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Tabletop Art Easels[8/4 Wide · 2ft · 5-Pack]
One pack. One build. All 5 boards used. • Makes 3 tabletop easels
Shop Black Walnut 8/4 Wide · 2ft Pack Shop All Speciesselect 2' Lengths / 6-8"
How it goes together
Black Walnut
Hard Maple
Cherry
White Oak
Red Oak
Ash
Hickory
Ambrosia Maple
Sapele*
Padauk*
Purpleheart*
*Exotic — not available for shipment to US customers.
Three sturdy A-frame easels for a canvas, a chalkboard sign or a framed print up to about 16" tall. Each easel is two splayed front legs joined at a head block, a thick grooved ledge and a hinged back leg that folds flat. Boards 1–3 rip into the nine square legs, and boards 4 and 5 give the ledges and head blocks. Keep one for the mantel and give the others to the painters in your life.
Quick Build — for experienced woodworkers
| Part | Qty | From | S2S size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legs (2 front, 1 back per easel) | 9 | Boards 1–3, ripped in thirds | 20" × 1¾" × 1¾" |
| Ledges (15° back edge, grooved) | 3 | Board 4 (two), board 5 (one) | 10" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| Head blocks | 3 | Board 5, ripped down | 4" × 2½" × 1¾" |
Legs: boards 1–3 ripped in thirds → nine 20" legs about 1¾" square. Front leg tops and feet cut at 10° so each pair stands in an A, about 10¾" across at the feet.
Head block: 4" × 2½" block across the back of the leg tops, one #8 × 3" screw into each leg, pre-drilled.
Ledge: 10" × 5½", back edge bevelled 15°, ¼" × ⅜" groove 1¼" from the back. Two #8 × 3" screws through each leg from behind. No glue — cross grain.
Back leg: brass butt hinge on the head block, cord stop to the ledge.
Finished size: About 10¾" wide at the feet × about 19" tall, about 15" deep open and under 4" folded. Ledge 10" wide × about 5" deep, 4" up. Holds a canvas, sign or frame up to about 16" tall and 8 lb.
Before You Start
Shopping List
- 1 lumber pack — 8/4 Wide · 2ft (6–8" wide, S2S)
- 18 × #8 × 3" flat-head wood screws (6 per easel)
- 3 brass butt hinges, about 1½" × 1", with screws
- 6 small screw eyes and about 4 ft of thin cord or light chain
- Sandpaper 120 / 180 / 220
- Finish: wipe-on oil, hardwax oil or water-based poly
- 9 felt pads
Tools
- Saw for crosscuts (mitre saw or circular saw with a speed square) — with 10° setting
- Saw for rips (table saw, or circular/track saw with a guide) and push sticks
- Table saw with a tilting blade (15° bevel and the ledge groove)
- S2S only: jointer, straight-line rip jig or hand plane
- Drill/driver, countersink bit, pilot bits
- Tape measure, combination square, pencil
- Random-orbit sander or sanding block
Why S2S only? The 6–8" wide 8/4 boards come S2S: both faces planed, edges rough. Plan on losing about ¼" per edge when you straighten them.
Our sizing assumptions: ⅛" per saw cut · 6–8" wide 8/4 S2S boards trimmed ½" each end and ¼" off each rough edge (5½" clean at the narrowest), planned at 1¾" thick · sizes drawn for the narrowest board in the pack. Wider boards give you a bigger offcut or a wider part — never a shortage.
Step-by-Step
S2S Lumber Pack (6–8" wide)
Surfaced 2 sides — straighten edges first
- 1 Prep the boards. Trim ½" off each end to remove any end checks. Joint one edge straight, then rip the other edge parallel (¼" off each rough edge is our planning allowance).
- 2 Rip the legs. Rip boards 1, 2 and 3 into thirds down their length, about 1¾" wide each — nine square strips. Use push sticks. Crosscut each strip at 20". Each board gives one easel: two front legs and a back leg.
- 3 Cut the ledges and head blocks. Crosscut board 4 into two 10" ledges. Crosscut board 5 into one 10" ledge and three 4" blocks, then rip each block down to 2½" tall.
