What is Unpinning?
Unpinning refers to the act of detaching or removing something that is pinned or fixed in place. This could apply to physical objects that are pinned down with actual pins, clips, nails etc, as well as digital content like apps and files that are “pinned” to a certain location on a computer or device screen.
Some common examples of unpinning include:
- Removing a brooch or button that is pinned to your clothes
- Taking down pictures or notes that are pinned to a bulletin board
- Unpinning fabric that is pinned in place before sewing
- Unpinning curled hair that is pinned in place
- Unpinning a pinned browser tab or app shortcut from your taskbar or home screen
So in summary, unpinning involves detaching something from where it is currently affixed or secured. It is the opposite of pinning or fastening something to a fixed position.
Who Needs to Unpin Things?
There are many circumstances in which people from all walks of life need to unpin items and content. Here are some of the most common:
Home and Office Users
- Interior decorators may need to unpin fabric swatches or samples after selecting what to use.
- Parents and teachers utilize bulletin boards with pinned content that needs to be refreshed regularly.
- Crafters and sewing enthusiasts pin patterns and fabric in place temporarily.
- People who curl or pin their hair in styles need to unpin it at the end of the day.
Computer and Device Users
- Desktop and laptop users who want to rearrange pinned app shortcuts, browser tabs or widgets on their screen.
- Smartphone and tablet users who want to declutter their home screen of pinned apps.
- Gamers who use pinned gameplay modifiers or overlays that they later need to disable.
Professionals/Workers
- Tailors and fashion designers who pin cloths and garments during fitting.
- Interior designers, installers and trades workers who pin materials, schematics and instructions at job sites.
- Scientists and researchers may pin up notes, charts and findings on boards.
- Photographers and artists may use pinned up backdrops, props or Inspiration.
Organizers and Planners
- Event planners use pinned boards to storyboard ideas but need to refresh them later.
- Organizers may temporarily pin items like keys, notes or pictures to boards or walls when getting organized.
- Agile teams often use pinned kanban boards or scrum boards that need to be frequently updated.
So in summary, unpinning is useful for many kinds of everyday personal, work and organizational activities. Anybody who pins things down temporarily can benefit from knowing how to unpin them.
How to Unpin a Brooch or Button
Brooches, pins and buttons are designed to be securely but temporarily fastened to clothing and other fabric materials. Here is a simple method to easily unpin them:
Steps
- Locate the brooch, pin or button on the fabric surface it is currently pinned to. Identify the clasp mechanism used to grip the fabric.
- For simple pin-back brooches, grasp the edge of the straight pin firmly between your thumb and index finger. Pull directly away from the fabric in a perpendicular motion to detach it.
- For clasps with locking mechanism, locate the small hook or clasp release button. Press, pull or slide the release so the clasp opens up.
- For buttons, find the shank or stem on the back side. Grip it between your fingers and gently twist and pull so the threads loosen. The button should easily detach.
- For sticky brooches with clasps that close over the fabric, gently lift the edges of the clasp up vertically to detach from the fabric without tugging hard.
- Avoid pulling brooches and pins parallel or horizontally along the fabric as this can damage the material. Always pull directly outward.
And that’s it! With the right perpendicular motion and release of the clasping mechanism, you can easily unpin brooches, buttons and pins for removal or repositioning on fabric surfaces.
How to Unpin Curled Hair
Pinning your hair in buns, curls and waves is a great styling technique for creating volume and shape. Here are some tips for easily unpinning pinned hair:
Steps
- Start by running your fingers gently through sections of the curled hair to locate bobby pins and hair clips.
- For bobby pins, gently grasp the ridged center of the pin between two fingers and smoothly slide it out parallel to the hair strands.
- For U-shaped hair pins, locate the open ends of the U and gently pull them away from the hair in the opposite direction to remove.
- For alligator or hinged clips, press down on the tension levers or side tabs to release the grip from the hair before sliding out.
- Try to avoid simply pulling out pins perpendicular to your hair as this can cause breakage. Slide them smoothly along the hair strands.
- If curls feel stuck together, use a wide-tooth comb to gently separate and loosen them as you unpin sections.
- When all pins are removed, use your fingers to gently shake out and arrange curls or waves into your desired unrestrained style.
- Apply a smoothing hair serum or light hold hairspray if you want to lightly hold the unpinned texture and volume in place once styled.
By taking care to remove pins parallel to hair strands and using some gentle styling, you can easily unpin curled hair without losing the beautiful shape and texture. Enjoy your flowing, unpinned locks!
How to Unpin Apps on iPhone
Pinning apps to the home screen is a useful way to keep your most-used apps easily accessible on your iPhone. However, your needs change over time, so it’s handy to know how to easily unpin them too.
Steps
- Locate the app you want to unpin on your iPhone’s home screen. Long press the app icon until all icons begin shaking.
- The pinned apps will have a small gray push pin icon in the top left corner. Tap this push pin icon on the app you want to unpin.
- The push pin icon will disappear, indicating that the app is no longer pinned. The app itself will still remain on your home screen.
- To reposition the now-unpinned app, long press the icon again until shaking starts, then drag and drop it anywhere desired on the home screen.
- Once satisfied with the position, press your finger down and hold for a second on any blank space on the home screen. This will stop the shaking and lock the apps into place.
- Check that the formerly pinned app no longer has a push pin icon and opens as expected when tapped. It’s now successfully unpinned!
Using the push pin icon to toggle pinning is a quick and easy way to organize and declutter your iPhone home screen. Unpinning redundant apps helps streamline your experience.
How to Unpin a Pinned Website on Safari
Pinning tabs is a useful Safari browser feature for keeping important websites easily accessible at the top of your tab view. When pinned sites are no longer needed, here’s how to unpin them:
Steps
- Open the Safari app and ensure you have the tab view showing. Locate the website tab you want to unpin.
- Tap and hold the pinned tab thumbnail to prompt a menu. Choose ‘Unpin Tab’ from this menu.
- The tab will now unpin and return to a regular unpinned tab in its same position in the tab view.
- To reposition the now unpinned tab, tap and hold the tab thumbnail again and choose ‘Move Tab’ from the menu.
- Drag the tab left or right to reorder it wherever you want among the other tabs. Lift your finger to place it.
- Once you have put the tab in its new desired position, check that it no longer has a small gray pin icon next to the name. It is now fully unpinned.
- You can close, reload or interact with the tab normally as with any unpinned website. The tab is no longer locked to the top row.
Using the tab menu to unpin sites is an easy way to tidy up your Safari tab view. Prune pinned sites regularly to keep your browsing experience focused.
How to Remove a Pinned Post on Facebook
Facebook allows page owners to pin posts to the top of their page’s timeline to keep important announcements visible. When it’s time for these pinned posts to be unpinned, here are the steps:
Steps
- Navigate to your Facebook page and make sure you are logged in as the admin. Locate the post you want to unpin.
- Click the three dots ‘…’ menu in the top right corner of the pinned post.
- Select ‘Unpin Post’ from the dropdown menu.
- A dialog will ask you to confirm – click ‘Unpin Post