Let your imagination be your guide with the embroidery method known as crewel—surface stitches that produce some of the boldest and most fanciful designs in needlework, from the most realistic to the quite fantastic. Follow an expert crewel instructor’s special techniques, starting with the simplest stitches, including stem, chain, split, long and short, French knot, and trellis filling. The complete process unfolds, from selecting and transferring your designs to final framing and finishing. Put it all together with ten original floral projects you can apply to clothing, from fashion to children’s wear, as well as soft furnishings and framed wall hangings. Shelagh Amor grew up in England, where she pursued a career in accounting before marrying and settling in Australia. Although she has taken up a needle at an early age, it wasn't until after the birth of her second child that she discovered the Embroiderers' Guild and, through it, the many facets of the art of embroidery. For Shelagh, embroidery became a passion, first patchwork then counted thread techniques - canvas-work, pulled thread, Hardanger, and blackwork - and, with time, she developed skills in crewel embroidery. She passed on her skills by conducting regular classes covering all of these techniques and became widely known for her gift for spreading her enthusiasm for embroidery. Shelagh used her administrative skills to co-ordinate classes for the Embroiderers' Guild and to promote embroidery in her local community. From 1984 to 1986 she served as President of the Embroiderers' Guild, Victoria. In twenty years of teaching, Shelagh has established a reputation for her meticulous attention to detail and finish. She now finds that it is crewel embroidery which most captures her imagination, from the first pencil line on paper to the last stitch on the linen. She currently teaches crewel embroidery to all levels, both in the classroom and by correspondence. She sees it as her mission in life to make the time-honored technique of crewel embroidery as enjoyable as possible for her students.