards on Pinterest forinspiration and practical tips. 10. Find a brand youlike and follow it on Pinterest to continually see it’sideas and new products. Quirki Stuff specialises inpainted furniture and its Pinterest board reflectseverything that is fun and quirky.

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Pins and boards areshareable, hence you canbrowse other people’sboards, search amongstvarious categories or usea search term e.g.animal wallpaper, to findpins you like.

Sharing boards You cancreate a shared board and invite otherpinners to contribute. An interior designercould create a shared board with a client -both can submit pictures they like and checkeach other’s ideas. Together, they can createan inspiration board for a room or for awhole home.

The Joy of Pinning Pinterest really comes into its own whenyou sit down to savour all the pins in your boards and realise you have createdan inspiring collection. Part of the beauty of Pinterest is you can photograph andshare your own images too, enjoy seeing others like and repin them. As anextremely useful resource in helping you find the perfect wallpaper for yourbedroom, the right taps for your kitchen sink, a cute rug for your daughter’sbedroom, storage ideas for your hall and Christmas decorating ideas, Pinterest ishard to beat.

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