The fifth student was a middle-aged man, with a fierce-looking mustache and old-fashioned sideburns. "I'm Sam. My wife does needlepoint and I'd like to learn, but someone years ago told me not to ever ask someone who calls you 'honey' to instruct you."

Everybody laughed.

"The basics are simple," Martha said as she passed out books. "There are two kinds of needlepoint canvas. Mono, which is one thread, stiffly starched. And penelope, which is double strands very close together. We're starting with mono, which is thirteen holes to the inch. It's the best for using cotton floss. Good coverage, but not too fat. If you prefer to work in wool, we'll cover that later. And I've put together a bag of goodies from the shop for each of you.

"What you're going to do first is a sampler," she went on. "As many different stitches as you'd like to try. They're all in this book." She handed out a seventy-five-page book with detailed instructions on how to stitch sixty different pat‑

terns. The rest of it was a few colored pictures of ten of the examples, followed by an index. Martha let them browse through it for a few minutes.

She then distributed equal-sized canvases, all with a lightweight binding around the edge. "I'm going to turn you loose in the shop now. I'd suggest you choose three colors that you like together. I have a color wheel you can consult. I suggest you choose one packet of floss for each color, one in a fairly light tone, and another of a medium tone, and a third a little darker. If you run out, you can always come to the shop for more. You want Number 3 weight cotton floss for this project. There are books on the front counter you can consult for what colors come in what sizes."

Jane hadn't paid a lot of attention to the shop on the way in and was stunned by the variety of colors available. She chose a combination of pinks, purples, and an off-white called ecru. Shelley picked greens, blues, and yellows.