I’m not at all an artist but occasionally I do like to dabble with a bit of paint on canvas.
As trying to create a masterpiece bent over a flat surface is pretty darn uncomfortable & the cost of an “artist’s easel” is insane I hit the wood shop and figured out how to make my very own fancy schmancy adjustable easel:
Here’s what I did:
I grabbed three 2m long pieces of thin framing lumber + a piece of 50cm scrap wood, a wingnut, rope, a small upcycled hinge & a couple of nuts & bolts.
I stacked two of the 2m lumber pieces evenly together & drilled a hole through the top of them
popped a long bolt through the holes
flipped it all over and slipped a piece of felt over the bolt end
then screwed on the wingnut
(the felt allows the wingnut to be easily tightened & loosened without damaging the wood)
Pulled the two pieces apart & bolted the scrap wood piece to the front to hold the canvas.
(using nuts bolts to attach the canvas shelf means it can be easily removed & adjusted)
I grabbed that small upcycled hinge & attached it to the end of the remaining 2m wood piece
and attached it just below the wingnut on the back of my almost done easel to create the third leg (a bit of rope stapled between the legs made it super stable!)
The front horizontal shelf can be adjusted to suit both large and small canvases thanks to the easily removable nuts & bolts.
I glued a small piece of wood to the middle of the shelf to help keep the canvas in place while painting – sometimes my brush strokes can get a wee bit wild!
Pretty cool, eh?
Thanks to that wingnut it folds up neat & tidy for easy storage!
Not bad for a DIY easel if I do say so myself!
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This is AWESOME! Just wondering what’s the width of the boards?
4cm wide x 2cm thick 😀
You are amazing!
Aw shucks Robin! Thanks for the ego boost!
super practical – sigh, so neat and organized all of which I am not!
Yup, I’m the queen of organized chaos & practicality! 😀
What a neat idea! I like your pictures too!
Thanks Alice, It was sooooo simple to make (& cheap too!) 😉
You are an artist, even if you only design for yourself and your own home! I’m going to make one of these easels. Have you ever done painting on fabric? Many traditional fabric prints don’t really excite me, and it seems like it would be another way to refashion a somewhat plain piece of thrifted clothing. I know there are sites that will print your own designs onto yardage, but they are pretty expensive, and I prefer upcycling. I’ve done it on pillows, but never on an already constructed garment that wasn’t a tee shirt. Also, have you ever cut the top front off a button up shirt and made a lacy or pin tucked/pleated yoke? I want to do that, but I’m not sure it would lie flat. As always, I have the picture of a completely finished product in my head, and now have to figure out how to get there!
Cheers Candace, I have yet to paint on fabric (other than upcycled canvas: https://awesomesauceasshattery.com/2012/05/24/2-tutes-for-the-price-of-one/) but I think I’ll give it go!