“English Heritage commissioned an enormous number – 47 – cushions from Fine Cell Work, which had to be made using medieval designs and C12th stitches for the Great Tower at Dover Castle. Fine Cell Work has been truly impressive in the quality of its work and its attention to detail.”

Dr. Susan Jenkins, Senior Curator for English Heritage



I was thrilled at the prospect of producing a piece for an organisation like English Heritage and such a prestigious cause. I had only been doing crewelwork for a short period and had taught myself from a Jane Rainbow book ordered through the library. Initially my interest in cross-stitch and tapestry had come from the knowledge that my paternal grandfather had done such work as mental and physical therapy after stepping on a landmine during war service.

I will also admit that the idea of supplementing a meagre prison income was appealing. I would however have undertaken the piece for Dover Castle for free, because it gave me a feeling of giving a positive contribution that would be enjoyed by many people; a sense of leaving a heritage of my own in some small way.

I eventually received the materials and instructions for the work on Tuesday 5th May 2009 with a request that I complete it by Monday 29th June. Though the tight deadline made me a bit nervous I decided to take the project on and made a commitment to get it finished.



Other constraints meant that I could not begin work until Thursday. I then had to work on learning to do laid stitch and couching, which I had not seen or attempted before. As usual when working on a new project I found the initial stages to be both interesting and exciting. I did one of each figure in order to gauge how much floss I would need against what was supplied as I like to organise things and avoid last minute panic over supply issues. More thread was required and was duly delivered.

I found the requirements of the work quite intensive, but as the first (central) panel filled out my enthusiasm was rekindled by the idea of the overall look. I was at this initial stage working on an average of 6 hours a night, 7 days a week. The work was a source of relaxation and a welcome alternative to brain numbing T.V programmes. Sometimes I would distract myself by counting the stitches in each figure to dispel ruminations over problems with prison life (1500 stitches average on each “snowflake”, 800 on the centaurs, and 600 on the stags).

Due to concerns over the short time frame for completion of the project it was arranged that I could take the piece into my workshop to increase the rate of work. This increased the daily hours to 9½ and quite honestly made the work seem a bit more of a burden or chore, but it was a necessary step that I came to appreciate.

Motivation to continue with the work, like any other work of a reasonable duration, ebbed and flowed. The constant knowledge of a deadline kept me going when motivation was low; I am also a person who will not give up a commitment once I have given my word.

I negotiated with workshop staff to be allowed to work in my cell until the work was completed. This minimised stressful encounters with wing staff, and by avoiding the need to go through two security checks twice daily gave me another hour and half a day to work. By this time the deadline seemed to be rapidly approaching, and as I started the third panel it again felt like starting from scratch and I felt tired and began to desire an end to the project. I even started by mid June to have panic-filled dreams that I had ruined the tapestry.


I started to sit up well into the early hours of the mornings to catch up with my self imposed timetable, but tiredness and stress seemed to mean that the added time resulted in slower work. Again my sense of obligation kept me going, and once commencing with the work I found a refuge where my cares became mere shadows for a while; I would feel relaxed enough after a session of needlework to slip into an easy sleep. The work may have saved me from sliding back into my one time state of deep depression.


As the work neared completion I was torn between wanting rid of it and being fond of it. By late June I was beginning to panic as the work, now near completion, seemed to be going slower and slower. On Tuesday 23rd June I decided I wanted it finished so that delivery time would allow it to arrive by the deadline. After a full 14-hour stint I finished the tapestry at 8.30am on Wednesday 24th June.

This had not left me with much time to look at the finished product, as I wanted to ensure that it was safely parcelled for transportation and unlikely to be damaged. However, in the end I had an extra day to unpack it and spread it out on the bed and have a good look at it. My entry in my diary reads “It looks good; not as precise as I would have drafted and done it, but good anyway.” I decided that the slight imprecision in the draftmanship of the figures that had been a slight discomfort to my mind – which prefers/craves precision and symmetry – added a quite naive charm that produced a pleasing result.

When I later received letters from Fine Cell in praise of the work it gave me a great sense of achievement. It all seemed worth it and I felt that I had been able to contribute in my small way to something of note. I also began to feel that tapestry, in a way, could be combined with my tailoring skills to provide me a trade upon release; I began to hope for a future.