First time at my bench in Taiwan

I finally started working at my new bench last night. I started on a pendant. But I really need a light before I can do much. I'm planning to go to a jewelry tool supplier this weekend, I'll try to get one there. There are a lot of other little things I need, but I have all the other essential things to work here.

new bench

My new workbench arrived yesterday. I'm excited to start making things again. Now I really feel like I am living here in Taiwan, not just visiting for a while. 

workbench

I ordered a workbench today. It should come next week.  It's the same design as the bench I have been using in the US since 2000.  Cost was $227 USD, including shipping, which is much less than a similar bench in the US. 

A workbench is the most important thing for me to be able to make things here since I do everything at the bench: jewelry fabrication, wax carving, lock picks, carving, etc.

I have a lot of tools here, but not everything.  I will go through my tools this weekend and see what exactly I have.  I should have tools here to do some fabrication and carving.  I will go to a tool store in Taipei and buy some more stuff after I get the bench and figure out what else I need.

Jewelry class

I was surprised when I started this English teaching job and they told me there will be a jewelry class here on Friday nights that I could attend. So I have been going to this class once a week, it is being taught by some people from a jewelry manufacturing company. We are doing wax carving. They know I was a jeweler, so they just let me work and don't bother me. We are making a ring for our first project. I am almost finished. Still need to refine the edges. It's been years since I carved wax. I enjoy it, but because I wasn't planning on carving wax when I came here I didn't bring my favorite wax carving tools.

2 more picks

Both of these are paper micarta.  The white one was finished around the beginning of the year, but the black one wasn’t finished till summer.  These are two of my favorites.

Micarta
Ratyoke Custom Lock Picks

Micarta
Ratyoke Custom Lock Picks

More lock picks from summer 2018

Here are some more lock picks I made this year.  

Piquia  marfim & pernambuco

Piquia  marfim & ebony 

Sandalwood

ebony and bloodwood lock picks

These are some lock picks I finished before I came to Taiwan.  I will be making a post card with this image.

The woods I used for the handles are ebony and bloodwood.

Ebony and bloodwood
Ratyoke Custom Lock Picks

What happened

I moved to Taiwan in August to teach English.  I don’t want to go into my reasons here except to say that I was unhappy and bored living in the US.  I enjoyed my life in Korea, so I decided to give Taiwan a try this time.  I was sad giving up my great studio, but that is about the only thing I liked about my life in the US.  I am setting up a work bench here in my apartment in Taiwan so I will be making things here soon.  I brought or shipped a lot of tools here already and will be buying more here or having my parents send them to me.  I plan to buy a workbench this month.

I have been here about 3 months now.  Things are going well so far.  I spend most of my free time studying Chinese.  Right now there is no plan about how long I will stay here.