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1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? I just moved to this bench a month ago. I now work from home. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? The drill, it is very versatile, and fast. 3. What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? 3D-printing, with this technique I can really create what my mind "sees". It comes in two parts, the modeling part, which I do on the computer, it is my version of a sketchbook, where I experiment with the shape and form and figure out the engineering side of my work. The second part comes after the pieces are printed, I still have a lot to do, I need to prepare and cleanup the parts, assemble everything and finally add the finishing touches. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? My bench can go up and down, that way I always have the perfect position to work as computer work and bench work requires very different heights.

1/How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? I have been working on my recent work bench for 2 years for now, this is where I started my path on jewellery making. A working bench for jewellers is very personal, I have set up everything that suits my need bit by bit and this is still an on-going process, there is always room to refine and this has made my bench one of my most comfortable place to stay. 2/Which is your favourite tool, and why? There are two favourite tools of mine, one is the saw and the other is the wax pen. The saw is the first tool I acquired when I started making jewellery and a good saw is the key element whether I can realise my design into a piece of jewellery, it has to be very accurate and handy. Since wax is a very important process of my work, so the wax pen is also one of my favourite tools, my wax pen allows me to smoothly craft detail design and texture that metal cannot achieve. 3/ What is the jewellery making technique/process you enjoy the most, and why? The cleaning up process is the most enjoyable process for me. To see my design and work come into real is thrilling; before I started making jewellery, I always thought silver and other precious metal looks just shiny and smooth as we saw in the shop window, but now I have came to know, in order to make the shinny and sleekly surface, jeweller has a long way to go from raw silver, hours of effort was spent. Polishing, brushing, filing and cleaning, you will find your pieces looks completely different with a clean and sleek surface, and this gives me big satisfaction. The polishing and cleaning process is the last and the most important step to define the value of your work.

1. How long have you been working on the workbench you currently using? Does it have a story/history? In the years that I have been working on my bench the process of acquiring, modifying and creating my own tools has inspired me and continues to inspire me. For me tools are like the extension of your hands and body when you are in the process of making any object. It is essential that they adapt to my needs and the technical requirements of the pieces. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? It's a very difficult question because I like all of them, but I think the jewellery saw and the pliers are the tools I work with the most and that I master quite well. They allow you to explore an infinite number of shapes and achieve very precise work. 3. What is the jewellery making technique/process you enjoy the most, and why? Cutting, fretwork and bending are the techniques I currently use the most. My designs are very geometric so, precision in cutting and folding are very important in the creation of a piece. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? It is my workspace and where I spend most of my time. I have a desk for the creative process and the bench for fabrication. Evenings are the time of day where I am most inspired and creative. But daylight allows me to be more precise and detailed.

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? Almost 3 years. I have been renting a bench at a jewellery workshop after I finished my studies in the United Kingdom and returned to Hong Kong in 2019. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? My engraving tools. It was my first time trying to make jewellery tools. I assembled all the parts together and they were made to fit my hand. 3. What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? I enjoy the making process the most because I can translate the idea in my mind into a finished piece of jewellery. The sense of achievement I gain is an encouragement for me to make more.

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? I have my own bench since 2016 and since I started teaching at HJI in 2017, I moved to a slightly larger bench space with an extended table. It is facing a large window with natural sunlight. I started with the most basic set up, and gradually adding more professional tools to my workbench as I become more and more experienced. I love my bench, it is a compact but vibrant place where I could spent hours working on my jewellery. 2/ Which is your favourite tool, and why? This is a very tough question! I love most of my tools, I love collecting files and my favourite file would be the safe-edge barrette needle file. It has a super thin tip that allows me to clean up the trickiest area. I also love my gem setting tool, one is a prong pusher I made with an old carbide burr. I work a lot with melees gemstones and this is a perfect size for the small prongs, while the tough material makes it easy to push the metal. Lastly it’s a gem setting hammer gifted by my jeweller friends Ruriko Ito and Donna Lacis. It has the perfect weight and touch, I had been using it for most of my gem setting work since I got it. 3/ What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? I enjoy gem setting a lot, it gives me anxiety and joy at the same time! There are so many factors you have to consider to get the gemstone set – how you created the metal seat, types and hardness of gemstones, the technique you push the metal and how you clean it up afterwards. It is challenging and every time I do it I learn something new, it is pushing me to refine my techniques and knowledge. 4/ Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? I have my initial on most of my tools and I like to paint the wooden handle of my files and gem setting tools. It’s my way of personalizing my bench space and I feel happy just by looking at them!

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? I have been sitting at my current bench 2.5 years, but have been playing musical benches at Hatton for 8 , as I kept searching for the perfect one like Goldilocks. I have finally found my perfect bench…for now! Each of Hatton’s benches has a history and mine has an AME connection. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? I don’t really have a favourite tool, but I am quite partial to my saws ( I have 3) and also my small Japanese hammer. 3. What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? I really enjoy wax carving. I find wax carving is the technique I can associate the most with art and be the most creative with. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? I think my favorite part of my bench is that it is right in front of a window, allowing me to work in natural light all the time. Ironically, this actually could have been my bench years ago, but I thought the natural sunlight would bother me! I could have saved myself many years of looking for the perfect bench!

