Crafting wonders

Our production process

Each of our products goes on a long and impactful journey before it is ready to be sold. And every one of our items touches the life of at least one prisoner or prison leaver in some way.

Our needlework kits are put together in our prison workshops before being distributed from our London hub to our wonderful volunteers. These inspirational supporters teach people in prison the necessary skills to craft each piece. The completed stitchwork is then returned to us, to ensure it meets our exacting standards, before finally being sent back into a prison to be 'made up', turning it into the final product (e.g. stuffing and adding zips to cushions).

In total, this process can take up to 200 hours and over 70,000 stitches (per piece!)

We know that every single one of our products boosts self-esteem, builds confidence, has a positive impact on a stitcher’s mental health, and gives them the opportunity to transform their lives.

By purchasing a product, you become a part of that journey.

DONATIONS

Support our work

By purchasing from Fine Cell Work, you are making social change. However, 75% of our rehabilitation programmes are funded through donations and grants. We know that transformation is possible - for our stitchers, for our communities, and for our society as a whole. Your support - through donations or by purchasing products - will help to break the devastating cycle of reoffending and repeated imprisonment.

£10 donation
Provides a prisoner with the materials for one tapestry cushion (100 hours of creative activity). 

£20 donation
Will enable us to continue providing paid, creative and productive work to even more prisoners around the UK, helping them to build a brighter future.

£50 donation
Sponsors a prisoner to train as a volunteer 'class coordinator', teaching and mentoring other prisoners.

£250 donation
Covers the volunteer costs of a stitching class in prison.

£500 donation
Pays for the training, materials and support for one prisoner for an entire year, helping them to rebuild a meaningful, independent,crime-free life.

By giving prisoners hope that transformation is truly possible, they can envision a meaningful life after release. But nobody tells the story of how Fine Cell Work has helped them better than the prisoners themselves:

“Stitching allows me to use a totally different part of my brain and personality. I can move away from the more difficult reflections and anxieties and feel creative and purposeful. This means I no longer feel that my life has come to a halt and that I am of no use to anyone else.”

- Tom, FCW Stitcher -

Customer Reviews

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R
RMM
Lovely finished cushions!

I've had three tapestry cushions made up by FCW now and each one has been beautifully completed and finished. In one case my tapestry was really stretched out of shape when I stitched it but they managed to sort it. I'd recommend them to anyone!

M
Mary Pittman-Jones
Stunning Work!

First, I’ll comment on Fine Cell Works designs. I’m American but have lived in the UK for forty years. During this time, my mother died. Amongst the mementoes that she left to me was a tapestry cushion of a Siamese cat that she had stitched to remind me of my first pet. I wanted to create a second animal tapestry cushion to display along with it and was searching on the internet for a pattern. The Fine Cell Work Boxing Hares kit popped up. It’s a gorgeous design from one of the Arts and Crafts Movement artists, William de Morgan.
Next, it was my first attempt at tapestry so I was embarrassed by the inconsistency of my stitches when I handed it back over to Fine Cell Work to be made into a cushion. The work their stitcher did transformed it into something elegant and stunning. The material of the cushion backing is high quality, and it is firmly packed with a stuffing that keeps its shape. The care taken and skills displayed are impressive! Worth far more than it cost!

R
Ros Humphris
Thank you

The company really did justice to a tapestry I had completed in the 1990s and had put away and forgotten about. It is now a beautiful cushion that I love. Thank you