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Dear Raffaele,
First of all, congratulations on executing such a fine sketch!
I personally don't like to paint a head & shoulders over 16" x 20" or thereabouts - if you've decided on a 20" x 24" painting I think you ought to include hands as well, unless you're planning to paint a vignette. Hands can say a great deal about a subject and I love using them in an expressive manner whenever possible.
Here are a few ideas off the top of my head: does she read? - she can hold a book. Does she knit? - let her hold her needles with the knitted item being worked on (interesting color possibilities there). If she has a wonderful necklace she can touch it in a graceful manner. Does she have a cat she can hold in her lap? You can always ask her if she has a special object she'd like to hold.
If you're concerned that she can't hold a pose for long and you want to work completely from life, consider having her support her head with a hand, possibly on a table (but take care not to make her look unflatteringly weary or tired of life).
Of course all of these options make for a lot more work for the artist, and some artists simply don't like to paint hands. I'm convinced Whistler was one of these - take a look at a collection of his portrait work - hands are behind the back, in pockets, or treated in a VERY painterly manner.
I am a big fan of gloves and all their wonderful compositional possiblities such as one glove on, one off, held in the hands, etc. etc. but so far I've been unable to convince a client to wear them (maybe this is because I live in Arizona! You may have more luck in Ireland).
Possibly you're concerned about painting an older woman's hands. As you probably know, most women are quite vain about their hands and the aging process isn't kind to them. Remember that the hand viewed from the side is generally more flattering than the full-knuckle view, and a hand bent at the wrist is more "feminine" than one which is not.
As for "formality" in a portrait, I think you could safely generalize that an indoor pose is more formal than an outdoor one and a formally attired sitter is more formal (obviously) than an informally attired sitter. To me, a dark background feels more formal than a light one.
Best regards,
Linda
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