nce upon a time, when a little girl, Svetlana was taught to handle a needle and thread in the right way. In the family of Sokolovsky the children were educated according to the old Russian canons. The noble roots of the family bound Svetlana to study everything thoroughly. So she did. Embroidery and music were not for pure amusement but main parts of her education. She was interested in music very much and decided to become a musician. Her dream came true soon. Then there was a tour to Irkutsk where Svetlana visited the Museum of Decembrists with its splendid collection of embroidery which had been made by the Decembrists' wives. S.Sokolovskaya still remained a singer but little by little she tried to remember the practical skills she had got from her mother and grandmother in childhood. Having mastered the technique of miniature embroidery, she couldn't consider it to be the second rate occupation any more. At last, embroidery became her profession.