Machelle, Author at A Joyful Riot

June 15, 2017

Birthday Party Memory Books with Mixbook | Free Pages!

I’m really excited about this post today! Not only because it’s super fun and comes with a bunch of free printables (!!) but because preparing for it made me get some of my much-needed scrapbooking done! I have the best goals and I even start books from time to time but in general, I get about 1 done a year when I’d like to do 5!

Now, when I say scrapbooking–that doesn’t mean lots of time, or fancy papers, stickers, or even glue! It means, uploading all my favorite pictures to Mixbook, placing them on some cute pages and hitting order. Though I highly value DIYing any and all things, scrapbooking in the traditional sense has simply just never appealed to me. It takes so much time! And money! And organization! And messes! Even if I wanted to, I just know it’s something I would never actually complete. I highly value making and keeping memories, but all the time and money just does not appeal to me. So photo books are basically the best thing to ever happen to me!

I love Mixbook’s photo book interface. It’s so easy to use, change, and edit. They also have thousands of styles, backgrounds, stickers, patterns, etc so you can make the best photo book ever-for any occasion!

One of the yearly scrapbooks I always plan to order is of my children’s birthdays, specifically the party! So much work and effort goes into creating parties for our littles, I think they deserve to be memorialized! I certainly don’t ever want to forget all the little details. So, I decided to team up with Mixbook to bring you a fun idea for using their photo books-party memory books! A whole photo scrapbook dedicated to the fun and themed parties we throw!

What was so fun about this project was that, although I’ve wanted to do it ever since my daughter’s first party (the circus animal cookie theme bash you can see here), I only just now got around to doing it. So there actually were tons of little details I’d already forgotten! So many sweet memories we captured of my daughter that we didn’t document or share here because this isn’t a family journal. And because of that, I’d forgotten some of the cute and sweet quirks my little one year old (who is now three!) did at that time. It was so sweet to go back through every single picture and remember those moments.

May 25, 2017

Basic Invite + Outdoor Bridal Shower Inspiration

Goil foil floral wreath invitation (Basic Invite + A Joyful Riot)

I’ve never done this before but I wanted to try something a little different and share some of my party inspiration before I throw the actual party (and share the final photos here). The main reason I wanted to do this is to show of the invitations and tell you a little about them!

I used Basic Invite to get them printed and I am SO happy with both the quality and the experience. The website was not only easy to use but has some exceptional features! You can easily upload your own design, or choose from one of theirs. The project can be saved for later (even without signing in) in case you need to come back to it which is great for people like me who get easily distracted (ahem, babies…). My favorite aspect of the design process, though, were the envelopes. Your order comes with free envelopes (!!) that can be printed with your addresses. There is also a ton of fonts to choose from, I went with their Happily Ever After font and I love how the names are bigger than the address, I think it makes them look so professional.

I have this problem where when I design something specific for an actual event I’m already planning, I usually start like five different designs. The problem is, I always have this vague feeling of what I want to accomplish with the design but not quite the visual of it, does that make sense? So it takes some work to realize my vague vision, starting what I think will be perfect but as I get a little into it, I realize it’s just…not.

Somehow, this invitation was not that way at all! As I’ve been planning this bridal shower (which I will throw next weekend), there were a few things I knew I wanted to incorporate. I know I want some lush greenery, pink flowers (unfortunately I think I’ll miss peony season by a hair), and some rich vintage details. Specifically these awesome chairs that were left in my house when I moved it. The chairs are a deep pink velvet and they really made the whole style of the party click for me.

May 8, 2017

SereKNITy + 16 Soothing Gifts for Moms and Gal Pals

Last year I saw the funniest video of a mom explaining that you can all forego the kitchen appliances, clothing items, and gardening supplies; all we moms really want is just a day to be alone and relax! In fact, the only Mother’s Day gift I’ve ever asked for was to sleep in.

Since a day off is nearly impossible to come by as a mom, we thought a gift guide made up items that will help all the moms in your life achieve at least a few moments of relaxation was called for! We’ve got 15 soothing items for any lady on your list this summer, featuring this happy and sweet DIY crochet and knitting book SereKNITy: Peaceful Projects to Soothe and Inspire.

I can’t tell you enough how much I love the premise of this book! A lot of times, all the DIY inspiration and how-tos out there can feel overwhelming. But, instead of a focus on the pinterest-perfect, this book is all about the peaceful time spent making the project. A way to slow down and recharge with uncomplicated, practical patterns for the loveliest handmade items.

Besides making you feel at-ease with the projects within, this book also features pretty photography, and lovely illustrations. Plus, the projects are things you actually want to make, like cute boot cuffs and fluffy eye pillows.

Since both my mom and my mother-in-law crochet and knit, I immediately thought this book would make a great gift for either of them. While I definitely think this book by itself is more than a great present, I’m also the kind of person who likes to put things together with complimenting items, in baskets if I can! So I started brainstorming a bunch of other pretty and relaxing items to go with it. I decided to share them all with you in case you’re also looking for soothing gifts for mom!

