Her.meneutics: Why Women Are Obsessed with Pinterest

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« Should Christians Take Antidepressants? | Main | Why I'm Okay with Church Failure »

November 30, 2011

Why Women Are Obsessed with Pinterest

The spirituality of the booming online "self-expression engine."

Laura Leonard

“Men are more visual than women.” It’s a refrain we’ve all heard to explain the differences between men's and women's sexuality. If you want proof of the contrary, look no further than Pinterest.

What is Pinterest? TechCrunch describes it as a “self-expression engine” along the lines of Twitter and Facebook. Users can create virtual “mood boards” or “vision boards" on which they can collect images. Users can create separate boards for any kind of interest--fashion, art, books, decor, crafts, recipes, workout ideas, inspirational quotes--and “pin” to those boards images that reflect their style and tastes. Users can share these curated collections with friends or inspired strangers. The community is a large part of the draw--users can browse and search the entire network, which now includes over 1.5 million actives users (the majority of whom are women).

I am one of them. I first heard of the site a few months ago. A friend insisted I had to join and rapturously boasted she’d “wasted so many hours” poring over pages of pins (she assured me this was a good thing, and after a few minutes on the site I would realize she was right on both counts). I now have six different boards to which I regularly post. They’re mostly of clothes I can’t afford but like to look at, and a few home decor ideas I’ll never try but would like to think I could. As of right now, I follow 65 people: mostly friends, but a few I don’t know but have decided have excellent (read: similar) taste. And 65 people follow me, including more than a few I have never met. And I have spent many hours scrolling through page after page of recipes, hair styles, incredible home libraries, and vintage cookware, looking for inspiration. What I thought would be a mindless time waster has become an active pursuit, and I tend to my boards as one might a garden. Whenever I get an e-mail that someone new is following my boards, I feel validated in my tastes, and, in some small way, in myself.

So what does all this say about the ways in which women are visual? Why do so many women spend so much time seeking out images to pin? Some users simply want a place to track things they don’t want to forget. Wedding planning seems to be a popular theme, as do crafting, cooking, and decorating. Many items are accompanied by comments like “I want this!” or “I need to try this!” Workouts, recipes, and “thinspiration” images motivate users to get in shape, and DIY crafting and home improvement ideas inspire project ideas. “Research has shown that making a ‘vision board’ with pictures of things that inspire you to live healthier are more effective than writing goals on a piece of paper or just resolving to do them in your mind,” says a Shape article entitled, “Can Pinterest Change Your Life?” And the site proves that women can be visual in exactly the same ways as men--I’ve seen more than enough images of shirtless men to confirm this hypothesis. Pinterest seems to be a forum for building up “innocent” fantasies--dream closets, dream homes, dream men--and in this way encouraging consumer tendencies. These fantasies engage both a visual and emotional fantasy that is often disconnected from reality. By collecting and displaying these images, we are laying ourselves and our desire out for all to see.

Pinterest is at heart a social platform. In August, Time named it one of the 50 best websites of 2011. In a Wall Street Journal column, Emily Rosman identifies Pinterest as one of the technologies that is “holding her marriage together.” She said the site has become “an affectionate way of communicating” for her and her husband, as he surprises her with gifts and craft supplies inspired by her pins, and she posts images she knows he will like. But Rosman also taps into the risk of any social media: self-expression can all too quickly become self-definition. In other words: you are what you pin. On Pinterest, users gain social capital by acquiring new followers and getting their images liked or reposted. A pinboard can function like a Facebook profile--a proclamation of who you are, communicated through what you like. We love beautiful things, and want others to associate us with those beautiful things.

Beauty is a good thing, and God created us to enjoy it. This is a truth that explains the fascination with Pinterest, which connects the visual with the emotional, as well as the visual component of male sexuality, which connects the visual with the physical. And it is true, for both men and women (and both can be and are visual in both ways). But just as the visual aspects of sexuality can easily lead to habits that feed the visual and physical appetite without engaging the object of beauty, so too can this form of visual stimulus feed the visual and emotional appetite and lead to mindless and harmful consumption.

