An Interest in Pinterest

Written and media by Charley Phillips.

Pinterest is hands down one of the most addicting websites/social media places as of late. There is so much someone can do while exploring around the site. Not only does it include yummy recipes, but handy DIY for all ages! I love getting creative ideas just by browsing and searching for certain topics.  Because of this, I decided to venture out and create three of the popular trends I see re-pinned on my homepage.

Headline Photos by Charley Phillips

For some, baking can be a hassle. When I first began on Pinterest, I kept seeing people post “Cake-Mix Cookies”. I thought it was silly because why not just have a big slice of cake? (I am a pie fan, so my opinion is invalid.) This Pinterest idea is simple, affordable, and can be done within 20 minutes!  You can be inspired by a Pinterest recipe by clicking here.

What is amazing about these cookies is that they can be as unique as you want them to be.  With the 1000 kinds of cake-mixes out there, someone can experiment with whatever flavor combinations they would like! I personally have made some amazing kinds such as Devil’s Food + Andes mints, German Chocolate + Rolos on top, Butter Cake + Butterscotch chips, Chocolate + White Chocolate chips, and also Red Velvet + White Chocolate chips. I have YET to create a duplicate recipe! The recipe I tested out this time is Cherry Chip with Mini Chocolate chips, also known as “Chocolate Covered Cherries”!

GIF by Charley Phillips

This recipe as shown to the left only requires four ingredients. The basis of the recipe is a cake-mix, one egg, and a stick of softened butter (or margarine).  The chocolate chips are only optional and can be substituted with any other ingredient as one wants; such as walnuts or even dried cherries! Once everything is mixed in, pop these cookies into a 375* oven for 10-12 minutes depending on the oven. I have always put my cookie sheets in the freezer as I am making the dough (must have seen that on Pinterest) because it creates a golden bottom that is not too crunchy!

And the results…

Photo by: Charley Phillips

Yummy cookies that were parent approved! This was a nice light cookie that was not too sweet but had equal parts of deliciousness! I would say that Pinterest was a WIN on this project. Not only was it easy, but for this can be a go to recipe for any beginner cook. Once the cookies are out of the oven, you will see the finished sweet creation that YOU thought of!  I highly recommend trying it out with your own mixtures and posting  the results!

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Here is another baking Pinterest idea. I always see baking, cooking, grilling, mixing, ect. recipes on the site. This is a special recipe though because it is for DOG’S ONLY!  If you ever wanted to do something for your dog, here is another simple 4-ingredient step-by-step! All you need to gather is Whole Wheat Flour, Peanut-butter, Skim Milk, and Baking Powder. You can click here for the Pinterest source!  Check out  my step by step by clicking here!

Graphic by Charley Phillips

The results were dog approved! My dog was sitting patiently as she watched me make these. I definitely think she knew they were for her! They are super easy and cute to make. This recipe makes a lot of dough, I even had to freeze some for later. For the amount I made and baked for my dog was probably less than what people spend on Milk Bones! My dog loves them, and you know what is in them! I would give this pin a WIN!

Graphic by Charley Phillips

Photo by Charley Phillips.

Finally there is Crayola art. This project was probably one of the first that went viral on Facebook. I seriously think over half of the girls on my Facebook did this DIY craft. There are many ways to stick Crayola crayons on a piece of poster board, canvas, ect. and use a hair dryer to melt the crayons into art. First of all, my first fail of this craft was tearing off the paper to the crayons. Not only was it difficult to hot glue the crayons onto the paper, they were not sturdy at all. There were times where I would be blow-drying away and all of the sudden my pieces of crayon flew off. For me, this craft is a WIN/FAIL. I think if I had the correct material and the patience, it could have turned out much better than it did. I drew a partial tree and wrote the quote from The Giving Tree; “Once there was a tree…”. I used only green toned crayons to symbolize leaves, but it just looked like a weeping willow. I had an idea that maybe if I added a brown it could resemble branches. Well, the brown I chose was a reddish brown so it contrasted with the greens. Second fail on my part. Overall, this is a cute idea and probably not the easiest to complete. It takes some patience and preparation as seen in this link.

Pinterest. This site is fully of creativity and plenty of ideas that can be used for whatever someone may be in need of.  I wish I could have done more that I always see while browsing, but that would have been page after page of pictures and me possibly failing! If there are any pins that you may see a lot, comment below and there might be a part 2 for this article!

Video from Buzzfeed.