Our Mother's Day Gift To You...

Happy Mother's Day from Treasure Bay Fabrics.  Melissa would like to give each of you the gift of fabric.  From now until Sunday, May 13th, receive 20% off of your total purchase.  Enter code MOM20
at checkout.  This code is not valid for previous purchases and cannot be combined with any other offers. Code expires 5/13/2012 at 11:59 p.m.  Go on over and get yourselves something "Real Nice". (that is a quote by cousin Eddie in Christmas Vacation...one of the best movies ever!!!) Have a wonderful weekend.

Too Much Estrogen....

Today something terrible happened.  I have 5 girls and 1 boy (lovingly referred to as Things 1-6).  Thing 3 is an 11 year old girl.  She has been a hard child from the time she was born.  Puberty has not been kind to her.  She is moody, emotional, and slams lots of doors.  Today she  got her "monthly visitor" for the first time.  This in and of itself would not be too bad.  Unfortunately Thing 1 and Thing 2 have the same "monthly visitor" going on.  Tonight we have had doors slammed. We have had sobbing.  We have had yelling.  We have had multiple conversations that have included "you just don't love me".  All of these things would be ok if it was just one person.  It is not.  It is "Estrogen Overload" times 3.
Here is one of the texts that I got from Thing 3. (I will not let her cut up pictures from her scrap book. Instead, I offered to get color copies made before school.)

At the same time Thing 3 was sending me this, Thing 1 was telling us that we let Thing 2 and 3 get away with everything and that she is the only one that ever gets punished.  Good times at our house.  I did some calculating. We will have no fewer than 3 girls having their "monthly visitor" (probably at the same time) for the next 9 years.  On that happy note, I hope you all have a marvelous weekend.  I have several good projects going and can't wait to share pictures next week!

-Stephanie

I have a secret....

I have been a "sewist" (I think that is the new term for a person that sews?) for about 20 years.  I have made various articles of clothing for my kids and am an avid quilter.  Here is my secret....I just barely learned how to put in a zipper.  Yes, it is true.  For the last couple of years I have avoided all the cute bag patterns because of my fear of zippers.  This year for Christmas I wanted to make a handmade gift for all of my kids.  I found a cute bag by Sweetwater. It is the "Pack and Go" bag.  You can make it in three sizes and it would be perfect for pencils, make-up, Nintendo DS, and really just about anything. I bought the pattern, fabrics, and zippers.  I was ready to sew and try these babies out.  Then, my friend had a Twenty-One party.  For those of you not familiar with Twenty-One, they are like the Pampered Chef of bags.  It just made more sense to buy them bags than to try to put in a zipper.  Yes, I was really that scared of zippers.  Finally in January,  I was invited to a bridal shower.  I bought all sorts of gifts that were appropriate for a honeymoon and then realized I had no gift bag.  I was leaving for Jamaica the next day and really did not have time to run to the store.  I had no other choice.  I went to my sewing room, dug out the pattern, and started sewing.  I googled "how to sew a zipper" and was amazed at how easy it was. I ran upstairs and woke my husband out of a dead sleep so he could see the bag with the zipper.  I left it on the kitchen table so that my kids would ooh....and ahh.... over it.  They were not that impressed (someday I will learn...they are very rarely impressed with anything I do).  Thing  three (who is a bundle of joy as most 11 year old girls are ) said, "It's o.k. but really, who like flowers anymore?"  Their lack of enthusiasm could not dampen my excitement.  I had made a purse WITH A ZIPPER!!!!  I am happy to report that since then, I have made several more and am no longer scared of zippers. (Zoom in and look at the cool top stitching.  The pattern didn't call for that...I just thought it would look cool.) (Pat, pat...I am patting myself on the back for being so clever.)

Isn't it beautiful???  I think I would like to make some from this, and this, and definitely this (for Thing 4).
Have a marvelous day!
-Stephanie

Pinterest Makes Me Feel Like I Am Nate Berkus....

Have you seen the commercial where the lady is in the parking lot trying to get her keys to unlock a Rolls Royce? It won't open. Her husband comes and tells her that it isn't her car and her real car is a Dodge Dart (I don't really remember what the car was but a Dodge Dart is no Rolls Royce). The voice over comes on and says that she saved so much money with her cell phone that she feels rich and like she is a hip hop mogul.

