February 26, 2010

Patent Pending... not!

I find myself in need of a portable way to stand and sketch... noticed some painters using a tripod with paint box attached and decided to see what I could do. A visit to husband's scrap lumber bin and after a few fumbles trying it this way and that... voila! A very adjustable sketch stand that goes together quickly and folds compactly. And is actually pretty steady.

The board is clamped to the thingy that's meant to hold a camera, and I glued a strip of wood underneath to give the support post a stopping point... and added a clamped strip to keep pencils from rolling down. I will be on the lookout for a slightly larger board but for now this one is fine.

I have it adjusted so the board is slanted and is about arms length as I stand... the way I prefer to draw, using my whole arm. But it could be lowered to be used with a chair or stool, or the board could be level if I wanted to put a paint box on it. I'm so proud of myself ;)

4 comments:

CMC said...

Looks good to me. I've thought about a tripod or that watercolor easel I've never used to put some of those small panels on to do encaustic. It must be stronger than my w/c easel to hold that board.

Suzanne Ally said...

I am so proud of you, TOO!!! I may have to copy this you know...

Sizun said...

This seems a very effective device. I also noticed your sketchbook... I love everything homemade and just a bit unusual.

Karen Jacobs said...

Thanks all... haven't figured out how to make it do the sketching. May have to do that myself ;)

Ghistlaine, I was once a printmaker and have stacks of good paper sitting around. I bind a few at a time so I don't feel committed to making every mark count (sketch books scare me that way...)

The tripod (a good one left over from slide taking days) should be stable on uneven ground... no excuses!