Childhood memories   At school         At home At school At primary school Miss Hofstra was my teacher in needlework. I never got high grades. I did not like those lessons because of the roughness of the materials and the useless projects. Did you have to knit a bib and an egg-cosy of white cotton? Or make a book jacket of brown jute? (What book has such strange measures?) Only samplers could hold my attention. This page only shows embroideries. You can find my early knittings under the button "Other needlework". (Choose "knitting and crochet".) A brown book-jacket made of jute with running stitches in white and orange. I never used that ugly thing. The yellow cloth is decorated with a border of Hardanger(?). A variation of stitches and colors on a nice blue cloth. My first steps on the path of samplers. A joyful cloth don't you think? At home At home I was often tinkering. I saved some of the results. Many are given away or gone lost. A well meant kit with printed canvas and wool. Nevertheless I did my best not to disappoint the generous donor. I made it into a challenge by trying all kinds of stitches. My first attempts to embroider Christmas-cards. The finishing touch was so bad I haven't sent them. My first somewhat complicated cross-stitch project. At that time I didn't know all the upper stitches had to lay in the same direction. 28 September 1970 my parents had their 25th anniversary. I was 15 years old and had little money to buy a great gift. It became an early attempt to compose existing and selfmade designs to a token of love. It has hung on the wall of their bedroom wall since then. You can see what I made for their 40th anniversary on the page "Own design" (part "samplers"). I did learn in the 15 years in between. Ah, how I wanted to be able to stitch like my Mum. I never reached her level. This experiment is not like her fine free styled embroideries. You can see her work on the page "Made by Mum" (see the menu on the left, choose "Embroideries" first) Finger exercises. Just for fun. Never used it.