So, I did a little research and used some of the other very organized teachers that I follow and made some cover photos! However, a lot of the other teacher bloggers or TpT sellers I follow have a separate Pinterest account for their personal pins (like recipes and clothes) and for their professional one (teaching!). I decided not to go that route because I would hate to have to log in and out any time I wanted to pin to a different account and I already have my friends following me on this one.
The solution? I made different themed cover photos for my teaching boards and my personal boards.
BEFORE
AFTER
My teaching boards are a chalkboard theme and my personal ones are pink polka dots. I've kept them separated to make it easier to navigate (more for myself than anything....). I love it!
Here's how I did it. It was very simple because I used PicMonkey! I am a HUGE fan of PicMonkey!
1. Go to PicMonkey.com. This is a free site where you can edit and create images as well as create collages of images. This is the site I use all the time for my collage images in my other blog posts!
Click the design tab at the top. For this method, don't worry about size of the image. I used an entire image as my background. If you'd like to start from scratch and use the background provided by PicMonkey, the image size that works best for Pinterest board covers is 222 x 150 which you can enter in after clicking "custom" under the Design tab.
2. Again, for my method, I located a background that was a good size for Pinterest covers and opened it as an image.
I clicked Open at the top bar of tabs and it directed me to folders where I located the file I wanted as my background. The chalkboard backgrounds used were downloaded from Creative Commons.
3. After my background is uploaded, I started with the text.
First, click the Text tab on the left (looks like Tt). Then select your desired text! They have some great free ones, which is what I use, but if you like the "Royal" ones, you have to pay a subscription. I chose "Chelsea Market" and then clicked the "Add Text" button at the top.
4. Start typing and then design your text.
I chose my text to be colored white and I centered the text. You can also change the size here, but I prefer a different way. I click out of the highlighted text and drag the corners of the text box. PicMonkey automatically changes the size of the text to match the size of the box.
5. Time for graphics and decoration! My favorite part! PicMonkey has a pretty good selection of overlays you can use for free (or again, if you pay for the royal package you have access to more). Or you can upload your own graphics. Both of which are shown here.
On the left bar, click the butterfly icon which is your menu for overlays. For this tutorial, I chose the Graphic Blooms category and chose a PicMonkey stock image. Once you click the image you want, it will show up in the center of your design. Then resize as normal!
6. I am a fan of graphics behind the text instead of surrounding text with graphics. I love different layers! Since we want the text to be in front of the graphic, we need to re-order the layers.
Simply right-click your graphic and select "Send Backward." This will send the image behind the text to give you some great layers.
7. As mentioned, you can also add your own graphics. In the same overlay menu (the butterfly icon), you can select the "Your Own" button at the top which will open up your documents folder. Select your image and click Open!
The bunting graphic I chose for this tutorial was downloaded from Amy Alvis.
8. This new graphic you inserted acts the same way as the stock graphic.
Resize it and place it where you'd like!
9. Now it is ready for its debut! Saving is a breeze on PicMonkey.
Click the green Save icon at the top which will direct you to this page:
Name your file and click the green bar "Save to My Computer." Select the location you'd like it to stay and click save! Simple!
10. Ready to upload to Pinterest? Go to your Pinterest profile and open the board you'd like to place this cover photo.
Click the box at the top left that says "Add Pin." It will open up a screen that looks like this:
Click "Your Computer" and find your beautiful photo you created in PicMonkey! Once it is uploaded it will open up a screen that looks like this:
Type in a description (this is required, so just type in whatever you want. I usually just type "COVER" or something. Click Pin It!
11. Now we can finally set it as your cover photo!
Hover your mouse over the board you placed your cover photo in and a box that says "Change Cover" will appear. Click that box and navigate through your pins on that board until you find your cover image. Since you just uploaded it, it should be the first image that pops up, but a couple of times, Pinterest gave me a problem and I had to click next a few times to get to it.
And there ya have it! I like the look of customized board covers. I think it looks more organized and is easier for me to navigate through. Here is a link to my Pinterest page. Don't forget to follow me for future tutorials and of course, all the teaching ideas and resources I love!! Daisy Designs on Pinterest
I hope this tutorial helped you in your creative endeavors! Comment below if you have any questions!!
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