Thank you for letting me join the forum. It came as a shock to realise I had made my first silver jewellery 70 years ago. I have been on the bench for 54 years and independent 43 years. I have loved every minute of it and bringing up two lovely daughters, one who works with me. We do everything the 'big guys' do, but do it with time and care. Obviously I am nearing the end of my bench time, but I have had so much fun! I also love making jewellery tools and gadgets. Our workshop is tiny so I had to build a vertical drawbench with a tiny footprint. Also a material sizing plate which I have submitted to Cooksongold for evaluation. If this is an inappropriate post please delete me. I just want to encourage young jewellers starting out to stick with it! Jewellery is a lifetime of fun and you get paid for it!