If someone knows what they’re looking for, a simple Google search will most likely deliver the wanted results. But no search engine can help that person discover new ideas and hobbies he or she might not have thought to look for — until now.
 
Pinterest is a free website where users can add, or “pin,” photos and links to websites of interest on virtual pin boards, creating virtual collages.
History and anthropology sophomore Maria Guidry described Pinterest as a “more girly version” of Tumblr. Guidry began using Pinterest during finals week in December as a source of procrastination.
 
She said she likes to use Pinterest to read recipes, especially ones that provide healthier versions of her favorite foods. Guidry said she also uses Pinterest to find tasty ways to incorporate more vegetables into her diet.
 
In addition to the board where she repins recipes, she also has boards for fashion, home decor and one that she calls “pretty things,” where she repins things that inspire her — from photos of a sunset to a pair of shoes.
 
“I can pull ideas from other people’s photos and get an idea of where to go from there,” Guidry said.
 
While Guidry commonly repins photos and links from other people, she said she occasionally creates her own pins of websites she finds interesting that haven’t been pinned by her friends.
 
Pinterest users can add a button to their Web-browser toolbars that allows them to easily pin other websites when they’re away from the Pinterest page. The button on the toolbar pulls up all photos on a website, and users can select the photo they want to display on the pin.
 
Residence Life Coordinator Monelle Wells, who works in Kirby Smith Hall, uses Pinterest for do-it-yourself projects and crafts. She hand-made many gifts this Christmas from pins she saw on Pinterest.
 
Wells said she decided to try to recreate a work of art involving carpentry nails and string after seeing it pop up continuously under popular pins. She created this nail art in the shape of Louisiana, with a heart around New Orleans, which she said took about four to five hours.
 
First she painted the surface of a piece of wood, using it as a canvas. Then she hammered the nails to make the outline of the state. The final step was wrapping the string around the nails to create the right aesthetic.
 
For those who aren’t so crafty, Wells said many pins link to websites such as Etsy, where users can buy handmade or
vintage items.
 
“It’s good for everybody who’s crafty, or not crafty, or want to feel crafty,” Wells said.
 
Mass communication junior Olivia Olinde said Pinterest is more personal than social media sites.
 
“It highlights things about you. If you look at it, you can get a sense of who that person is,” Olinde said.
 
Olinde said she frequently used Pinterest last semester to get ideas for projects for an art class. She said it’s a good website to start brainstorming. Similar to writer’s block, Olinde said she sometimes gets “art block,” and she can view other people’s “pins” to spark her creativity.
 
Olinde said she has one board for inspirational quotes, one for health and fitness and one called “Kicks and