He was trained by Keith Murray, a New Zealand-born ceramic designer, while at Wedgwood in England.
In 1948 Shufflebotham was brought to New Zealand by Crown Lynn along with a number of other designers including Frank Carpay to work in the company's 'Specials Department'.
He was employed to produce more upmarket works that would expand the market for Crown Lynn ceramics.
He continued the style used by Murray and would throw the clay on a pottery wheel to create the vase.
The matt white finish of his work was made possible by Crown Lynn's 1948 development of a formula based on halloysitic clay from Matauri Bay.