Autumn cooking - aka recreating family recipe

I always liked September. There is something in the air that brings back memories but also makes me want to prepare for a new beginning. I guess it's the beginning of the school year vibe, the trips to the stationary shops, buying new notebooks and pens and the absolute certainty that this year will be somehow different and better than the last. But it's also the smell of fallen leaves, first autumn rains, shorter days that make you want to cozy up with a cup of hot chocolate and the variety of fruits, nuts, and wild mushrooms...

Apparently, everyone gets sentimental this time of year because during one farmer's market trip my mom started reminiscing about mushroom appetizer her grandmother used to prepare.
Aside from the chanterelle bread spread, i didn't have much to go by, but after some experimentation, I got it just right! Or so I'm told...

wildflower kindle blanket

"Do you suppose she is a Wildflower? -said the Daisy"



I've been caught up in a true water armageddon. Our beautiful newly renovated flat we poured our hearts (and a big pile of money) in has been flooded in every possible way. I'm pretty sure there is a water witches' curse on it! So instead of enjoying last days of summer, I'm running around supervising (and trying not to look too closely) the total eradication of our carefully selected floors and parts of the walls.

Luckily my DIY-s are providing some destruction, saving me from a total heartbreak.
I've been putting this project off for months, but I'm finally done - brand new and 100% handmade kindle cover!

It's one of these projects you can complete in one afternoon or stretch it for days - depending how practical you are. I'm not practical at all, therefore I spent 2 hours on actual cover and about 2 days on embroidery and design. But I loved every second of it!

But to the point... I used 2 sheets of soft felt (approx 28x19cm) plus one sheet for the screen frame (9x12.3cm - 14x19cm).

If I was making it again, I would probably use stiffer felt, at least for the frame, to make it less flimsy. As it is, I stitched cotton ribbon around the inner edge to stop it from losing its shape.

The embroidery part was the most fun. I even did a quick sketch of what I want it to look like. A word of warning, though : felt tends to stretch if you pull it too much, so embroidery hoop is out of the question. Also felt on felt embellishments look really good and don't take quite as much time as what I did.

Anyway, once that was over, I glued both of the covers together with fabric glue so they hold together well.

The last part was a blanket stitch all over. I mixed gray wool with a regular gray thread to have both the looks and durability.

My case has a centre opening for the kindle and a small hole for the charger. Speaking from experience- mark your openings well. I didn't, and stitched right through it.

Once I had all the edges blanket-stitched, I just added two small metal clasps, which is not at all necessary. I guess, I just wasn't quite ready to call my project finished. You know what they say about enjoying the journey quite as much as the destination...
And here it is, my wildflower kindle blanket!