Project book · a weekend

Build a kids art easel

An A-frame easel with a chalkboard on one side and a paper roll on the other.

This fits in a car

About 34 lb of materials. Comfortably inside what a car carries (200 lb), so any shopper can take it. ⚠️ 6 items on the list have no weight on file, so the real load is a little heavier than this.

Before you start

Round and sand every corner a kid could fall against. Use pine or hardboard, never pressure-treated wood, on something small hands and mouths will be all over. The limiter chains are what stop it folding flat or tipping, so do not leave them off.

What to buy — untick anything you have

Lumber

Paint

Hardware

Supplies

Tools — already ticked off, since most people have them

Tools

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How it goes · about a weekend · beginner

  1. Cut four 48 in legs, rails to frame each panel, and two trays from the 1×3.
  2. Glue and screw each hardboard panel between two legs, and fit a tray along the bottom edge of each.
  3. Paint one panel with two coats of chalkboard paint, and give the wood a coat of clear finish.
  4. Join the two frames at the top with the hinges, and drill holes for the dowel on the other side to hold the paper roll.
  5. Fit a chain between the frames on each side with screw eyes, so the legs cannot spread and collapse.

Something else

Build a raised garden bedMulch a flower bedPaint a roomPut up garage shelvingFix a patchy lawnBuild a fire pitMount a TV on the wallCookout for a crowd

Feeding people instead? The recipe book works the same way — pick a meal, say how many, every ingredient lands on the list.

Build a kids art easel — everything for it, in one tap · DriverRuns