In case you didn't notice, Pottermore added four new profile picture frames to social media, so you can rep your Hogwarts house in your Facebook pic and elsewhere, provided you link your Facebook account to Twitter. I've got all the information you need to make your profile picture magical, so keep reading, Potterheads.
I'm a Slytherin, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. My closest friends are generally Slytherins and Hufflepuffs, with one or two Ravenclaws and Gryffindors thrown in for good measure (Although how in the wizarding world someone gets sorted into Gryffindor is beyond me.) I haven't changed my picture to my Hogwarts house, however, because I just got out of a slurry of politically themed Facebook pictures, and I'm ready to just see my own face in that little box beside my posts.
But that all changes today. You see, when friends have repped their Hogwarts houses in their Facebook pics, I've seen a few of my fellow Slytherins in the comments section, admitting that they are ashamed to change their pictures, because they're in the Hogwarts house that produced Lord Voldemort, Draco Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, and every other Death Eater.
I'm sorry, WHAT? A Slytherin — a member of the house of pride, ambition, and cunning — ashamed to change her Facebook pic to rep her Hogwarts house?! It's an outrage!
Here's how to rep your Hogwarts house in your Facebook pic, no matter what House you're in.
1Log In To Facebook And Go To The Profile Picture Frame Feature
Facebook's profile picture frame feature is pretty well hidden, so just click here or go to facebook.com/profilepicframes.
Since Facebook profile picture overlays have become popular, the social media giant has added a ton of them. The Hogwarts house frames are not in the default section, so...
2Click On The Drop-Down Menu And Select "Entertainment"
An overlay for the Indian science fiction film 2.0 is currently the default here. There are a lot of choices in the "Entertainment" section of the profile picture frame feature, and, since they are listed alphabetically, Pottermore isn't among the first, most visible options.
3Select "Pottermore"
Click on any of those other little boxes on the right and press the down arrow key until you see Pottermore.
Ugh. I'm not a Gryffindor. We have to change this.
4Select Your Hogwarts House Frame
Ahhh, that's better.
Note that the "-/+" slider zooms your Facebook profile picture out and in; it does not change the frame. Click the arrows below the slider to scroll through Pottermore's Harry Potter house frames. They're in this order: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin.
5Choose How Long You Want To Rep Your Hogwarts House In Your Facebook Pic
To the right, underneath the frame sources, you'll see the words "Switch back to previous profile picture in" next to a dropdown menu. The time displayed in that menu is how long you'll rep your Hogwarts house in your Facebook pic before swapping back to your previous choice. The default length of time is one week, but you can set it to anything you like, including "Never." Pretty snazzy, huh?
You have a few things to consider before you lock in your choice.
Do you want to change your base profile picture first? Select "Change Picture" beneath the "-/+" slider to see your other images or upload a new one.
Do you want to reposition your profile picture within the frame? Click and drag your Facebook pic to make sure nothing important is obscured by your Hogwarts house overlay.
When you're done...
6Select "Use As Profile Picture"
(Huge shoutout to my friend and fellow Slytherin, Donna, who liked this picture before I could get the screengrab, and said it was OK to display her name here.)
(Also, lots of love to Rabbit World! (US-Based) for those adorable ears.)
Now, let's say you want to connect your Facebook profile picture to Twitter, so that you can rep your Hogwarts house across your two favorite social media profiles. Here's how you do it.
7Create A Free Account With IFTTT
IFTTT is a great website that lets you automate your life. With it, you can turn up your misplaced phone's volume to the max with just a text, or sync emails you star in Gmail to Evernote. You can even create your own applets to do whatever you want, no programming skills required.
Once you've created your account, be sure to link IFTTT with the social media profiles on which you want to display your Harry Potter profile pic. Then...
8Select The Applet Called "If Your Facebook Profile Picture Changes Then Update Your Twitter Profile Picture Too"
IFTTT user derickjackson's applet has been used by more than 160,000 people, and it works within seconds. Click "Turn On" to start using it. That's all you have to do to sync your Facebook and Twitter profile pictures.
Note: So long as this applet is on, IFTTT will make sure your Twitter profile picture matches your Facebook profile picture whenever you change the latter. Turn the applet off if you don't want that to happen down the road.
