The Pinterest Perception Problem

I love Pinterest.  I think it's wonderful tool to inspire creativity.  But I dislike Pinterest too, as so many of my brides and grooms seem to get caught up in someone else's story and forget about their own.  

Recently, I had the opportunity to try a little experiment.  I asked one of my brides to post a pic up to her Pinterest account.  It was a pretty, simple bouquet in pinks, and the question for her friends following her Wedding Board was:  do you think this would be right for our bouquets?  (She has 10 (ten!) bridesmaids.)   Everyone chimed in unanimously that would indeed be perfect and they'd be happy to carry it down the aisle.  Here's that photo:


Pretty, right?  Lovely shades of pink, who wouldn't want a bouquet like this?  Well, only one problem.  The bouquet is actually a miniature bouquet made out of spray roses and is not a lot bigger than a tube of lipstick:


Surprised?  So were all the bridesmaids and the brides Mom - the photo without any context totally fooled them into thinking the bouquet was a perfect size and shape. 

When it comes to Pinterest, and Instagram and all the other avenues of adventure for inspiration out there, use them, but don't forget to make your day your own.   Not every Pin is what it seems!  In this case, use these pinks and the styling to create beautiful designs that are clean lines and simple, but timeless and elegant.  I can easily see these small designs in a cluster in the center of a table too - what an amazing favor for each guest to bring home a miniature bouquet. 

If you use Pinterest as true inspiration, you're on your way to Power instead of Problem.  And wouldn't we much rather have Pinterest Power!