I embroidered this little hand onto silk organza. I used a vintage palm reading chart for the pattern and got the idea of using lines to mimic finger prints from these cross contour drawings.

The stitching went smoothly – there are a few hoop marks, but overall the fabric held up nicely. Framing the finished piece was the real challenge! I used a shadow frame and drilled holes through the middle section, about an inch apart. Then I whipstitched the fabric onto the frame.

Overall I’m really happy with how it turned out! The tension of the fabric is great and the hand casts a shadow onto the wall. I put the glass at the back instead of the front so you can still see and feel the texture of the stitching. This piece will be auctioned off to raise funds for Space2Create, a wonderful mental health charity based in Kendal, UK.

Here are the three layers of the frame before I drilled holes into the middle section.

All of the pieces, ready for assembly!

Here’s a detail of the corner – I didn’t need to fold the corners in, the frame does it for me!

‘Life Lines’ by Shannon Quigley