Most people start paint by numbers flat on the kitchen table. It works for an hour. After two, the neck usually has an opinion. An easel changes the angle, and that is about all it does, which is reason enough for some people.
Flat on the table
Good for small canvases and for acrylics you want to stay put. Paint will not run, and you can rest your hand on the table beside the canvas. The cost is posture: you look down at the work at an angle all evening.
Upright on an easel
An easel puts the work in front of your eyes instead of below them. It also lets you step back and see the picture whole, which helps with shading in pets and faces. The downsides are small: wet paint can drip if you load the brush heavily, and you need a spot where the easel will not be knocked.
Which canvas fits
This is where tabletop easels get misjudged. Our Pine Tabletop Easel is light pine on a tripod, 44 cm at the legs, with a wing nut at the apex that sets the angle and holds it. It folds flat when the evening is over. It costs $22.95. The ledge is 30 cm across. A 30x40 cm canvas sits on it squarely. The 40x50 cm size we recommend on most kits will overhang at both ends. It balances and plenty of people paint that way, but if you want a canvas supported end to end, this is not the easel for that size.
A setup that works either way
- Light from the side opposite your painting hand, so your arm does not shade the canvas.
- Paints, water and a damp cloth within reach, not on the canvas side.
- Start with the lightest numbers, then work darker.
- Take a break every 40 minutes or so. Standing up and looking across the room does more for your eyes than any gadget.
The workspace basics are covered in our setup guide. If you are ordering a picture of your own, a custom kit in 12"x16" (30x40 cm) is the format that fits the tabletop easel without overhang.