How many hours spent on Pinterest are rooted in discontent? As I scroll through the pages, I am overwhelmed by the feeling that I will never have enough: enough money, to own all the beautiful things I want; enough time, to cook all the tempting recipes; enough skill, to attempt all the crafting projects; enough beauty, to have that hair or to pull off that dress. To what extent can we simply enjoy beauty without lusting after the objects (and people) we find beautiful?

I believe it can be done. I own a few things I consider really beautiful, and my tea set is one of them. From time to time, especially on leisurely Saturday mornings, I break it out and make a pot of tea. I call it my simple pleasure, and in it I enjoy not just the tea but the beauty of the teapot, the cup, the sugar bowl. But while this little ritual engages only itself, Pinterest keeps us looking for the next thing, keeps us wanting more. Even if I purchased or attempted to make every single thing on my board, even on every existing board, there will always be a new pin waiting to appear.

Pinterest isn’t evil. It can be fun, and is a simple way to express creativity and share it with others. But it makes it so easy to exploit this natural and healthy appreciation of beauty and lead us to its basest expressions. An image won’t define us, and neither will the possession of the object it represents. A pin is just a pin, after all.

Comments

Laura, this is so interesting! Thanks for these insights!

I regularly try recipes and crafts from pintrest and find it a relaxing pastime. Perhaps if people are discontent with their lives in general, pintrest may (will?) only feed that discontent. I may be discontent that my home isn't as dazzling decorated for Christmas as a pintrest photo, but I have found some great ideas and tips to help me decorate and appreciate the simple beauty of my own home. The greatest evil, for me, is wasting time. I regularly try recipes and crafts from pintrest and find it a relaxing pastime. But as they say, everything in moderation.

This is the first I've ever heard of Pinterest and it sounds intriguing though I am not going to go there. I love my life -- it is a simple life full of children and believing God to do great things in our lives, our finances, our church and our community (plus in my children's and husband's lives). But I have found that for me to immerse myself in stuff that shows my lack can begin to push me to discontent. I had to re-orient myself after spending five days in an area where everyone has so much and they never think or do for those with less.

This is a dig on myself, not others. My faith should be strong enough to go anywhere, even a place of excess and still reach out to those in need, be content in my life and not wonder why I don't have it a bit easier.

I came back from my trip realizing my faith is sadly lacking though I sure don't want it to. God is what this life is about. God is who our focus needs to be on all the time. If Pinterest helps you focus on God and what He has called you to do then go for it.

The fears expressed in this article are exactly why I never bothered with Pinterest in the first place. Collecting endless images of all kinds of things you want to have and buy? Having other people affirm your consumerist desires as legitimate? Spending endless amounts of time on the computer, just clicking on and organizing images? There's a whole world out there, people!

*cue people saying "Well I only use it for 15 minutes a day, and only on weekends, and only to find recipes, and it's helped me to connect with my second-cousin-in-law-twice-removed" yadda yadda yadda*

What I want to know is why are people so quick to jump on social network bandwagons? When I first hear about something like this, I actually think critically about it first. If you do this, most of the time you will realize you never needed this before, so you don't need it now, and it's only more thing to waste your time. But no, people just sign up like automatons and then only realize the negative effects later. Why can't people ever foresee consequences?

Laura,

I've heard many of my friends expressing appreciation for Pinterest but haven't checked it out yet. I suppose I shall. Maybe?

Also, I like your point about women being visual. I heard a counselor recently say that 25% of women tend to be visually inclined (like most men). I also read somewhere that technology has increased womens' visual tendencies.

All this to say is that I wonder if saying men are more visual could be a thing of the past? And because what I've read leads me to believe that women are more visual now than before, we need to take that into consideration when addressing the struggles women have.

Thanks for the post!

Like anything that can become a vice, Pinterest is what you make of it and how you chose to use it. For me, Pinterest has given me ideas on how to use what I already have to satisfy my need for something "new" or pretty. And Pinterest is just simple fun.

