Mon Espace Créateur - Le Chevalet D'enfant Facile - { My Creative Space - Easy Child's Easel }

On Tuesday I showed you a really easy little easel I made for poppet and the materials you would need. Now...onto the task of showing you how I whipped it up (yes...it was that easy it deserves a "whipped it up"!) Jess, Kylie, Wendy and Catherine have bravely put their hands up to join in...who else is up for a little D.I.Y. challenge? We'd love for you to join us!! How about we do a little show and tell in a month (that gives you HEAPS of time). (Blogger ate a lot of my comments from my last post so if you sent one about joining in and it's not there, can you leave another please.)

I am going to go through every step that I did but perhaps you were lucky enough to have your timber cut for you. If so, just scroll down to step 6.

Step1: Take your 42mm X 19mm timber and measure 850mm...draw a mark. Repeat this until all four pieces are measured up.

Step 2: Lining up your square on the side of the timber, draw a line with your pencil.

Step 3: Find somewhere to rest your timber...maybe an old chair. Line the saw up on your pencil line. Using your thumb knuckle (keeping your fingers away from the teeth) as a guide pull the saw towards you slowly a few times to make a little notch. Now slowly pull the saw backwards and forwards along the line. There is no need to rush and try not to force the saw too much....keep them long even strokes. Repeat for your other pieces.

Step 4: Take your 42mm x 11mm timber and measure 430mm. Repeat for the other piece. Repeat steps 1 -3.


Step 5: Measure your ply wood (2 pieces of 430mm x 510mm) and repeat steps 1-3. Woo hoo! All the cutting is done. You can use a little bit of sandpaper to smooth any edges.

Step 6: Take one of your 850mm lengths (you have four of these). Place the folded hinge up against the end and using your pencil, mark the holes.

Step 7: Line up one of your nails on one of the holes and hammer nearly the whole way in. Use the back of your hammer to lever it out again. Voila! Your screw hole without any scary power tools! Repeat this for the other hole. (Just make sure that your nails are the same thickness as the shaft of the screw i.e. the bit inside the curly thread part)

Step 8: Using your fingers for support, screw the screws in to attach the hinge (the screws would have come in the packet with the hinges). Repeat Steps 6 and 7 on another of your 850mm lengths.

Step 9: Take another 850mm length and lie it almost end to end with one of your hinged pieces. Line the inside of the hinge up with the end of the timber (look closely at the photo) and mark your holes. Repeat Steps 6 and 7. Do exactly the same for the other two pieces of 850mm timber. You now have the supports/legs of your easel! Turn your pieces over so that the hinges are facing down.

Step 10: Line up one of your pieces of ply with the hinge end of your 850mm timber and one of the side edges. Attach the ply by hammering a few nails through the ply and into the timber (I used 3 on each side). Line it up on the other side and attach. You're nearly there!!


Repeat for the other side. It's starting to look like an easel now! Foreman Bijou approves!

Step 11: Take one of your 430mm lengths and attach underneath the ply with one nail on each leg.
Step 12: Using a nail to make your screw holes like before, evenly space the three cup head crews along the bottom piece of timber. Don't screw them in the whole way as these are the hooks for the paint pots.


Step 13: Turn your easel on its side and make a pencil mark approximately in the middle of the two bottom pieces of timber (the ones where you attached the paint pot holding screws). This is where you'll attach your chain. Do the same on the other side.

Step 14: The final building stage! Hooray!!! Nail your chain to the side of the legs where you made the pencil mark. Attach in the same way on the other leg. Repeat on the other side of the easel. Step 15: Stop what you are doing and have a well earned strut around your back yard with your head held high. Bravo! You've just made your little poppet an easel!!! All that's left to do is give it a bit of a sand, paint it and attach the paint pots. This is a wonderful time where you can disguise any "oopsies" such as slightly uneven legs (sand, sand and sand again), not quite matching up ply wood (slop that paint in that groove!)...you get the idea!


Step 16: Cut your empty soft drink bottles into paint pot containers and make a hole to attach them to the easel. I used a hole punch and then cut a little slit to make a key hole shape. I also cut the paintbrushes down to make them more safe for my little one.

Step 17: Let your imagination run wild and decorate your little easel however your heart desires. I painted colours on both sides and their French names on Bijou's. Are you surprised? :) Now go and have a cup of tea and revel in that glorious feeling oozing from every pore of your being .... pride.

For more wonderful Creative Spaces please head over to Kirsty's lovely blog and enjoy!