An interview with...

From designing for celebrities to teaching at the RSN, author of new book Stitch, Amy Burt has a wealth of needlework experience behind her…

Interview by Lucy Evans

A flamingo created using Silk Shading Filippé.

Backstage for high fashion house Ralph & Russo.

Even beginner stitchers will find stylish projects they can try in Stitch.

Goldwork Scarab.

We chatted to Amy Burt about high fashion for the famous, her life spent teaching at Hampton Court and how her new embroidery book Stitch came together…

Hi Amy! Tell us how you first got into stitching and embroidery…

I was really lucky to have two talented grannies. Both were amazing at needlework, Granny Martyn was an amazing patchwork quilter and Grannie Burt was a talented seamstress (and cuddly toy maker). At school I studied Textiles for GSCE and got my highest grade, unfortunately the teacher thought I chatted too much and didn’t really see my potential. It wasn’t until I was living in Berlin in my late twenties that a family member sent me the BBC documentary on Medieval English embroidery called the ‘Fabric of Britain’ – they visited the RSN and my soon to be tutor and friend Marg Dier gave a demo on Opus Anglicanum –I was hooked. I applied to study on the RSN Future Tutor Programme, their teacher training course, and returned to London.