We know it can be extremely confusing when you are shopping for an art easel simply because there are so many variations, brands and styles that it is extremely easy to become overwhelmed with the choices.  Table top easels are no different in our opinion and you will find the same number of choices and questions that you do with other painting easels.  So we want to try to help you make the right decision.

The first question you always want to ask yourself before purchasing a painting easel of any kind is what are you going to realistically use it for and what kind of space do you have available to paint.   If you are limited for space and you don’t have a dedicated room to use then a table top easel might be a great choice for you.  If you find yourself consistently working on smaller canvas paintings and don’t foresee moving to larger canvas then a tabletop easel again, might be the right choice for you.

Table top artist easels also make a great choice if you find yourself mobile and painting somewhere else often.  They tend to be smaller and lighter than some of the larger easels so this makes sense.  They are also traditionally a more economical choice than some of the larger easels so if money is tight then you may be able to stretch more bang for the buck out of a tabletop easel than you could a larger and more expensive easel.

It has been our experience that table top easels are  great choice for a wide variety of artists due to the simple versatility that they provide.  They are small and compact but can still hold most normal size canvas paintings.  They are inexpensive and lightweight but you don’t really concede hardly anything in regards to their usability.

As we stated earlier, table top artist easels also come in a variety of styles and designs and these include table top display easels as well as table top artist easels and painting easels.  The key for you is to determine what type of easel is best for you and then search online or in your local stores to find the best easel that offers you the features you want at a price that you can feel really good about.  Our experience has shown us that purchasing products online will typically save a considerable amount of money versus shopping locally but do your research for yourself and see what you find.

Do You Need an Artist Easel

The benefits of an artists easel might not be obvious to a new artist just starting out and the expense of purchasing an easel may be hard to justify. The benefits are many though and you will quickly see that working vertically on a painting mounted to an easel means that your painting is in the same plane that it will eventually be hung or displayed. You will find that the scale and the details will be easier to perfect than if you are working on a painting or a sketch in a horizontal plane. Then don’t forget that the risk of soiling your creation by spilling or dropping something on it will be reduced to almost nothing. The benefits start to become clear.

If that isn’t enough of a benefit to justify the cost of an artist easel then you must also consider that working at an artists easel is also much easier and efficient on you. You can elect to sit on a stool and paint or you can stand in front of the easel and easily step back and check colors or scale or shadow if you are sitting or standing in front of it. Anyone who has recently moved from a table to an easel will tell you that it is simply much more comfortable to use an easel than not.

Types of Artists Easels

So the question now changes from whether you need an artists easel to what is the best artists easel for your needs. The good news here is that there are several different types and hundreds of styles of artists easels out there on the market so it isn’t a question of whether the right one for you exists, simply which one is right for you.

Table-Top Easels
You might be in a cramped space like a small apartment where you don’t have a dedicated room to paint and you may need to repurpose the kitchen table or a desk somewhere. So if space is an issue then a table top easel is a great alternative. They fold up and you can store them in a closet and you can set them up in just a few minutes. These are available in a variety of sizes and styles and we would recommend that you consider the height of the surface that you are setting it on and whether you will be sitting or standing while painting before making a purchase. Be very cautious if you will have to bend down to paint as that is very hard on your back over time.

Studio Easels
When you think of an artists easel then chances are you are picturing a traditional studio easels. These are the large, free standing floor easels that artists use for the large canvas paintings that they create and it is traditionally the type of easel you see in movies. They come in a couple of varieties including a tripod (3 leg) design as well as a square foot (4 leg or H frame) design. The tripod seems to be more common but the square foot are more stable and less apt to tip over if you bump it inadvertently. Depending on the model that you purchase, studio easels can be very large, heavy and quite expensive. If you are working on the big canvas paintings, then you will need one but do your research.

French Easels
You may not have heard these referred to as a french easel but chances are you have seen them. A French easel is the swiss army knife of easels and is a three-in-one easel. It contains a sketch box, an easel, and a canvas carrier all in one. The sketch box holds your art supplies and palette while the legs and canvas arm break down to make it very simple to carry and be portable. This style of easel is very convenient if you often work in multiple places and need to take your easel with you. Perhaps you go away on the weekends or you attend classes or just like to paint at a friends house.

Sketching and Display Easels
An easel that you use for sketching or to display your art are typically portable and lightweight that are handy to move from place to place. You will want to check any easel you are considering purchasing to see if it folds down small enough for your needs. Display easels are intended to display your paintings and tend to be a bit too light to work on for very long. They are intended to hold the weight of a canvas and display it for all to see but that is about it.

Sketchbox or Paintbox Easels
These styles of easels are typically table top easels that have a sliding drawer or “box” that you can store your painting or drawing supplies. These are often a table top style easel and can be often be purchased with a limited amount of paints and brushes and supplies inside the drawer already. In that version it would be considered a starter kit type of configuration.

As we said earlier, there is no shortage of styles or variations of artists easels but when you find the right one of you, then you will know it. It isn’t just a piece of furniture or an accessory but rather it is as integral as the correct brush and paint to the finished product. Your art easel, whether it be a studio easel, portable easel or a table top easel should feel like an extension of yourself, and you are well on your way to finding the perfect artist easel for your needs.

