Recipes: Cooks, chefs and creative moms around the world are pinning pictures and recipes for their favorite gourmet creations. Pinterest offers the best inspirations because all of the recipes come with pictures. The thing to remember is these pictures usually are carefully planned to present the best image of each dish. The creator often has spent many attempts preparing and perfecting it before they pin it and present it to the world.
If you want inspiration in the kitchen, then Pinterest is a great resource. Here’s the thing to watch out for: I have heard of some friends who find so many dishes they want to try that they keep going back to the grocery to buy another ingredient — spending money they have not budgeted. If you are inspired easily by pictures of recipes, then plan to do one or two a month and plan out which extra ingredients you are going to need. Then search for coupons and sales to match those items.
Vacation planning: We are one of those families that really like to plan our vacations. We never end up doing all the things we plan but we don’t want to get to a destination and end up spending extra money for attractions or missing the special things because we just didn’t plan ahead.
I have been creating pin boards for different states and areas we visit. Any time I see where someone else has been to a cool destination or I find cool ideas for an area, I pin the image or link to that destination. When it’s time to actually plan the vacation, I can just look at my “free and cheap ideas board’ and get prepared. I already have gotten three boards started for our local states — Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio — free and cheap.
Comparison shopping: If you shop like I do, you look at lots of websites so you can compare the price, features, shipping or rebate options. It’s easy to have so many screens open that you lose some of the options.
Here’s how Pinterest can save you money: Create a board called “Shopping Ideas.” Then, when you find something you are interested in, just copy the URL and add that to your Pinterest board. Since Pinterest saves not just your image but also the website address it came from, you will be able to see all the options and easily find them when you are ready to buy.
As you have probably guessed, I’m on Pinterest and would love to connect with you — pinterest.com/ sharond73. Come on over and let’s share some great ideas!
Sharon Williams blogs about saving money in real life at www.reallifedeals.com and ways to pursue your hobbies without breaking your budget at www.hobbiesonabudget.com.
