Hu Yuejia and his woodcarving works. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

Hu Yuejia, a 62-year-old craftsman from Houcheng subdistrict, Zhangjiagang, East China's Jiangsu province, has been engaged in peachwood carving for 44 years.

At the age of 18, Hu was determined to learn wood carving after seeing the beautiful woodcarvings at Zhuozheng Garden in Suzhou.

Hu then spent a year learning the craft from a carving master in his village before landing a job in a wood carving factory.

Hu has been making peachwood zodiac pendants for children in the village for 28 years and his sophisticated works have attracted many people from outside the village.

Peachwood zodiac pendants by Hu Yuejia. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

True to the Chinese saying "a handy tool makes a handy man", the 300 kinds of carving tools used by Hu were all made by himself.

The heads of two knives are as thin as a needle. These tools took Hu more than two hours to make. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

Although Hu is now retired, he still does carving more than eight hours a day with the aim of turning his handicrafts into artwork.