And, since this guide is cutting it a little close (in case you’ve been away from the calendar recently–Mother’s day is in 6 days), this guide is also perfect for all the women in your life! We all do so much (often too much) and as such could all use some calm and quiet. Looking for birthday presents? Bridesmaid gifts? Shower or just because presents? We got ya covered. And lets not forget how many teachers out there could use one of these items as a last day of school present!

So click through for 15 more peace-promoting gifts for all the gals in your life.

April 24, 2017

Colorful Boho Entryway & The Easiest Tip to Make Your Rugs Look Better!

I’m excited to introduce you to a new room in my home-my colorful boho entryway! Do you wanna know a secret? I cut corners. A lot. I like to get things done and I will look for every way possible to do that quickly and efficiently and, usually, cheaply. And one way that I’ve done this in my current house, is to forego rug pads.

Seriously, We’ve gotten up to 20 rugs in this house (umm…obsessed much with rugs??!) and not one of them had a pad. Only like 6 of those needed one, but I didn’t think any did! I honestly thought pads were just for rugs that slip around or easily wrinkle up and so none of my large area rugs had a pad. I just threw down the rug and called it a day!

But guess what I learned? Not only are rug pads helpful for the above mentioned annoyances, but they also help in other ways AND, this one surprised me but, they can actually make the rug (and by extension-the room) look better!

I finally took the opportunity to try out a rug pad from RugPadUSA.com and I AM CONVINCED! Guys, rug pads are the bomb. At least the one I got is :D

Among the things that rug pads obviously do (protect your floor from wear, dirt, getting dyed by the rug, etc) I also couldn’t believe how different my rug looked to me after it had the soft pad underneath! I went with the RugPro so it adds a little bit of cushion which I feel really gave my rug some life! It’s just slightly plumped up now, and softer. And, actually having a softer rug is pretty important to me! I hate to set my baby down on a concrete or hardwood floor with nothing but a thin rug to support him. Now, with a rug pad, I know his head is padded.

This room is the entryway of my house, where the front door comes through and my mother-in-law, who grew up in this house, calls it the breezeway. I believe it was formerly the front porch before they closed it in with windows and added it onto the house, extending a new, smaller porch out front. Because of this the floor is concrete underneath. The concrete is underneath these laminate tiles which I actually don’t hate.

In the other rooms where this really long, awful, OLD, yellow shag carpet was, it was hardwood floor (you can see in this post) or concrete, which we either painted or acid stained, underneath. But in the rest of the house its plywood and all of it needs help. While this tile is nothing like anything I would choose, it works I think. Its light and basically just not very noticeable. And this rug–the moment I saw it on Urban Outfitters, I just had to have it! I was so excited it fit in with my colorful entryway!

From the moment I saw this room, I just wanted to fill it to the brim with plants!! Turns out, plants are kind hard to keep alive?? Who knew?! Haha. After going through…a few…I have finally kept these guys alive for a good 8 months (and some of them over a year!) and so I think I’ve proven I can handle it and may look for more to fill the space ;)

BTW, for anyone who wants to know what the secret is to keeping house plants alive, I believe it is to water consistently! That means, once a week, the same day every week (or close!), and the same amount of water each time. If you forget to water them one week, don’t give them more water to make up for it, actually give them slightly less so they don’t drown! Be consistent and give less than you think, that’s my tip!

Other details of this room include: my favorite Belle & Sebastian quote, a modern color-blocked thrifted painting (instructions right here!), light, airy curtains so I don’t block those most-fabulous walls of windows, another smaller owl rug (also from Urban, though years ago. It never worked in any other room before and I was so excited to finally put it out!), some fun and silly books and records, my hand painted (yes, painted!) turquoise couch, my DIY polaroid blocks, and a great little array of knick knacks!

I love learning new tips and tricks to make the rooms in my house look more professional and useable! I really feel like this rug pad gave the rug life and I’d HIGHLY recommend it for any kind of hard flooring! It comes cut to your specifications and you will not be disappointed :) What’s one small and easy tip you’ve learned to help your home decor pop?! I wanna know! Leave your tricks in the comments below!

February 7, 2017

Machelle’s Bright and Colorful Craft Room

I’m finally ready to share the bright, happy and personal space where I create! Ok, realistically, I create all over my house! There’s always craft supplies lingering around all over the place. But, when it comes time to clean up, this is the room the supplies call home :)

I have been trying harder since I finished putting it all together to actually keep my crafty messes there. Mainly because I put the effort in to organize and decorate it, I might as well use it right? But sometimes it is easier to just bring the hot glue gun downstairs with the kiddos rather than haul everybody up there. Oh yes, this space is upstairs in my house.

There’s just a small area upstairs, part of the original house built in the early 1900’s. It’s three rooms; two smaller ones off of this large open space. One of those smaller rooms houses even more craft stuff, party supplies, and projects (somehow…) and the other one, I am currently in the process of re-vamping to create a super fun room that I am so excited about!