Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Some things that are mystifyingly popular on Pinterest. I like seeing which of the images I pin on Pinterest get liked and repinned by others, although it annoys me so much that the site negates my efforts to critique stuff.
I pin images I dislike to boards entitled "Misogynist Bullshit" (self-explanatory), "Fucked-Up Shit" (racist, morally objectionable, psychologically damaging, general fails) and "Whimsy Overdose" (obnoxiously cutesy stuff done in pursuit of an infantile aesthetic. Yes, I realise this blog also has 'whimsy' in the title). But it then annoys me considerably to see other people pinning the same images to boards entitled "Pretty", "Want", "Fabulous", etc.
Caption: "A nice summary of Amélie's key costumes."
Board: Screen Costume
224 repins; 67 likes.
This is the most popular thing I've ever pinned, and I think I just repinned it from somewhere else with a new caption. (It is quite important to me to use the caption field to add my own original comments on what I like about an image and why I'm pinning it.) Its popularity mystifies me – is it because Amélie is a retro '90s film, or a film with a whimsical aesthetic and storyline? Is it the illustrations?
Caption: "A couple of years ago I wrote this lil guide on how to do your hair in victory rolls."
Board: The Hipster Tipster
71 repins; 21 likes.
I think people are just pinning this because they like Golden Age Hollywood imagery, whereas I was pinning it as an illustration of victory rolls, the 1940s hairstyle. Moreover, I was pinning it because it links to a blog post I wrote on how to do your hair in victory rolls. So maybe people are pinning it for the tutorial.
Caption: "Michelberger Hotel. I like the cheerful yellow curtain. Yellow and grey is always a good colour combo."
Board: Domestic Ideas
41 repins; 5 likes.
My eye is often caught by bright colours, but honestly other than the curtain this is a pretty boring image. People tend to pin it alongside other images of "pops of colour" (honestly, I hate that expression and wish to give whoever thought of it a 'pop of colour' in the eye, if you know what I am saying).
Caption: "This is embarrassing to admit, but I collect black and white kitsch animal figurines. (Artwork by Stuart Haygarth)"
Board: Domestic Ideas
24 repins; 3 likes.
Guess it's not as embarrassing as I thought. Also, please note that I like to credit original sources, artists and photographers where possible, rather than just letting images circulate freely online without context.
Caption: ""I say, Alvanley, who's your fat friend?" Beau Brummell's glib remark about George IV instantly lost him the social position he'd won with his impeccable dress and caustic wit; he fled England to escape his creditors and died in poverty in France in 1840. This figurine of Brummell is based on historical research."
Board: Out of Shape
12 repins; 5 likes
This is just a dumb figurine of Beau Brummell made recently. I don't even think it's very well done honestly (his pants should have a horizontal fly rather than a vertical one), but I wanted to pin something to do with this quintessential English Regency dandy to my Out of Shape board. Other people have repinned it to boards about the historical period or Regency fashion. Honestly I feel quite indignant at the historical inaccuracy that tends to reign on Tumblr and Pinterest regarding costume history, and am annoyed at having contributed to it.
Caption: "I made this by using rubber bands (my glue gun was out of glue) to attach old Christmas baubles to a wicker wreath I found at my parents' house. Doesn't look as glam as the glue-gun version I pinned a little while back, but it's fancy enough for me!"
Board: The Hipster Tipster
10 repins
I add this only out of a sense of wonder that this is a photo I took myself of something I made myself, based on another wreath I saw on Pinterest, and other people liked it enough to repin it along with all the profesh-looking DIY projects. I tend to think of Pinterest as a fantasy space where I can gaze over images other people have created, and it's crazy to think I have created one of those images myself.
I pin images I dislike to boards entitled "Misogynist Bullshit" (self-explanatory), "Fucked-Up Shit" (racist, morally objectionable, psychologically damaging, general fails) and "Whimsy Overdose" (obnoxiously cutesy stuff done in pursuit of an infantile aesthetic. Yes, I realise this blog also has 'whimsy' in the title). But it then annoys me considerably to see other people pinning the same images to boards entitled "Pretty", "Want", "Fabulous", etc.
Caption: "A nice summary of Amélie's key costumes."
Board: Screen Costume
224 repins; 67 likes.
This is the most popular thing I've ever pinned, and I think I just repinned it from somewhere else with a new caption. (It is quite important to me to use the caption field to add my own original comments on what I like about an image and why I'm pinning it.) Its popularity mystifies me – is it because Amélie is a retro '90s film, or a film with a whimsical aesthetic and storyline? Is it the illustrations?
Caption: "A couple of years ago I wrote this lil guide on how to do your hair in victory rolls."
Board: The Hipster Tipster
71 repins; 21 likes.
I think people are just pinning this because they like Golden Age Hollywood imagery, whereas I was pinning it as an illustration of victory rolls, the 1940s hairstyle. Moreover, I was pinning it because it links to a blog post I wrote on how to do your hair in victory rolls. So maybe people are pinning it for the tutorial.
Caption: "Michelberger Hotel. I like the cheerful yellow curtain. Yellow and grey is always a good colour combo."
Board: Domestic Ideas
41 repins; 5 likes.
My eye is often caught by bright colours, but honestly other than the curtain this is a pretty boring image. People tend to pin it alongside other images of "pops of colour" (honestly, I hate that expression and wish to give whoever thought of it a 'pop of colour' in the eye, if you know what I am saying).
Caption: "This is embarrassing to admit, but I collect black and white kitsch animal figurines. (Artwork by Stuart Haygarth)"
Board: Domestic Ideas
24 repins; 3 likes.
Guess it's not as embarrassing as I thought. Also, please note that I like to credit original sources, artists and photographers where possible, rather than just letting images circulate freely online without context.
Caption: ""I say, Alvanley, who's your fat friend?" Beau Brummell's glib remark about George IV instantly lost him the social position he'd won with his impeccable dress and caustic wit; he fled England to escape his creditors and died in poverty in France in 1840. This figurine of Brummell is based on historical research."
Board: Out of Shape
12 repins; 5 likes
This is just a dumb figurine of Beau Brummell made recently. I don't even think it's very well done honestly (his pants should have a horizontal fly rather than a vertical one), but I wanted to pin something to do with this quintessential English Regency dandy to my Out of Shape board. Other people have repinned it to boards about the historical period or Regency fashion. Honestly I feel quite indignant at the historical inaccuracy that tends to reign on Tumblr and Pinterest regarding costume history, and am annoyed at having contributed to it.
Caption: "I made this by using rubber bands (my glue gun was out of glue) to attach old Christmas baubles to a wicker wreath I found at my parents' house. Doesn't look as glam as the glue-gun version I pinned a little while back, but it's fancy enough for me!"
Board: The Hipster Tipster
10 repins
I add this only out of a sense of wonder that this is a photo I took myself of something I made myself, based on another wreath I saw on Pinterest, and other people liked it enough to repin it along with all the profesh-looking DIY projects. I tend to think of Pinterest as a fantasy space where I can gaze over images other people have created, and it's crazy to think I have created one of those images myself.
