When an avid gardener and seasoned quilt and stitchery designer combines her two passions, magic sprouts! Using a mix of wool and cotton as her medium and flowers as her muse, Kathy Cardiff brings her blossoming backyard garden to life in projects that blend elegant beauty with a touch of primitive charm. Projects from pillows and sewing notions to table toppers and wall quilts culminate in a stunning nine-block sampler quilt bursting with blooms. Add basic embroidery-stitch details to give each flower, leaf, and vine Kathy's special brand of cottage style. Full-sized pullout patterns included. Combine cotton and wool fabrics, stitchery, and quiltmaking and a love of gardening and you have this wonderful collection of projects by Kathy Cardiff. The masterpiece project is a stunning nine-block sampler of flowers in bloom. But there is also a good mix of smaller projects to make for yourself, your home, and as gifts for family and friends. They include a clutch purse, cushions, wall hangings, framed pieces, sewing notions, and a table runner. Kathy also includes advice and tips for working with wool. Enjoy! --Australian Homespun Magazine A Cottage Garden - Stitch and Enjoy a Bounty of Beautiful Blossoms by Kathy Cardiff, published by Martingale, has 11 wool applique ideas and is at the top of my stack of inspirational books for this year's gift-making journey. All of Kathy's designs in this book feature flowers, a welcoming sight when you open a package in the middle of winter. What magic Kathy performs with a little bit of wool and thread! The sewing clutch is darling (you should see the plaid wool she used inside, a fun contrast to the clean lines of the outside of the clutch), and can be made in no time at all using simple stitches and construction. Speaking of construction, the Working with Wool section at the beginning of the book ensures the work will proceed without a hitch as it walks the reader through background fabric choices (she mixes cotton and linen with wool, my favorite combinations!), how to select, felt, and store wool, how to prepare wool shapes for applique, etc. Kathy's expertly chosen background fabrics allow for the applique to pop, providing the perfect canvas for her floral designs. I love her finishes: just the right balance between simplicity and detail, neutrals and color, smoothness and texture. All the photos in the book were taken in Kathy's garden, her love and the inspiration for all her projects. If we do not have a beautiful garden around us, we can still be graced by its beauty as we stitch our own version of colorful blooms and potted plants using her ideas. Oh... when you get to the end of the book you spy My Cottage Garden, showcasing Anemones, Black-eyed Susans, Echinaceas, English Daisies, Forget-me-nots, Marigolds, Peonies, Sweet Peas, and Zinnias. Need I say anything more? A Cottage Garden - Stitch and Enjoy a Bounty of Beautiful Blossoms would also make a wonderful gift for stitching friends, perhaps presented with the Sewing Clutch as the motivation to begin a gift-making journey of their own. --Pieced Brain Quilt Designs Kathy Cardiff of Washougal, Washington, started her pattern business, The Cottage at Cardiff Farms, in 2010. Her designs are greatly influenced by her love of gardening. She travels and teaches her wool-applique techniques. Visit Kathy online at The Cottage at Cardiff Farms.