Hi Julie,
I recently shared some of my experiences with Marty and figured you might find it useful. I started carving a long time ago and always carved in my lap. Fast forward many years and I now mostly carve on a table (kitchen table or a tall carving bench I made for my shop). One reason is that I had to have a couple of vertebrae fused in my neck (rugby/wrestling/weightlifting) about 10 years ago and found that carving in my lap was a bit tough for extended periods of time. I still carved in my lap until I started carving some bigger pieces…a table worked much, much better for these pieces. More recently, my eyes have decided to be a pain so having the workpiece up close has been a benefit. I think I can get away with less than ideal form because I don’t have issues with strength (definitely have more power on your lap as you can put your shoulder and upper body into the cut) and because I already have a lot of carving experience. I honestly do not feel that the quality of my carving has declined as a result of carving on a table/bench surface. Once I get my eyes sorted out, it will be interesting to see whether or not I go back to my lap. In the grand scheme of things, chip carving is really nothing more than making a few cuts and popping out a piece of wood…so, I’d try a couple of different techniques and do what works best for you.
Hope this is useful,
Mike