'Don't leave home without your pants on' (or how to get a free splash page!)

Yesterday during my lunch hour, I was squeezing in the requisite scroll through my personal Twitter account. One of Jane Friedman's (@JaneFriedman) Tweets caught my eye. It was a link to an article called: "Ten Time-Saving Web Tools." Time and money are my two nemeses (never spend either wisely), so I clicked on the link, began skimming, stopping short at tip #9:

9. About.me: Build a personal website in about 2 minutes. These days, not having a personal website is sort of like leaving the house without your pants on. But not everyone needs a rich portfolio site or a custom-coded blog. About.me makes creating a personal “splash page” a no-brainer. You just slap up a photo, include a short bio, and decide which social media accounts you want to link to (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Pandora, etc), and you’re in business.

Two minutes? I can create a splash page in two minutes. I had at least ten minutes of lunch break left, so I registered and got started. Technically, the interface is so easy you can create a splash page in 2 minutes. It's the other things that take time, especially if you are a tinkerer/putterer like me. I have to tinker. I'm not a designer, so I come across arrangements I like by trying things out, which takes more time.
I had the perfect concept in mind for the background of my About.Me splash page:

I even tried executing it--until I looked at the other splash pages and realized my approach was lame-o.
Here's one (of many) I really liked (Notice the difference in approach):

Tip: Before you create your page, use the arrow key or the person icon to flip through others' pages so you can see what works. The folks already on About.Me have already done the heavy lifting in creating their pages. Use their know-how to your advantage. It will save you needless set up/tinkering time.

After I looked at others', I knew I needed a different photo than the one I had planned to use. So I searched my files and found one I thought would work. I wanted to warm it up since I looked a little washed out, and it gave me an idea for a color scheme for the entire splash page.

And here's my latest revision, available on About.me at this link:

my new splash page



 So, what do you think? I'm still tinkering with the copy--tone, wording--and trying to find out how to add social media buttons and not just links. If I look too burnished in this pic, I think it might be my desktop monitor settings because I have nothing more than a healthy glow on my laptop at home.

Now, I feel as though this blog should go from cool colors to warm to complement the new Splash page. Don't be surprised if you see "Scrivengale" in shades of tawny by tommorow.

See! You don't have to leave home without your pants. Splash yourself instead!