To make a simple laptop easel, obtain or cut one board of a size convenient for the sizes of the art tablets or canvasses you work with. Check the weight of the wood. Plywood makes a better choice than fiberboard, as particleboard products tend to swell, warp and deteriorate when they get damp. Select a thicker board for the lapboard. Many hardware and home improvement stores will cut the wood to the size you specify.
Buy some small slats to attach to the easel’s back for adjusting the angle and a strip of wood for the support bar. For plywood or other thin wood, cut or order some small squares of wood to use to reinforce the main board for attaching the hinges.
For the laptop easel project, obtain some small screws, short nails, a handle for carrying the easel and three hinges.
If you opt to cut wood for the easel at home, you will need a saw, in addition to sandpaper and a screwdriver.
Sand the edges of the wood to smooth it. You can look at examples of laptop easels to get ideas for how to customize yours (see References and Resources).
The basic concept involves attaching a hinge to the back of the large piece of wood near the top and attaching the top of the support bar to the hinge. Use screws to attach the hinge. If the wood is thin, reinforce it with a small square of wood and install the hinge on the reinforcement wood. The largest piece of wood provides the support for the art pad or canvas. You can use a heavier piece of wood for the easel’s base. This board will rest on your lap, and choosing a board up to ¾-inch thick will help the easel remain stable in windy conditions.
Use screws to attach two hinges—reinforced if necessary—to the lapboard and attach the large piece of wood to the lapboard. Fold the laptop easel at the hinges. The support bar folds inside, and the shorter lapboard folds against the large board. Use screws to attach the handle to the top edge of the lapboard.
Test the easel on your lap and use a pencil to mark the positions for the support bar to stop at. Screw small wooden slats at 2-inch intervals into the base piece of wood to provide the option of different angles for the easel.