MAKE AN… EASEL

Show off your mini masterpiece using a simple lolly stick easel stand. USE

four lolly sticks for the easel. Cut one into four rectangles, using the picture as a guide for sizes – two fit onto the back of the easel, one is the ledge at the front to hold the framed picture, and the other is stuck to the top of the completed easel to add stability and cover the hinge. You will also need a paper clip and a small piece of plastic aida or ribbon to create the hinge.

USE

something flexible like plasic aida to make a hinge at the top of the easel. Attach the hinge material to one lolly stick with glue, and then to the top of the easel at the back. Again, it may help to use a clothes peg to hold it firmly until the glue is dry. Glue a small rectangle of wood to the top of the easel, and one to make a shelf at the front.

PLACE

two lolly sticks on the table, with the tops nearly touching, and the bottoms apart to form a ‘V’ shape. Place one of the small rectangles of wooden stick at the bottom of the ‘V’ and the larger one halfway up. When you are happy with the position, use tacky glue to hold them in place. You could add a clothes peg to hold the parts in place until dry.

UNFOLD

a paper clip, and then bend into a ‘U’ shape with the cut ends facing downwards. Place the ‘U’ around the back strut, with the ends coming out at the middle front. Clip the ends over the middle joining piece towards the shelf. The easel can be left as natural wood or painted with acrylic or a match pot of emulsion.