The kinds of things with which you surround a child will sink into his consciousness. Years ago, when I made Val-Kill furniture, copies of American antiques, I gave some pieces to my children for their own rooms at home so that, when they married, they would have some furniture of their own. I discovered an interesting thing. The children who had these replicas of antiques began, without being taught, to recognize finish, the beauty of wood, how the pieces were put together. If a drawer was fitted and pegged instead of being nailed together they noticed it right away. They became very
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