1) How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? I have been working on this bench since 2020 when I was gifted the jewellery making tools from my Shifu (teacher). I was quite worried when I first “moved out” as I got used to having Shifu to work with me just like a little girl living under the protection and guidance of the parents. But knowing that it is better off for me to be independent and more room to let the seeds of my creativity grow, here I am, creating jewellery in the most vibrant co-working space for independent jewellers in Hong Kong. 2) Which is your favourite tool, and why? I think I would have different answers at different times along the jewellery making process as I need them all for different purposes. They will become my favourites once they are in my hands. But there is one tool I should mention, it is my welding torch. I used to fear of fire, I tried to avoid going into kitchen and I have never cooked. So the need of using a welding torch in the jewellery making process allows me to learn how to overcome my fears. Yet, it still gets my heart pumping every time when I am melting gold. 3) What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? This is a difficult one as I enjoy the whole process of jewellery making. While technology comes into play in many jewellery workshops, I personally enjoy traditional jewellery making process from gold melting to hammering, from sawing to soldering, from stone setting to polishing. Especially when the parts of the jewellery or the whole jewellery itself can be done easily with 3D drawing and casting, I would still opt for the traditional way of creating it. It is the only way to truly retain the uniqueness of each piece of handmade jewellery. 4) Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? I have been telling my friends that I am not a workaholic, yet I spend most of the time at my jewellery bench. It is indeed more than just a workplace; it is a playground and a meditation area at the same time. My jewellery bench is the only place where I can practice persistence and patience while enjoying me-time and be in touch with own thoughts that’s not so easy to be converted in words. It is a place where I can turn my thoughts into tangible pieces that people can see.

For a limited time only, Lace by Jenny Wu from Los Angeles is available in Hong Kong at Ame Gallery. LACE is the leading 3-D printing luxe jewelry line specializing in 3-D printing stainless steel and precious metal statement pieces. LACE was founded in 2014 by Jenny Wu, a partner in the architecture office, Oyler Wu Collaborative. The LACE by Jenny Wu collection reflects Jenny’s architectural aesthetic, marrying line-based geometry with intricate organic movement to create avant-garde designs with high level of digital refinement. The intricately detailed design pieces extend from Jenny’s architectural work, merging her modern design sensibilities with the latest in 3-D printing technology and material. Make an appointment with us to view this special collection.

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? In 2005 we have made a new workbench because the relocation of our studio. The measures of the bench are the same as a work bench in Rapperswil Switzerland where my internship boss also took his internship. The tubes from the bench are made of concrete and they are touching the heated floor so in winter they radiate a little warmth. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? Paul : The pliers with printed caps so you can bend metal without making any damage. Carla : Abrasive linen holders from Switzerland ( they call them “smirgeltuchhalter”) . You can finish your jewelry piece with a consistent, very good, tight and thoughtful quality with it. 3. What is the making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? Paul: To bend a straight tight strip of gold into a ring in organic form. Carla : The process of making new models with paper ,copper and many other materials and then translate it into gold. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? We builtg the bench ourselves. We are very proud of it! More about Cardillac

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? It has been using for 6 years. When I converted my workshop from a garage, I wanted to have a long workbench where possibly three people working together. Also, I love the oak wood, I bought a thick kitchen worktop and cut out from it. It is all hand made. 2. Which is your favorite tool, and why? My textured hammers. They are hand made and only I have those. I always gives some textured on a surface and I can say the textures from this hammer is my original. 3.  What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? I enjoy forming elements individually, which is a core work of my jewellery. However, my favorite process is burnishing edges. This is the last and a very important process; checking all the elements and linking while burnishing edges one by one. Also it is like a putting eyes to the doll, giving a life to the piece, giving a definition to the shape. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? My workshop is filled with dried flowers, dried seed pods, shells and things from the sea near by us. Recently, I am interested in mineral rocks as well. You will see these in my near future collection. See more about Kayo and her jewellery

1. How long have you been working on the work bench you currently using? Does it have a story / history? I have had my bench since 2007. It was made for me by one of my students, back when I was an artist in residence and taught evening classes. I knew exactly how I wanted it to be, so it was fantastic to have it made to my bespoke requirements. It has a little soldering table which I can pull out or put away. It is the perfect height for me to make granules – as this is the what I spend the majority of my time doing! It has changed over the years, as when I was pregnant with my eldest daughter I had it cut in two, so I could have a bench at home as well as in the studio. Both benches are now reunited back in the studio, one for me and one for my assistant Judith to work from. 2. Which is your favourite tool, and why? This is a tricky one as I have a few favorites! I have a beautiful old burnisher, with a wooden handle, the weight and proportions just work so well for me. I use this to add a fine polish line to the edge of my pieces or to harden earring posts. I also have a pair of tweezers and some snips which I have had since my university days in 2001. Both have become so important to my granulation process, the snips to cut metal for granules and the tweezers for picking up the granules. As I have had them for so long they almost feel like part of me – if they aren’t to hand things just don’t feel right! 3. What is the jewellery making technique / process you enjoy the most, and why? Granulation! This is integral to everything that I make. I love the process and how, just by just changing the metal or the scale of the granule, you can create a completely different aesthetic. Making granules is very therapeutic and calming. Working with the granules is much more skilled - it absorbs all my attention and I can almost feel like I'm lost in the piece I'm creating. I love this feeling and the sense of discovering fresh, innovative ways to use these beautiful precious droplets. 4. Anything else you want to tell us about your jewellery bench? My bench has some two bars fitted under the skin, where I keep all my pliers. This means they are easy to access and not clustering up the top of the work bench. When I am working I like to spread out across the whole bench, tools, metal, sketches and work are scattered across it. When I finish at the end of the day, I have to put everything back in its place - ready for a fresh start the next day! See more about Hannah and her jewellery.

We are celebrating our 8th anniversary by collaborating with 2 HK-based designers,created One-of-a-kind jewellery collection using the gemstones we have been collecting over the years.