I have been looking for a chair for my sewing room.  My kids come in to talk while I am sewing and since there is no chair, they just lay on the floor.  I don't have a lot of space so the chair has to be small.  It has to be comfortable.  It has to have good support so that I can sit and do hand work. Oh, and did I mention that it needs to be cheap????  I have been to all our furniture stores.  I have looked online.  I cannot find anything that fits all of the criteria I have mentioned.  The other night I was on Pinterest and saw several posts on re-purposing old furniture.  All of the sudden my inner Nate Berkus yelled, "Go to a second hand store and buy and old chair!".  Yesterday I went to our local second hand store and found it.  I found "The Chair"!  In my mind I saw all of the possibilities for this gorgeous chair.  I envisioned posting pictures of the "before" chair and "after" chair.  My chair would become the next "Big Post" on Pinterest.  Everyone would have it pinned on their boards!  This chair would be truly amazing.  It would be the Rolls Royce of chairs.  This morning I went outside and looked at it again.  Guess what.  It is totally a Dodge Dart and I am not Nate Berkus!

I do have faith that with the help of Pinterest, several different DIY websites, and some good varnish remover I can at least move it into the Ford Escort category of chairs!

I hope you all have a happy weekend.  Thing 2 and I are taking a quilt class from one of my favorite people!
- Stephanie

One of those mornings....

Do you ever have one of "those" mornings?  Today was mine.  I have mentioned that I have six kids, five girls and one boy.  We have ALOT of hormones at our house. Mornings are rarely pleasant.  This morning was really ugly.  Thing 6 ( youngest daughter- age 6) is not a morning person.  She never has been.  The last month of school is always bad because she has had just about enough of getting up early.  This morning she refused to get dressed.  She sat in her room and alternated between sobbing and throwing a temper tantrum (she is the baby and a bit spoiled).  I finally told her that if she didn't get dressed I would haul her into school in her pajamas.

About that time Thing 3 (daughter # 3....age 11) jumped in.  This is a direct quote.  "Thing 6 (well, she didn't say Thing 6...she said her name) you had better get dressed.  Mom is serious.  She will do that.  You should be glad she is dressed.  The day mom carried me to the bus she had her pajamas and snow boots on...and it wasn't even snowing!!!!  She doesn't care if people think she looks dumb! She will make you go to school in pajamas!"  That did nothing to calm Thing 6 down.  Thing 4 (only son, age 10) jumped in with his own horror story. "Thing 6, mom will do it.  One time I didn't want to go to church so I wouldn't get dressed.  Mom hauled me naked (in my defense, he had underwear on) to the car, stuck me in the back with my suit and drove to church.  When I wouldn't get dressed, she left me in the car and went and got dad out of his church meeting. I had to get dressed IN THE CHURCH PARKING LOT!!!!"  Thing 5 (daughter, age 8) doesn't have a story about being taken somewhere naked or in her p.j.'s by a mother in different states of dress. She did manage to find a story to add. "Ya, Thing 6, mom doesn't care about how we feel.  She went into the Dollar Store in nothing but her SWIMMING SUIT!!!!  She does not care about how she wrecks our lives!!!  You better get dressed!"  Luckily, Thing 1 and Thing 2 were already at school and did not have a chance to add their stories.

I feel like I am succeeding as a mother.  I am giving them good stories to tell when they are adults. I am providing job security for the therapist that ends up undoing all I have done to mess my kids up. That is how I like to spin it!

Happy May 2nd! I am headed down to fold more fabric.

 - Stephanie

Feeling a little bit naked......

Have you ever had to have the bank or a car dealership (or anyone for that matter) pull your credit while you are sitting in front of them?  I have.  My husband and I always say that this feels like they are looking at you naked.  I hate that feeling of having someone go into your private history and making a judgement based on the one or two pages that they can see.  Does anyone else know what I am talking about?

Today I am going to show you a little bit of me, naked.  Before you click the little x (close) on your computer screen, please know that I am not showing you my naked body.  I am showing you my naked sewing room.  I have ALOT of fabric.  I owned a quilt shop for a couple of years.  When we closed the shop I brought ALOT of stuff home.  I have not found a good way to keep it neat and tidy.  This is what the storage portion of my sewing room looks like. Please do not judge me.

