My first encounter with Pinterest was a few years ago when my sister started sharing her “pins” on Facebook. Intrigued by the fact that my not-so-tech-savvy sister was an early adopter of a web service that I had never heard of, I had to check it out.
After a few seconds of browsing, I realized that I had stumbled upon the mom and housewife neighborhood of the internet. There was nothing but endless rows of pictures of women’s clothes, cute crafts, and intricately decorated cupcakes. Sure, some of the food recipes looked good, but I knew right away that I wasn’t Pinterest’s primary demographic. So I surfed away, sure I’d never return.
Fast-forward a year later. Pinterest had exploded and the web was abuzz about it. As a person who makes their living online, I couldn’t ignore it, so I revisited the site. While pins of crafts and updo hairstyles still dominated, I did see a sprinkling of some manly stuff pinned by men.
Heartened by these brave lads, I began using Pinterest a bit more and I quickly discovered the appeal. Since using Pinterest regularly, I’ve cooked a few hearty, delicious man-food recipes for myself and my family, and I’ve found a few ideas for weekend DIY projects that I can build for my son, Gus.
Despite the inroads made by some men, Pinterest is still primarily used by women. According to recent estimates over 80% of users are female. So finding stuff that appeals to the guys can be tricky if you don’t know where to look.
Below I offer a Pinterest roadmap to help men navigate this primarily female domain. Enjoy.
Man Pinners and Boards
Jeremy Pruitt
Jeremy Pruitt is a Denver-based artist and designer with an eye for manly aesthetics. I’ve actually gotten some great decorating ideas from his boards. A few of my favorites are:
- Outdoors and Old Timey. Great vintage pics of cowboys, buffalo, and nature.
- Homestyle. Decorate your house. Like a man!
- Vintage Beer. Just pictures of vintage beer cans. Great inspiration for your man room.
Dan Polley
Dan is a Wisconsin-based food blogger, so naturally his Pinterest boards are dedicated to food. But because Dan is 1) a man and 2) a mid-westerner, his food pins are hearty and belly-filling. Here are my favorite Dan Polley food-themed Pinterest Boards:
- Burgery Goodness Your mouth will water just browsing through these burger recipes.
- Soups and Stews I love me a good, stick-to-your ribs stew. I’ve gotten a few recipe ideas to make for my family this winter from here.
- A Taste of the Southwest As a son of the American Southwest, this board conjures up a lot of memories. Lots of Tex-Mex recipes, many of which call for copious amounts of green chili. My favorite? New Mexico Green Chili Hot Dogs.
Oliver Blanchard
Mr. Blanchard is the author of the book Social Media ROI. When he’s not consulting clients on how to get the most from Facebook and Twitter, he’s helping man-up Pinterest with his diverse collection of boards. A few of them are NSFW, so tread carefully. Here are my favorite Oliver Blanchard Pinterest boards:
- The Satorialism Style inspiration for men. Prepare to dapper up.
- Cars, Bikes, and Whisky Name says it all. The urge to buy a vintage Indian motorcycle always seems to increase when I look at this board.
- Zombie Survival Hands down, my favorite board put together by Mr. Blanchard. Me and a few of my friends often talk — in a playful, but slightly serious tone — about what gear we would want during the zombie apocalypse. Oliver’s Zombie Survival Pinterest Board is basically a visual representation of those late-night conversations. While the board is done primarily in jest (at least I think it is) I have found a few items that I’ve added or will be adding to my Bug Out Bag. You never know when you’ll need a Solar Window Portable Charger.
Board of Man
Board of Man is a group Pinterest Board whose mission is to “add a few extra Y chromosomes to Pinterest. Etsy promos and recipes be darned.” With over 230,000 followers, Board of Man has become the go-to manly hangout in this predominantly feminine part of the internet. You’ll find a wide variety of man-centric pins here including diagrams on how to tie a tie, a video of Ron Swanson explaining how to grow a mustache, and plenty of pictures of manly men from history, including Pop-Eye. They keep things light and fun at Board of Man, so swing over whenever you’re in need of a manly dose of humor.
Art of Manliness “Manly Stuff” Board
Shameless plug. The Art of Manliness has a Pinterest account and I think we pin some pretty manly stuff. I don’t have the patience to categorize all my pins into separate boards, so I just throw it all on a single board that I call “Manly Stuff.” You’ll find everything from style ideas to manly grub to cook yourself. I also pin gear that an AoM man might appreciate like pocket knives, axes, and pipes.
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