Squidoo News

Move over Martha, we have our own best practices for making our food look as good as it tastes. DecoratingForEvents knows there’s more to a buffet than rows and rows of bowls, or as she puts it, “long tables with the food falling into rank like an Army chow line.” *giggle*

Learn firsthand how to How to Decorate a Buffetscape for any food or theme. Decorating energy isn’t just for weddings and Thanksgiving. Adding a special touch to any occasion will make it memorable, which means yes, you can be the one the guys gab about at the next Superbowl party! (Maybe.)

http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-decorate-a-buffet-buffetscapes

Nominated by skiesgreen.

Go to Source

Today we’re releasing a whole new vision for Squidoo.
Only, it’s the same Squidoo as ever.
Just plussed.
Plus? Yes. Squidoo, plus a new system of experience points and Levels. Squidoo, plus achievements and trophies. Squidoo, plus Quests. Squidoo, plus new opportunities for you to do more, learn more, get found more, publish more. Plus.
What [...]

Go to Source

Squidoo has been taken over by monsters!  Well, not yet, but very soon lensmasters will start seeing adorable little monsters peeping out from the dark corners of the Squidoo site.  Don’t worry, they come in peace, bearing gifts.

Kimberly hinted about it this morning, then this evening Megan released official word about the SquidooPlus system, due to begin implementation tomorrow.  So lensmasters won’t be caught totally by surprise by the changes if they’ve paid attention to the banner on their dashboard.  Check out Megan’s SquidooPlus lens and then read the SquidMonsters FAQ lens for more information about the new system and where the monsters fit in.

My prediction?  You’re going to love these little guys and all the goodies they bring with them.  So get back to Squidoo, do what you usually do, and watch what happens.  Starting sometime tomorrow.

Go to Source

As Renaissance Festivals are winding down and Halloween is quickly approaching, the costume season is in full swing. If you were completely jealous of some of the medieval costumes you saw this summer, you have the right resources for hiking up your stockings and playing a better part.

TheMedievalNun is your resident re-enactor and clothing expert who is helping us all Look More Medieval with tips covering eyeglasses to linen types, to patterns and buttons, and shoes and men’s underwear. Yup, she goes there.

Nominating lensmaster CDT says, “I found this lens … a wonderful lens packed with advice and photos by a lensmaster who knows her subject inside out. A real pleasure to read something so well written and helpful. An excellent resource for anyone who is interested in medieval history and/or medieval re-enactment activities and a credit to Squidoo!”

http://www.squidoo.com/look_more_medieval

Nominate your favorite lens for LOTD here.

Go to Source

It shouldn’t surprise us that many of our lensmasters are not prepping their kids to go back to school somewhere else, they’re going home to school.

My NOT Back to School Page is _Joan_‘s list of reasons why she and her kids think homeschooling is supercool.

BT says, “I learn when I want to.”
JG says, “I can work in bed.”

Smart kids.

http://www.squidoo.com/not-back-to-school

This lens was selected as LOTD because the lensmasters reads Kimberly’s Morning Coffee and nominated it!

Go to Source

Is buying colorful school supplies the only way to get your child interested in learning? If you have a horse fan in the house, these themed school supplies from HorseAndPony will make her whinny in delight.

Horse Themed School Supplies contains pencils and erasers, notebooks and folders, lunchboxes and backpacks; there’s a little of everything to get your educated equestrian off to school on the right hoof.

Not only was this lens smartly built around a theme, it was smartly built as part of the Horse Review Squidclub.

http://www.squidoo.com/horse-school-supplies

This lens was selected as LOTD because the lensmasters reads Kimberly’s Morning Coffee and nominated it!

Go to Source

Today I completed an exercise of going back through all of my purple star lenses, adding each of them to a new lens, a purple star lensography of sorts. After I was finished, I realized that I had learned something very important about myself and about crafting lenses.

What I learned isn’t anything new. In fact, it’s something that many of us offer as good advice to new lensmasters on a regular basis. That advice? Make lenses from your heart.

Another way of stating it is to write lenses on topics you’re passionate about, things that mean something to you. The reason that is good advice is that the end result is meaningful and, almost always, of a higher quality than when you write about something to which you have no personal connection.

Of my 14 purple star lenses, almost all of them are what I would judge as very good to excellent lenses. There are a couple that, frankly, I’d place in the “good” category; I’m not so sure they quite measure up to “very good.” And it turns out that the best of the best are on topics that I felt passionate about or had a strong personal connection to at the time they were written. The just “good” lenses, not so much.

Of course I know that I’m not able to judge my own lenses totally objectively, but after three-plus years on Squidoo I know an excellent lens when I see one, even if it is my own. I know how to recognize a “good” lens, too.

My point, which I’m not sure I’m stating very clearly, is that if quality matters to you, if you want to make a truly great lens, then put the money motive on the back burner and choose a subject that is really, truly close to your heart. If just “good” is good enough (and sometimes it is good enough), then settle for a subject that will meet some other goal or objective, such as increasing your earnings.

As for me, from now on I’m going to weigh more carefully my passions and my motives when I choose a topic for a lens and do my best to make each lens purple star-worthy by injecting into it a little piece of my heart.

Go to Source

Is buying colorful school supplies the only way to get your child interested in learning? If you have a horse fan in the house, these themed school supplies from HorseAndPony will make her whinny in delight.

Horse Themed School Supplies contains pencils and erasers, notebooks and folders, lunchboxes and backpacks; there’s a little of everything to get your educated equestrian off to school on the right hoof.

Not only was this lens smartly built around a theme, it was smartly built as part of the Horse Review Squidclub.

http://www.squidoo.com/horse-school-supplies

This lens was selected as LOTD because the lensmasters reads Kimberly’s Morning Coffee and nominated it!

Go to Source

Have you set monthly Squidoo goals yet for September?   If you’re not in the habit of setting goals each month, September is the perfect time to start.  With school back in session and the holiday season approaching ever so quickly, motivation for making more lenses and increasing opportunities for income is at its peak.

If you need even more motivation, check out Kimberly’s Morning Coffee post for today.  Add your September Squidoo goals to the forum and, at the end of the month if you’re able to show that you met them, you could win a prize. 

Make your goals specific and measurable.  Posting them publicly will add the element of accountability that many of us need to help us work a little harder to accomplish what we might otherwise give up on when we hit the inevitable rough spot.

To demonstrate that I practice what I preach, here are my September Squidoo goals:

1. Three new lenses this month, which will make 200 total! Still need to decide on something significant for #200.
2. Update all of my seasonal lenses, which is much easier said than done. I will ashamedly admit that some are horribly out of date.
3. Approach a new charity I learned about this week to let them know about Squidoo and, if they’re interested (and of course they will be) do what I can to help them get started.

So, who’s next?  Don’t forget to post your goals on the SquidU forum, then feel free to share them here as well. 

Now let’s get busy!

Go to Source

For some kids, the bus ride is longer than others. jptanabe shares the story of her daughter’s trip Back to School and Back to Maine in today’s first back-to-school LOTD special.

It’s a tribute to her daughter’s education, and full of stories, photos, visitor guides, and reasons why heading back to Maine is worth the drive. If school for your kids is more than a ride down the street, consider a lens about their change of scenery.

http://www.squidoo.com/school-Maine

Go to Source