Cottage Postcards

April Pin Pals Class

Taylor — Wed, 02 May 2012 00:04:21 +0000

What a great time we had in April’s Pin Pal’s class. The morning and afternoon gatherings were combined into one large class so naturally we had twice as much fun!

Look at the super cute kits Mindy put together…

How many Pin Pal’s can you squeeze into The Country Loft?…

WOW! Now that’s a full class! I love how Faith has put her very first Pin Pal’s project to good use…

What a great day!

May is going to be a busy month with the International Quilt Market and Kyle’s (Kathy’s son) wedding so there will not be any Pin Pal’s Gatherings. Please check back soon for a preview of June’s project!

Book Signing at The Country Loft

Taylor — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 20:44:46 +0000

Yesterday was Kathy’s first event featuring her new book, The Cottage at Cardiff Farms Quilts, published by Leisure Arts. The Country Loft provided a beautiful outdoor setting for the book signing and everyone had a great time chatting and sharing their love for everything quilts! Scroll through for pictures from the day…

We had so much fun spending time with friends and meeting a few new faces too! We would like to give a special “thank you” to Kathy of The Country Loft for setting up such a wonderful spot in the garden for the signing. We are also grateful for Sharon, Jo Ann and Mindy for all of their help throughout the day. Thank you to everyone who purchased the book, we really hope that you enjoy all of the beautiful projects!

Fresh as a Daisy!

Taylor — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:14:50 +0000

Look what’s bloomed after all these wonderful April showers we’ve been having…

It’s Pin Pals time again! Kathy will be hosting a Pin Pals gathering at The Country Loft right after her book signing this Saturday. This month’s project is called “Fresh Cut Daisy.” For this month’s class only general hand sewing supplies will be needed including a pair of sharp scissors, straight pins and a needle for perle cotton. Thread will be provided in the kit. If you have any questions or would like to sign up please contact The Country Loft in La Mesa, California.

Can’t wait to see you there!

We’ve Been Published!

Taylor — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 23:28:58 +0000

Hello again! I know many of you must be wondering what happened to us since we haven’t posted in a couple of months… yes, we are still here! I sincerely apologize for the absence but we have been super busy and are so thrilled to share some very exciting news with all of you.

Out on news stands right now…

The June issue of American Patchwork and Quilting includes a wool pillow design from Kathy! If you check out the upper right-hand corner you’ll see it’s featured on page 76!

We received the magazine a couple of days ago and just couldn’t believe our eyes! This is a first for Kathy and The Cottage at Cardiff Farms and after being a subscriber and reader for sooooo many years we can’t even express how honored we feel to have a pattern inside.

If that weren’t enough to put us on cloud 9 for the rest of the year….

Saturday Kathy received this box in the mail!

The Cottage at Cardiff Farms Quilts by Kathy Cardiff published by Leisure Arts

We are still in shock! It has been in the works for awhile now but until we held a copy in our hands it just didn’t seem real. We still keep rubbing our eyes expecting to wake up from this wonderful dream!

Here’s a close up of the front and back covers…

The book will be on shelves April 12th 2012. Kathy will be doing a special book signing at The Country Loft in La Mesa, California on April 21st, we hope to see you there!

Pajama Party at The Country Loft

Kathy — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 23:55:03 +0000

Had to share these pics with you. Recently I did something I had not done in many, many years. I went to a Pajama Party! It was at The Country Loft. Jo Ann Mullaly and Kathy Repenhagen came up with this great idea and planned it to a T. There were sweet treats, coffee, hot cocoa, “make and takes”, and kits to purchase. It was a blast! Mindy (on the left- one of the Loft staff) celebrated her birthday that day by wearing her jammies at work. I think everyone should be able to do that…. The “make and takes” included gift bags and tags, ornaments, holiday buttons and gift embellishments. Colleen and Tina (of the Loft staff) were there to give tips and help with all the demos. There were kits to purchase for those special items you wanted to make more of.

The ladies were very creative with their attire.

There were great sales going on and Sharon (the owner of the Loft) spent her evening cutting yardage while visiting with party guests. All in all it was a great night! Thank you Jo Ann…..What a Great Idea!!!

Pin Pals Last Gathering for 2011

Kathy — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 22:19:18 +0000

Well, it’s been a couple of weeks since our last Pin Pals gathering and as usual we had such a nice group of ladies! Even though we had so much to share since our last gathering in September, most everyone was able to complete their pin rest. A few of our pin pals had to leave a little early as this is the time of year when we are all trying to get things organized and ready for the upcoming holidays. I was in a baking mood (which is almost all the time) so I baked some almond scones and took a couple of the jams I had made from the fruit we grow here at Cardiff Farms. Between the scones, jam, and Mindy & Tammy making coffee runs, we all had plenty to eat and drink. We all went home happy, full, and ready to stick notes to our pin rest! (If this doesn’t make sense, go to my last post and you will understand)

Well enough chatting for today!