There is no such thing as too young to express your artistic skills.  In fact, I would even go as far to say that the younger you can get a child started, the better off they are going to be.  Sure maybe there skills are not going to scream Rembrandt or Picasso, but giving your child the opportunity to express his or feelings on an art board can prove to be helpful in developing their mind through artistic creativity.

How Young?

The new Little Tikes Easel board was created specifically for…well, little tikes.  Kids as young as 2 years old can now grab a paint brush and paint their own version of whatever they’d like.  If you have more than one child, the easel itself is a two sided board so that two kids can work on their masterpieces and enjoy painting together at the same time.

I know what you are thinking.  2 year olds and paint inside your house sounds like a recipe for disaster.  But there is no need to worry.  The paint that you can purchase for your children to paint with is easily washable and will not stain the carpet, walls, ceiling, or wherever else your child can find to do his artistic work.

The Little Tikes Easel stands on its own just like a real easel so it makes it much easier for your kids to paint by standing up.  It also folds up easily and can be stored away in small areas when it is not in use.

The easel comes included with chalk and eraser if you prefer your kids paint without paint.  This way you can just wipe the easel clean once your children are done using it.  Or as I mentioned earlier, you can also buy easel pads and washable paint.  I would suggest sticking with the chalk for the younger ones, and then perhaps allowing your children over 4 to switch to real paint and real paper pads.

The Little Tikes Easel is safe for your kids and doesn’t have any small parts or protruding metal pieces.  Its made entirely of plastic and stands just under 4 foot tall from top to bottom.  The trays on the easel are easily removable so that you can clean them when your children are done.

You can find this product at your local toy stores or discount stores.  It’s also available online at sites like Amazon for just over $60.

A dry erase board easel is a nice little piece of technology that can be used for multiple tasks and by multiple people.  What it is in a nutshell is just a simple easel that you are able to write on and erase what you write simply by wiping the writing off.  The magic works by using a special marker that will not allow its substances to chemically stick on the white dry erase board.  If you happen to use the board with a different marker, the effect will not work and the easel will then be ruined.

Here are a few examples of where and when these dry erase board easels would come in handy.

Dry Erase Board Easel at Home:

Many people have these easels in a magnetic form up on their refrigerators or hanging on the wall.  They are used primarily for leaving passing messages to each other or reminders about specific chores.  We used to use one to let each of our roommates know how much we owed in bills each month.  They are also used to write down just about anything like telephone numbers, recipes, grocery lists, and appointments.

In School:

Many schools are now replacing the old blackboard chalk boards with new giant dry erase board easels.  These easels are much easier to read and much easier to write on as well.  They definitely aren’t as messy and will also allow you to use different colors to write with.

Businesses:

Meetings at work can now be conducted by using a dry erase board easel.  They also make these in portable styles as well so you can easily wheel them in and out as needed.  These are great to put daily specials and deals to be presented to the customers as they walk in.  Im sure many of you have seen them in restaurants listing the daily lunch or dinner specials.

Sports:

Coaches in just about every sport now are using these dry erase boards as they are so easy to draw up plays and show assignments at half time or pregame.  You can even buy these easels with preformatted lines.  For example, a basketball coach would use a dry erase board easel that had the lines of a basketball court or a football coach would have used one with all of the lines and hashes of a football grid.

These easels can be used as a convenience in just about any place possible.  Substitute what you are using now with one of these dry erase boards and then you will see firsthand why every facility is beginning to use them as well.

Art and painting is not just a hobby or passion for adults and grownups.   Kids too should be allowed to be creative and express their feelings in the form of art and painting.  There are plenty of easels for kids that will help them learn and succeed in art which will help them in developing their lives in other aspects as well.  Searching for an art easel for kids can make a great gift that continues to give well into the future.

Providing an easel for your kids to draw on will help your children learn to be more creative and are a perfect tool to perform homework and other tasks on as well.  Kids will absolutely love the fact that they will have a “work” area just like the parents and will take to it in a serious manner.  This is a great experience for the parents as well to be able to see their little ones working so diligently on a project. You may consider an art easel for kids as one of the best investments you will ever make.

Because your children will take to this as a work area it will help them improve motor skills and develop stronger work ethics and a more creative and influential mind.  Not to mention the fact that they will also keep your children busy for hours and allow you to do things that you wouldn’t otherwise.

Easels for kids come in either the stand up version or the table top version.  Both of which are great choices but each have their own unique purposes.  If you want your child to draw or paint specifically the stand up version may be better suited.  Or if your child might be calmer and more collected sitting down, the table top version would be your best choice.

The table top version of art easel for kids often comes as a multi-sided easel.  Some have a chalk board or dry erase board on one side and a game board on the other.  This way your children can flip the easel and choose to play on whichever side they see fit.  The sit down or table top easels are probably better suited for the younger kids who may not be able to stand up and reach the tripod easels.

Searching for easels for kids is a fairly easy process these days mainly because of the internet.  Sure you can get them at your local discount or local toy stores, but you may find that you will have more choices finding one for a cheaper price online.  Be sure to read several reviews and make sure that you do find a safe and durable art easel for your kids before you buy.