Wow! Is it time to go to bed yet?

Fellow Etsy sellers, I definately recommend submitting your work for the weekend Etsy features. I had 33 sales during the promo. Today (err, & tonight) was spent mainly working up orders, and I've still got some more to work up!  Unfortunately, I know I'm headed into a busy day tomorrow at the office so this former night owl just can't keep her eyes open any longer....

(Artist: William Wegman / website here )

Good Night!

♥-Kat

Yea! Cardinal House Featured in Etsy Finds: Indie Exclusive Weekend Deals!!!

I've only just figured out how to submit products to Etsy staff for the Weekend Deal features! Better late than never!  Check it out here!
Orange white and black Rosa necklace featured for Halloween theme!

Etsy sellers: In case you were wondering how to submit too, make sure you're logged in &  then click on the "Community" tab on the main Etsy banner at the top of your screen. Then click on the "Forums" buttom. Now, on the main Etsy banner, type in "weekend deals" into the search bar (make certain that "Forum Titles" is showing on the drop-down menu immediately at the left). This will pull up any threads with coming up Etsy Weekend Deals. From here you can go into each individual thread, see what the Etsy staff is looking for, & write a post about what you'd like to offer. I'd include a link to whatever item in your store best suits the topic for the weekend deal or you best looking listing if no theme is mentioned.

It's worth offering the discount. I wasn't sure what to expect this time, but wow! I definately recommend trying to get your items listed & make sure that you have plenty of whatever it is that is listed!

Hope this helps!

♥ -Kat.

Garden Fix: Sources of inspiration found (Isola Bella on Lago Maggiore in Italy)

Once upon a time there was a girl that traveled to to lake that divided Italy from Switzerland.

On that lake was an island that was once ruled by a noble family for many years.

On that island was a house (hmph) that the noble family lived in for many centuries.

Surrounding that house were extensive beautiful gardens.

Beautiful gardens that housed such exotic creatures as albino peacocks...

and enchanting statues...

and don't forget captivating views.

And then that girl came back home & used everything that she saw to use as inspiration in her art and jewelry.

So my gradmother's garden & greenhouse were nowhere near this grand, but all that time I spent with her either working on her flowers or crafts definately rubbed off on me. Oh, and if you're wondering where the pictures were taken - here you go: Isola Bella (fitting, "Beautiful Island") on Lago Maggiore in northern Italy bordering Switzerland. Links to more history & travel specific info here.

Hope you're inspired!

♥ -Kat.

Because you'd rather be... shopping: hats

Here are some great hats from katarinacouture on Etsy.

Very fun.....my hair's too long again to pull off hats. Winter waves be damned because I'm ready to be done with long hair for the time!

-Kat

www.cardinalhouse.etsy.com

Sunday Treats: No fuss, free-form fruit pie recipe

 Easiest pie you'll ever make - rustic & casual, yet inviting (think La Madeleine country french café)! I dug this from my stash of collected recipes of the years - this one is from Glamour magazine July 1996.

The picture is mine using very ripe plums, raspberries, blackberries, & peaches...this recipe is great for finishing off the fruit bowl. Still ripening fruit will produce a firmer & slightly more tart pie.

Fruit Pie

Refrigerated (not frozen) piecrust

Flour for dusting

Fruit filling (recipes follow)

1/2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces

Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Let dough sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. On a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin, roll dough into a circle about 13" in diameter. Fold dough into quarters, then unfold it onto baking sheet or a 10" pie plate. Refrigerate fough while you prepare fruit filling.

Heat oven to 400°F. Remove dough from fridge. Arrange fruit filling evenly in the center of dough, leaving a 2" border fruit-free. Fold edges of dough up around fruit to form sides of pie. Pinch folds of dough to secure sides. Dot fruit in the center with butter.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes, until crust is lightly golden and fruit filling is bubbling. Cool pie 10 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Makes 8 servings. Calories per serving: about 270; Fat per serving: 13 grams

Plum-Berry Pie Filling

1-1/2 lbs ripe plums (or nectarines or peeled peaches)

1 cup mixed berries, such as blackberries, blueberries or raspberries

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp all-purpose flour

Pit plums, nectarines or peaches and cut into 1/4"-thick slices. Place in a bowl with other ingredients and lightly toss.

Apple Pie Filling

1-1/2 lbs apples, such as Golden Delicious or Granny Smith

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp all-purpose flour

Peel and core apples and cut into 1/4"-thick slices. Place into a bowl with other ingredients and toss.

***For my fillings I generally decrease the amount of sugar I use & add a tbsp or 2 of honey.

-Kat

www.cardinalhouse.etsy.com

Book Nook: Dead And Gone by Charlaine Harris

Book #9 of 9 (to date) Sookie Stackhouse Novels, Southern Vampire Series


Background: Overall set in Bon Temps, LA in parallel universe where vampires and humans coexist (& others - werewolves, fairies, etc - remain secret to most humans).
Rundown: The latest Sookie Stackhouse book doesn't dissappoint. All hell breaks loose with the the Fairies. Be prepared - we lose a were, a vamp, two were-panthers, and a fairy.
•Shifters come out of the closet in this book to announce their existance to the world. •Sookie is betrayed & set up for a trap by a co-worker. •Someone might be pregnant. •Remy needs Sookie's help with Hadley's son, Hunter. •Another employer seeks Sookie for her "abilities". •Sookie and Jason's parents were murdered. Flash flood is still technically how they were killed, but not everything is as it appears when dealing with the fey.
Team Eric: •We learn about Eric's maker. •Yes, Eric maneuvers Sookie into a "marriage". They are reacquainted after a brief brawl between Bill and Quinn and have some interesting revelations (...what the witches' curse entailed back in book #4).
Team Bill: •Bill and Niall rescue Sookie from torture by two enemy fairies. Bill poisoned. Sookie reveals that she forgives him & part of her still loves him.
Thoughts: Things that might be cleared up in next book? •Sook/ Eric's sex scene: What's the deal with Eric commenting "this is best" & "this is right"? •Is Dermot still in the human world, or did he cross back into the fae world before "doors" closed? Will he still favor Jason, or try to kill Sook and him? •Where was Eric while Sook was being tortured? Protecting Remy from other enemy fairies (pure theory...no clue)? •What's the meaning behind Eric living "on in Sookie"? •Which flipplin' vamp is Niall referring to, Bill or Eric? "The vampire is not a bad man, and he loves you." It would seem Eric as he and Niall have worked together in the past per book #8, but it was Bill that Niall was with when they rescued Sook....

>>>US Residents, follow this link to find your local public library: http://lists.webjunction.org/libweb/Public_main.html
>>>True Blood on HBO. Only 3 more episodes left of Season 2. Yea, True Blood is going on to Season 3!

Design Fix: Fiesta-like bowls from Anthropologie

I love Fiesta-type wares .... makes great everyday settings! Check out these great colors at Anthropologie. $30 for a set of 6 bowls!

-Kat

http://www.cardinalhouse.etsy.com/