I have been researching different organization methods and finally ordered Polar Notions fabric organizing sheets.  It is supposed to make the mess pictured above look like this

My order came in the mail today.  I am going to put on a movie and organize fabric.  Stay tuned for the "after " pictures.  I would love to hear how any of you organize your fabric!  Who knows, maybe we will do a give away for the best comment.

 - Stephanie

My Craving To Create....

Do you ever get a craving to create?  Sometime I wake up and feel this intense desire to create.  I don't want to do something big.  I just want to do a project from start to finish so that I can feel the sense of creating something beautiful.  Sometimes I think that this feeling comes from the lack of control I feel with 6 kids.  Sewing is something that I have complete control over.  I can mold the project into what I want it to be.  Unfortunately, I can't always do that with my kids!  Here is one of my favorite quick and easy projects.  Jess from Craftiness Is Not Optional created this cute little bib called "The Bapron".  This has become one of my "go to"  projects.  It fills my need to create and it fills my need to give.  I don't have babies so I give them to my friends that do!

Front- I used 100% cotton

Back
 Jess used flannel but I had some pul and I thought that would be nice and waterproof.

I have used laminated cotton and that works great too.

Have a happy weekend!
- Stephanie

Hello My Is.......

Good morning TREASURE BAY FABRICS  friends!

My name is Stephanie. I am one of Melissa's BFF's and her new Creative Director and Social Media Correspondent for Treasure Bay Fabrics. I LOVE that title!!!  I will be helping her with her blog.  I am a notions and gadgets addict.  If there is a new tool I will buy it (I bought a cricut on ebay at 3:00 a.m. and I don't even scrapbook). If you tell me that this is the last one and there will never be another one made, I will buy it.  I love to buy fabric (I owned a quilt shop for a couple of years).  I seldom finish a project.  I am the queen of starting......but not the queen of finishing.  I am really working on this.  Hopefully helping with this blog will bring some accountability to my projects.  I am a stay at home mom to 6 kids.  I have 5 girls (16,14,11,8, and 6) and 1 boy (10). I have an amazing hubby that supports me in all of my crazy ideas. (I will refer you to the afore mentioned quilt shop I owned)

(The AMAZING Hubby....He has no idea I posted his picture so DO NOT tell him! He is very good looking. Don't you agree???)


I am a pinterest addict.  I love to read and watch tv.  I love to run.  I am a Fanilow.  Here is a picture of me meeting Barry a couple of weeks ago.

That is a great picture of the back of my head while he is signing my ticket!  I bet you are all jealous! If you are really nice, I will post a picture of me with my tambourine that Kenny Rogers signed!

Enough about me.  I am posting a link to one of my favorite posters in my sewing room.  Sarah at compulsivecraftiness.com has an amazing (I have never met him but if he can design this....he is amazing) husband that designed this for her.  She decided to share it with everyone in internet land for FREE!!!!  Thank you Sarah!

Sew On and Sew Forth Poster

I can't wait to get to know all of you better.  Check back often for new fabric, giveaways, tutorials, and great ideas!

 - Stephanie

Giveaway coming soon!

I recently did a full inventory and have come across a rather large stash of flat folds, bolt ends and other random cuts and wondered what I could do with them. Ah-ha! Stash Giveaway!



Watch this space for more details!

Hello Again, Hello!

Whoa.  I had not realized it has been this long since I posted.  Yikes!  I mostly post updates on the facebook page, which is here:

Treasure Bay Fabrics on facebook

Please "Like" my page.  I am more likely to update that with new items and sale notifications than any place else. 

What is new?  More Free Spirit fabrics are rolling in daily!  I will be carrying more of the lines that are not available everywhere else.  I also listed "Children At Play" by Sarah Jane for Michael Miller.  There are two prints left, more on on order.   I really love that line.  

I also expect a new line of Hello Kitty fabrics, "Rain or Shine" by David Textiles to be arriving soon:

New Trims and Fabrics arriving all the time - stop by!   www.treasurebayfabrics.com

 - Melissa