Friday 2 April 2010

How to set-up your French easel (on your own)


This will seem very basic if you've owned a French easel for a long time, but can you save you some guess work if you just acquired one.




First extend the back leg which is folded under the box of the easel.



Then comes the tricky part. I balance the box on my knee and hold one side of the box with my hand.



I unfold one the leg opposite to the side I am holding with my hand.


Standing on two legs, the easel is more stable and I don't need the support of my knee any more. I can now unfold the third leg.




I make sure the box is level and adjust the extension of the leg if necessary (if the surface is bumpy).



Now I can open the box and get ready to paint.





7 comments:

jimserrettstudio said...

Balancing it on one leg and on your knee is a great method. I will have to try it with my next outing. I've been extending all three legs half way and setting it down and adjusting the height.
This definitely looks easier.

I also have to say every artist should have a French easel they are one of the most versatile pieces of equipment one can own in the studio or in the field.

As always thanks for the useful information.

rateyourart said...

I would of had no idea of how to do that.
What a marvelous site with so much good information.

Anonymous said...

thank you so much!

Valerie said...

I used my french easel a few times a couple years back but couldn't remember how today. So I looked at videos online, no help. But when I found your instructions they were so easy, and balancing it on one knee saved me a lot of work. Thanks so much! Now I'm taking it outdoors to paint.

Benoit Philippe said...

I am glad you found this post useful.

Regards,

Benoit

Anonymous said...

Wow I can't thank you enough. I could not figure out how to bring the two front legs out. I was not aware of the hinge holding them to the box on the side. It simply wasn't depicted in the instructions. Your photos were the perfect solution. I would have taken it to the store for help.
Merci Benoit! Hugs

Unknown said...

Thank-you for the very easy instructions. Bought my first easel and with some wonderful help from my very young grand-daughter, we lost the instructions :D Without your site I would have still been holding the side legs in my hands knowing something wasn't right :D

Kari W