Anyone else find it ironic that the author linked to her own boards while decrying the self validation from others through Pinterest? (Good taste, btw!)

i've come to realize that all things can be abused... pinterest is no exception! i discovered it when i was planning a party, and it was a wonderful resource. when i use it as an escape or a way to fill myself up without Christ, then i have abused it. same as coffee, television, blogs, shopping... i can distort any good thing with my sin.

Before I saw who wrote this I thought of how this is one of the more engaging and creative topics I've seen on the blog lately. Then I see it's Laura! Thanks for such a cool right up. I've had Pinterest on my radar for awhile but haven't invested in it. I can see the potential for fashion influence though. I was the same way with twitter; I signed up in 2007 but only started really using it last year.

I love the community aspects of social media, I didn't realize how collaborative Pinterest was.

@rachel: Everything is permissible for me - but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for me - but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Corinithians 6:12

It's another avenue for entertainment. Some people aren't into social media or online life other than email or facebook. Like Nadine said, maybe to them it's just clicking buttons that don't mean anything. But there is a whole evolving generation who views it differently and it doesn't mean their life is any less credible. It doesn't mean you throw your whole belief system out.

Wow, I wrote "right up" I mean write up. And I agree with the verse, everything is permissible, but I don't have to be mastered by it.

Later this afternoon, I will be teaching a graduate course in Christian Poetics. Today's reading comes from Poetic Theology: God and the Poetics of Everyday Life by William A. Dyrness. The chapters under discussion analyze the Catholic emphasis on the visual versus the Protestant emphasis on the word and the connection of these to the modern sense of the self.

I am bringing copies of this post to class today because it is a perfect, practical illustration of today's highly theoretical reading assignment--perfect!

Thank you!

P.S. I have signed up for a Pinterest account, but have not yet had time to do anything with it. Am curious to discover what it has/does once I do!

I am concerned that many of the negative comments do not take into account the god given creativity that can be encouraged and inspired by Pinterest and other similar idea sites. Can it be abused? Of course.

But the church (and Evangelical world in particular) seems to continually minimize creativity and the arts and this is potentially another post that is minimizing the need for beauty, creativity and the arts. I am not an artist. But my wife is and the way to insure a happy wife in my life is to encourage her to explore her creativity. She works hard serving others and the way she relaxes and unwinds is to explore her creativity and try new projects.

Yes I get frustrated with her many unfinished projects and all of the materials that we have to find a place for. But she loves it and she spends hours working on gifts for others.

I only recently discovered Pinterest due to a friend's friend commenting about it on Facebook. I looked it up and immediately fell in love with the creativity that people were expressing. Could I get overwhelmed with what I can't have? Sure -we all could, but that is overwhelmingly a heart issue. I found one picture that I deeply fell in love with and if I could figure out how to replicate at a reasonable cost; I would - but I can't since I don't own my own home. But I look at and think - well if I ever do have my own home; I will do this (if I still think its cute then).

I'm currently waiting for my Pinterest invite. Patiently.

I think it appears to a woman's creative side.

lovelovelove pintrest. when i feel the need to be creative but can't i get my love by pinning things i might do when my 11 children are grown!! in the mean time, i get tremendous ideas for cleaning, organizing, educating, and cooking...i am in. if you want an invite, email me. i think it is great. Easily as addicting as drugs, but you know, i don't generally pin and drive ;o) We have to learn to step away from everything!! There is nothing we cannot become addicted to.

Pinterest makes me panic. I don't know why. I have an account, and I occasionally add to it, but I've never actually spent time on the site. It's just too much for me -- too many visuals, too many updates, too many "new rules" of a social-networking site for me to take in.

Does ANYONE else feel the same way? I feel alone in this sense of anxiousness.

I am an obnoxiously creative person and I adore all the ideas that float around on Pinterest! I can't recommend it enough. I love the order of the boards and the variety. Unfortunately I have seen some pretty offensive material and wish that Pinterest would limit that!

Really appreciate this blog post. I see great potential in Pinterest, but can see how it can be abused.

