I was visiting Jawad and Shukria a couple of weeks ago. Shukria had just received a parcel from her sisters with hand embroidered and crocheted garments. The crochet embellished the edges of some head scarves; the embroidery enhanced the hem of some pants. Jawad had a tunic done by someone in his family who had taken three months to embroidery the front of it for him – obviously something to wear at a special occasion!

Last night I asked if I could photograph the hand work. What I forgot to do was place a coin on it to show the scale of the work – it’s extremely fine, both the crochet and the embroidery. Incredible precision! Not a hope in hell I’d be able to work with such fine thread (crochet or embroidery) and control it as magnificently as this work. The fabric is also a very fine, closely woven, either a lightweight cotton or a silk. It’s breathtaking!

I just had to share it.