Treasured possessions

At the beginning of the week I was reading a post from "summer fete" who has made an amazing quilt and she was wondering whether to sign it or not so that in the future people could look her up. This gave me a idea.

When I was a child I was around at a friends granny's house when she was having a "good clear out" and on to the pile to throw out she threw a scrap of fabric which even at that young age I immediately picked up. I fell in love.
I had no idea then what a sampler was, I just knew I wanted it and against my upbringing asked if I could have it.

She said yes and told me she thought it was done by her grandmother.  I kept it safely packed away in my treasures chest for years until I got engaged when my Mum had it framed for me as a surprise.

It has been on the wall in my homes, out of the sunlight, ever since, my most treasured possession.

 When I read "summerfete" I thought why not find out a bit about Emily Annie Jones who did my sampler. So onto Ancestry .co.uk( Mr T is researching his family tree) and I looked her up.  It took a while starting with my friends and working backwards but I found her.

She was indeed my friends Great  great grandmother and was born in  Glamorgan Wales in about 1869, marrying a man called Evans who was a miner. Her Granddaughter and her family moved to West London in the 1950's.

I'm so pleased I have found a little about Emily and have now got a picture of her sitting by the fire as a young girl sewing this.  I would like to think someone will take the time  to look me up if they found something I had made and signed.

This one came from my Grandmother and is an embroidered picture and is my next hunt--before going onto

 this one which fell out of an old album I found amongst my Mothers stuff when I was sorting out after she died.
Two more of my treasured possessions .
What do you treasure apart from family?

Gillxx