I find that Pinterest relaxes me. I enjoy finding stained glass windows from various churches and buildings around the globe. I enjoy the beauty of creation and have re-pinned many natures photos. And I've found some great recipes too. Its all in how you use Pinterest. I don't use it in a way that fuels any discontent. And I use it in spurts, not as consistently as I use facebook.

Brilliant topic. I agree with most of the above comments. I do not watch any TV as I find that I am inclined to just watch mindlessly even if I am not particularly enjoying a program - this being a huge waste of time. With PI one can skip over the things that do not appeal - recipes, fashion etc. I have found wonderful craft/art blogs and ideas and lots of brilliant quotes (I am a quote junkie). It is like reading a women's magazine, without having dozens of adverts. I find that there is a lot of beauty and positivity on the site. It can be a bandwidth and time consumer, but everything in moderation.

I spend much more time on Pininterest instead of Facebook (Anyone else seen the "Face your problems Don't Facebook your problems" pin on Pintrest?)

I agree with a lot of the other comments that I use it as a inspiration for the things I already have - there are so many DIY, save money, etc. as well as beautiful things that it has enhanced my life rather than taken away from it. Plus I can really engage with friends thoughts and dreams rather than look at their last "fake - making chicken for dinner" facebook post.

If I can't go (to Austria or to see the Northern Lights), I can at least see beautiful pictures and imagine being there. It's almost like reading a book - it is a way to experience something you may otherwise not had the chance to.

In moderation of course - escaping from real life all the time is not any way to live. But using it to enhance your life and understand those around you? Why not?

Such an interesting topic! I was linked here, ironically, from pinterest :-). Totally agree that pinterest can fuel discontent or can be an escape, great reminder.

I think that one of the reasons a site like pinterest is so popular is the decline of the middle class. With fewer people of that income level, stores and shops disappear that once sold to that population. I have witnessed many such shops close their doors. Now, it is vicariously, virtually, that such simple pleasures can be enjoyed. Bring back the middle class!

Pinterest is what you make of it. The control is what you give or don't give. For me it has been an amazing resource. As a librarian it is fun to catalog. Your article was a great reminder as in all of life moderation is needed. Thank you for not throwing the baby out with the bath water!

I like Pinterest. I'm far from "obsessed" with it. I know the author doesn't choose the title, but I submit that CT Hermeneutics editors chose it poorly. "Women" are not "obsessed" with Pinterest. SOME women might be. Other women like it. Other women have no interest whatsoever. Broad generalizations will make you popular with no one.

I enjoy Pinterest because it allows my friends and I to share ideas for cooking, decorating, crafts, reading, etc. It's far from a tool of discontent for me. We also share funny quotes and beautiful photos. It also allows me to explore my dreams for the future, which inspires me rather than making me discontent.

As Jacqueline said: it is what you make it. I suppose if one were "wasting hours" and "obsessed," that would be a problem. ANYTHING that becomes an "obsession" should be looked at more carefully. Surely everyone deserves a fun pastime, and Pinterest is a valid one just like any other.

My introduction to Pinterest came about a month ago and, to my surprise, I have found many inspirational and encouraging ideas and blogs by following the pins of others. I find myself being more frugal and more mindful of my healthy ( aka not so healthy) recipe choices. I have found an incredible amount of crafty inspiration and decided to make this the year of home-made Christmas gifts. This has led me (and the hubby) to a much happier and satisfying holiday season where we are more conscious of remembering the true meaning of CHRISTmas instead of shopping till we drop!
In my experience Pinterest is entirely what you make it, and you will find only what you are looking for. Just like anything else you can make it whatever you want it to be.
I'm just glad for the reprieve from all the Facebook drama!!!