Best wishes to you & I’ll try to be back soon…

Kathy

November Pin Pals

Taylor — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 01:05:09 +0000

Hello Pin Pals!

This will be the last Pin Pals gathering for the year so I designed the pin rest with a little bit of holiday inspiration.

I am putting mine on my dining side board with little reminders pinned to it. I think it’s a cheerful way to keep me on track. As I complete my tasks, I remove the note. The more of the pin rest I see the closer I am to being ready for the holidays.

Hope you enjoy your pin rest and have happy thoughts of “The Cottage at Cardiff Farms” and our warm wishes for you and yours during this holiday season.

We will look forward to our first gathering in 2012.

Best Wishes,

Kathy

Holly Berry Pin Rest

P.S. Remember to bring your sewing machine for this one!

Progress In The Kitchen Garden + Recipe!

Kathy — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 20:32:06 +0000

Well, it’s taken a little time but the zucchini plant that survived the heat wave has taken off! We have been picking squash weekly and are enjoying cooking with them. So I thought we would share another recipe… The first time I saw this recipe it was in the food section of the San Diego Union Tribune in the late 70′s. Wow! Has it been that long? I tweaked the recipe a few times over the years and this is what we have adopted as one of our family favorites.

Zucchini Pie

4 cups thinly sliced, unpeeled zucchini

1 cup coarsely chopped onion

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup chopped parsley or 2 tablespoons parsley flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon sweet basil leaves

1/4 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

2 eggs, well beaten

8 ounces (2 cups) shredded muenster cheese

1 recipe pie dough made with butter (recipe follows) or 1 8-ounce package refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

2 teaspoons dijon or prepared mustard

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a 10-inch skillet, cook the zucchini and onion in the butter and olive oil until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley and seasonings the last minute of cooking. Remove from heat and let cool while preparing the crust.

For crust use cresent rolls or the following recipe:

1 cup & 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

6 tablespoons salted butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

Blend with folk until well incorporated and the mixture forms small pea size crumbs.

Add 3 tablespoons ice water. Mix gently by hand until dough is a ball. Form into disk and roll out to circle 1/8″ thick. Place in pie plate and trim edge.

To use crescent rolls- separate into 8 triangles and place edge to edge in pie plate covering all surfaces. Squeeze together at seams to prevent leakage. Trim edge.

Spread your prepared crust with the mustard.

In a large bowl, blend the eggs and the cheese. Stir in the vegetable mixture. Pour the filling into the pie crust and spread evenly.

Bake at 375 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the pie stand 10 minutes before serving. Serve while still hot.

This pie makes a wonderful side dish for pork, fish, or poultry but can also be served with a salad for a flavorful vegetarian meal.

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do here at Cardiff Farms!

Sunflowers Were Blooming at the September Pin Pals Gathering

Kathy — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 21:49:52 +0000

Hi Everyone!

Just wanted you to see all my Pin Pal friends from the morning gathering. We had lots of fun visiting and sewing on the new Sunflower pin rest. All the ladies finished their sunflowers even though we took a break for coffee and freshly baked pumpkin muffins. What a good morning! The afternoon gathering was just as much fun and they all went home with a beautiful sunflower as well. We got so busy visiting I forget to snap a picture. Sorry ladies….next time make sure to remind me!

Keep checking back to see what the next pin rest will be. The next gathering will be the third Saturday in November. Hope to see even more new faces!

September Pin Pals “Simply Sunflower”

Taylor — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 00:14:04 +0000

Just in time for Summer’s end, we are featuring a beautiful sunflower pin cushion at this month’s Pin Pals gathering.

“Simply Sunflower”

The front sunflower in the picture features the kit materials provided for the class: richly textured wools in dark plaid and assorted yellows. The rear pin cushion is debuting our brand new “Sunflower Seeds” buttons available for purchase at The Country Loft. Here’s what you’ll need to bring to the Saturday, September 17 gathering:

sharp scissors – sharp enough to make nice cuts through wool

sewing needle – for stitching through multiple layers with pearl cotton thread

straight pins – at least 12

large safety pins – 2 if you have them

filler for your pin rest – 2 to 2 1/2 cups (I will have saw dust available to Pin Pals but if you want to use a different filler please bring your favorite)

A sewing machine will not be needed this month.

We can’t wait to see all of our regular “pin pals” this Saturday and hope that there will be some new faces as well! For sign-ups and class information please contact The Country Loft.