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I'm not privy to the work that you and Cynthia have done in the interim, Jeanine, but congratulations on your insight and your determination in pursuing this. I really like where this piece has gone. Everything that struck me as interesting in the earlier post has now been enhanced and reinforced. The young woman has taken on a new presence that almost requires that, before I say anything else in regard to the work, I feel the need to ask the indulgence of the subject by saying "Excuse me," because I sense that I'm interrupting someone at work.
The basket works very nicely, probably better than my first impulse to go with a low table.
A "technical" point: the line of the needle, the line of the index finger on the viewer's left, and the line of the shadow falling very sharply from the breast all converge, perhaps too strongly, at a single focal point. You might let that shadow shape drift away from the vertical drop (perhaps to our right, to follow the expected natural drape of the fabric), so that it doesn't intersect with the other two features with accidental emphasis.
You might also paint a round of yarn around that needle, to show that it's doing some work. Use just a tiny dot or line of bright color. Last "detail": the distal joints in the fingers are perhaps a bit long, but I happen to like that here; however, it would perhaps add interest if no two adjoining fingers were in similar articulation or posture. Consider posing each in its own unique anatomical tension.
My last two observations: First, the upper quadrants of the piece are lovely but seem perhaps slightly without a complementary dynamic; they are essentially negative space, so I wonder if they'd be enhanced by even the suggestion of, say, a cane-back chair frame's corners, slightly higher than her shoulders, which might help "fill" or define some of that space. And second, the color in the lower right background seems, at least on my monitor, a rather lifeless gray, in contrast to the muted richness of the rest of the piece. Shadow areas needn't be dulled; they are often steeped in color, and occasionally luminous even in low light. You will of course have to take into account appropriate hues, values, and temperatures. That's your call so I'll leave it to you. You're very obviously up to making the right choices.
Best,
Steven
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