I just recently found Pinterest....and for the record that's where I found this blog :) What is even better is I found your blog pined from a friend who is a non-believer.SO imagine my excitement when the words Christian Women were in the description!! the world is the world, and as we try to spread the good news of Jesus around it, we should give thanks that God is starting to make it so easy for us ( and fun!)!! I pin sermons, scripture decor ( which people really dig, BTW), Christian music videos, and great books I hope believers and non- believers may pick up. I even pinned a link to my favorite Bible app. While it might be frustrating that technology can have negative side affects, I think looking at new fads, i.e. Pinterest as an opportunity to reach the lost and spread the gospel is a wise thing to do. Plus every time you pin something or like something it only adds to it's validity on Google rankings and within the social engines themselves, which in turns puts more of Jesus out there for people to stumble upon.Embrace Social networks for Jesus sake....It is the door to the lost :) Good blog post Laura!!!!!

Wow, only 3 of 12 women I asked even knew what Pinterest was ... yet, according to Christianity Today, we're all obsessed with it?

Could CT maybe hire an editor who doesn't allow article writers to assume that their narrow personal interests are universally shared by all women?

Regarding your question, "To what extent can we simply enjoy beauty without lusting after the objects (and people) we find beautiful?", I'd like to know what progress you've made on answering it because I am very curious as to the 'how' of the response (aka I have trouble not lusting after beautiful objects/people even when I just want to simply enjoy beauty).

I just heard about this site, and have visited it. I "clicked" request and invitationseveral times, but haven't received anything via email. The first request was 3-4 days ago. Suggestions?

I do admire the beatiful sights on Pinterest but I'm not planning a wedding and I'm not into fashion or home decor.
I just look at the Disney things on Pinterest because people are so amazingly talented and I'll a huge Disney nerd. My kids are picky eaters so I've only tried a few recipes.

Wow, very true. I totally agree with your perspective on Pinterest. It can be a fun way to get good ideas and see beautiful things, but you are right - I have noticed how time consuming it can be, how many photos of men's bodies parade around on the website, and how much of Pinterest can be rooted in discontent. Thank you for your wisdom on this topic.

Erin

Kathleen,

You comment that "according to Christianity Today, we're all obsessed with [Pinterest]. Could CT maybe hire an editor who doesn't allow article writers to assume that their narrow personal interests are universally shared by all women?"

I couldn't find any claim in this article that all women are obsessed with Pinterest. The closest claim is in the article title, "Why Women Are Obsessed With Pinterest," which only implies that some women are obsessed with it.

Can you point me to the part of the article that angers you? You insinuate that the article writer is self-centered and the editor is incompetent. Those are hefty and potentially uncharitable allegations to make, and they're based on your contention that the article writer assumes all women share her interests.

Can you point me to the place in the article that leads you to contend this? Otherwise, the fact that 25% of your friends have heard of Pinterest actually seems to support the idea that the website is popular among women.

I just found Pinterest a couple months ago and see it as a great avenue to share how others can help us here with our missions work in Ecuador. My husband and I administer a Christian school and I have posted items that our school loves to have donated that are hard to get here as well as items that our family misses from the US. We have already received two care packages as a result. I think it is a great visual tool to encourage others to give in a tangible way. So, for me pinterest has been a great help in our ministry. Check it out at http://pinterest.com/wanderingnec/

http://www.juxtapost.com is similar to pinterest but does it a little better

While many may use Pinterest as a means to collect things that they want, I use Pinterest as an organizing tool. Initially, I stayed away from the site because of the reasons cited in this article--people kept telling me they spent hours on the site or were addicted to it. However, once I took a look for myself, I found that it was neither time consuming nor addicting--at least not for me.

Whether it's sewing patterns or craft projects or recipes, this is a great way to see everything at once and save it all in one place, rather than hunting all over the web for that pattern I saw last month. It's also a fun way to provide articles/quotes of interest and encouragement for my friends. If I find a cute baby idea, I can pin it, rather than e-mailing it to people, etc.

Why social media? Some of us have businesses from home so that we can be stay-at-home moms. Pinterest and other forms of social media are cheap advertising that works. People do business with those they know, like, and trust. Social media allows us to connect with many more people and build rapport with them, simply through sharing our interests.

Pinterest may be a vice for some, but it is also a time-saving organizer for many others--and for some it may be a means of generating income that allows them to be the mothers they want to be.

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