- 4 Cut the front leg tops. Set the mitre saw to 10°. Cut the top of each front leg at 10° so the two legs of a pair stand in an A, feet about 10¾" apart outside, with their tops level and touching at the centre. Trim the feet at the same 10° so they sit flat.
- 5 Shape the ledges. Tilt the table-saw blade to 15° and trim a whisker off the back edge of each ledge. Then cut a groove along the top, 1¼" in from the back edge, ¼" deep and ⅜" wide (two or three passes). The art stands in the groove and leans on the legs. The rest of the ledge is a tray for chalk or brushes.
- 6 Join the A. Lay a pair of front legs face down with the tops touching. Set a head block across the back of the tops, flush with the top ends. Pre-drill, countersink and drive one #8 × 3" screw through the block into each leg. Screws only: the block runs across the legs, so the grain crosses.
- 7 Attach the ledge. Flip the A face up. Mark 4" up from the feet on both legs. Set the ledge's bevelled back edge on the marks, centred, with its top level. Drive two pre-drilled #8 × 3" screws through each leg from behind into the ledge. No glue: the grain crosses.
- 8 Hinge the back leg. Square the top of the back leg. Lay it against the back of the head block, flush at the top and centred, and join them with a brass butt hinge, about 1½" × 1". Pre-drill the hinge screws with a 1/16" bit.
- 9 Add the stop. Twist a screw eye into the inside of the back leg 4" up from the foot and one into the underside of the ledge at the centre. Tie a cord between them so the back foot stops about 10" behind the front feet.
- 10 Sand and finish. Sand 120 → 180 → 220 and soften every edge so nothing scratches a frame. Wipe on 2–3 coats of oil or hardwax oil. Stick felt pads under all three feet.
Why an A-frame? Splayed front legs give a wide, steady stance on a table, and the tops meeting at one block keep the easel stiff side to side. A heavy canvas won't rack it.
Why screws and no glue on the ledge? The legs run up and down and the ledge runs across. That is cross grain. Glue there fails as the wood moves through the seasons. Two long pre-drilled screws per leg hold it solid.
Why groove the ledge? The bottom of the canvas or frame drops into the groove, so it can't slide forward off the ledge. The flat part in front holds chalk, brushes or a small plant.
Why pre-drill? Maple, oak and hickory split if you drive a screw without a pilot hole. Pre-drill every screw and countersink so the heads sit flush.
Make It Yours
- Adjustable ledge: drill a row of ⅜" holes up each front leg, 2" apart, and rest the ledge on two ⅜" dowel pegs instead of screwing it.
- Chalkboard sign: brush chalkboard paint on a piece of ¼" hardboard, about 11" × 14", for a café-style menu board.
- Bolt pivot: skip the hinge and pivot the back leg on a ⅜" carriage bolt through the head block with a wing nut.
Safety and Care
- Wear eye and hearing protection. Use a push stick for every rip under 4" wide.
- Rip the 1¾" leg strips with push sticks and a featherboard. When ripping the 15° bevel, keep the blade tilted away from the fence.
- Clamp the short head blocks before ripping them down — never hold a 4" part by hand at the blade. A bandsaw is safer for this cut.
- Pre-drill every screw — hardwoods split without a pilot hole.
Frequently Asked Questions
The 6–8" wide 8/4 pack comes S2S (faces planed, edges rough). Straighten the edges with a jointer, a table saw and a straight-line jig, a track saw, or a hand plane.
Canvases, signs and frames up to about 16" tall and 8 lb. Taller art still works but leans past the head block, so keep the ledge low and the back leg well open.
The cord is the stop. Shorten it and the easel stands more upright; lengthen it and it leans back more. A short brass chain looks tidy too.
Use a 4ft wide pack and cut the legs at 40" for a floor-standing easel about 38" tall. Move the ledge to about 16" up and add a second head block halfway down the front legs.
Planned offcuts: about 3" off the end of each leg strip, about 2¾" off board 4, and the strips ripped off the head blocks (our yield counts the full blocks). All 5 boards go into the easels.
Yes. A 4ft wide pack makes three floor easels about 38" tall: cut the legs at 40" and the ledges at 14". Or crosscut every board in half first and follow this plan twice for six tabletop easels.
